Ceratotheca triloba

Ceratotheca triloba

Family: Pedaliaceae

Common names: Wild foxglove, vingerhoedblom.

The wild foxglove varies in height, depending on the amount of water it receives during the summer. In the garden, with regular watering, they grow 1.5 – 2 meters tall. Some plants become quite bushy while others remain single-stemmed. The soft, green leaves are about 50mm long and divided into 3 lobes with a bluntly serrated margin. The leaves are carried on long thin stalks up the stems. Plants with pink flowers usually have dark red stems while the white-flowering form have yellow-green stems. Cerathotheca triloba is used in traditional medicine to treat painful menstruation, stomach cramps, nausea, fever and diarrhea.

Sowing instructions: Sow the seed evenly and not too thickly, in seed trays filled with a well-drained medium. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of white sand or fine milled bark, water well and place the tray in light shade. Germination is usually very good, but the young seedlings are often a bit slow to grow initially. They respond very well to feeding with organic fertilizer like Seagro or Humac as an initial boost.

Locality: Ex Hort. Harvest: November 2024