Digitalis ‘Illumination Flame’

When the most prestigious garden show in the world picks a winner, gardeners everywhere pay attention. Digitalis ‘Illumination Pink’ was awarded “Best New Plant” at the 2012 Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show. Since that time, acclaim and praise for these hybrids has quickly spread throughout Europe. And the 2013 introduction of Digitalis ‘Illumination Flame’ (syn. Digiplexis™ Illumination™ ‘Flame’) to the US market has added further heat to the horticultural flurry.

Digitalis ‘Illumination Flame’ (syn. Digiplexis™ Illumination™ ‘Flame’) produces continuous spires of blooms from summer through fall. 
Photo: courtesy of Cultivaris

Genius plant breeder Charles Valin with the Thompson & Morgan seed company dreamed of a cross between Digitalis purpurea, common foxglove, and Isoplexis canariensis, an orange-flowered foxglove family relative native to the Canary Islands. The breeding project was a success and came to fruition in 2006, resulting in an exotic looking plant with the superior qualities of both parents. In publicity surrounding its introduction many articles refer to it as an interg...