Elegant, bell-shaped Foxglove Alba White flowers from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden rise among wildflowers in a quaint garden scene with a wooden shed—ideal for growing from Foxglove Alba White seeds.
Elegant, bell-shaped Foxglove Alba White flowers from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden rise among wildflowers in a quaint garden scene with a wooden shed—ideal for growing from Foxglove Alba White seeds.A close-up of Foxglove Alba White by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden showcases tall, white, bell-shaped blooms—ideal for a moon garden—set against a soft-focus backdrop of lush greenery and trees.A yellow round badge with a black and white bee, encircled by "RHS PLANTS FOR POLLINATORS"—perfect for cottage garden fans growing Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden Foxglove Alba White seeds.A cottage garden showcases tall white Foxglove Alba White flowers from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden, mingled with wildflowers. Green foliage and trees frame a rustic wooden structure partially visible in the background.Tall stalks of Foxglove Alba White from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden bloom beside a wire fence in a cottage garden, surrounded by greenery and set against a blue sky.Foxglove Alba White by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden grows tall beside a wire fence and wooden posts in a lush garden, with trees and a cloudy blue sky in the background.
Biennial Pollinator

Foxglove Alba White

Digitalis purpurea f. albiflora — white foxglove; Alba

£2.20approx. 1,000 (very fine) seeds

Tall majestic spires of pure white bell-shaped flowers — the elegant white Foxglove that glows at dusk and lights up shaded cottage borders.

Sowing months
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Height
120–180cm
Spread
45cm
Spacing
45cm
Position
Partial Shade
Soil
Humus-rich, moisture-retentive; partial to full shade preferred
Grow guide
How to grow Foxglove Alba White
Read the full guide →
About this variety

Spires of pure white bells at 1.2 to 1.5m, faintly cream-speckled inside the throats. The pale colour gathers what light is left at dusk, which is why white foxgloves turn up in every evening border and moon garden.

It is a biennial. Leaves in year one, the display in year two, then it dies, having dropped enough seed to start the next colony. Left alone it wanders round a garden, coming up where it fancies rather than where you put it, which is most of the charm. Long-tongued bumblebees have co-evolved with that bell shape and work it obsessively.

One caution about the white: it does not stay white in a mixed population. Cross-pollinated by ordinary purple foxgloves nearby, seedlings revert to purple within a generation or two. Pull anything that comes up coloured if you want to keep an all-white drift.

Every part of a foxglove is highly toxic and eating any of it can be fatal. Wear gloves to handle the plants, keep the seed packet away from small children, and do not plant it where pets or grazing animals can reach it.

Plant alongside

Foxglove Alba White pairs beautifully with these cottage garden classics

Foxglove Excelsior Mix
Foxglove Excelsior Mix
£2.15
Aquilegia Columbine Blue
Aquilegia Columbine Blue
£2.55
Foxglove Bishy Barnabee Mix
Foxglove Bishy Barnabee Mix
£2.00

RHS Plants for Pollinators

This plant has been assessed by the Royal Horticultural Society and recommended as especially beneficial to bees, butterflies and other pollinators. Growing plants like this directly supports UK pollinator populations — something close to our hearts at Salle Moor Hall Farm, where we see the difference a cottage garden full of the right plants can make.

Learn more at RHS.org.uk →