Nothing captures the deep, seductive languor of high summer quite like the nodding purple-clustered spires of foxgloves. Whether they're waving shadily at the back of a cottage garden, enchanting a midsummer woodland glade or spectacularly crowding forestry clearfells, railway embankments or a forgotten patch of rough ground behind the supermarket, foxgloves are as recognisable and loved as they are feared.
Summer walks as a child beside my formidable Northamptonshire Nan were punctuated by floral wisdoms. The roadside racemes of tumbling, tubular bells would always get a nod and "thar'll raise the dead and fell the living!" Every part of this cardiac curative is also poisonous.
Flowering from June to September, foxgloves are a valuable source of nectar, and the leaves and flowers are eaten by moth caterpillars, such as the foxglove pug and yellow underwing. But foxgloves have a particular relationship with bees, their premier pollinator - especially long-tongued species such as the common carder. The surly, protruding lower lip of the down-sloping bells acts as a landing pad. Dark spots inside each flower's pale throat act as guiding landing lights, detected by a bee's ultraviolet vision.
To encourage cross-pollination, foxgloves have evolved to maximise a bee's methodical foraging style. The lower flowers - which are female-open first and as the bee pushes up the corolla tube to sip the nectar at the back, it is covered in pollen. Once it reaches the still-closed male flowers, it flies to the bottom of another plant to begin again, rattling and ringing the clapperless bells. When the flowers have been open a few days, the pollen-bearing stamens wither and the receptive male style protrudes to accept pollen deposits from another plant.
COTTAGE GARDEN DELIGHT
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der June 2023-Ausgabe von BBC Countryfile Magazine.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der June 2023-Ausgabe von BBC Countryfile Magazine.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
FARMERS ARE THE ORIGINAL FIRST RESPONDERS
Across the country, a secret army is at work, coming to the rescue at times of crisis and springing into action when their communities are in danger.
Nicola Chester
Building more affordable homes is vital for the survival of rural communities
Hush... it's spring!
The colours and scents of spring are exhilarating after a long, gloomy winter, but to fully appreciate the power of the season, shut your eyes and listen, urges Ajay Tegala
In hope of a bright future for our national parks
At experts came the height of the Second World War, a group of remarkable together for the first time.
Wild London walks
From vast parks and ancient woods to overgrown graveyards and flower-banked canals, England's capital is filled with green surprises. Discover them on foot with six sensational London walks
The truth about dogs
As arookie dog owner, Cotswolds writer James Fair was overwhelmed with advice and dire warnings about how to care for his puppy. But how many of the often-repeated truths about canines are really myths?
TOP 10 ROMANTIC RUINS
For a thrilling encounter with history, fall in love with a crumbling castle or tumbledown church this spring, swoons Dixe Wills
THE GREAT SOLAR DEBATE
If developers have their way, miles of Oxfordshire farmland will soon be covered with solar panels. Many local people are opposed but how vital is this sustainable energy for our countryside? Andrew Griffiths investigates
DISCOVER 100 miles of heaven
Looking for an adventure? An intoxicating mix of rolling downland, sleepy hamlets and wave-hewn cliffs makes the South Downs Way one of Britain's loveliest walks. Dixe Wills reveals the highlights of six days on the trail
THE COMEBACK KITE
Once virtually extinct in Britain, a magnificent bird of prey now thrives in British skies. What went so right? Nicola Chester profiles the red kite