Foxglove is also a powerful diuretic, and was originally employed among the common people as a cure for dropsy (edema). It was even known as Lus Mor ("great herb") to Irish peasants. A character in George Eliot's Silas Marner "saw the cobbler's wife seated by the fire, suffering from the terrible symptoms of heart disease and dropsy which he had witnessed as the precursors of his mother's death. He felt a rush of pity at the mingled sight and remembrance, and, recalling the relief his mother had found from a simple preparation of foxglove, he promised Sally Oates to bring her something that would ease her, since the doctor did her no good."
In the late 1700's British botanist and doctor William Withering learned about this herbal treatment from "an old woman from Shropshire." He discovered that it did, indeed, relieve the symptoms of heart disease. And so digitalis became one of the most important plant-derived drugs in history.
Foxglove makes a gorgeous garden plant also, and doesn't mind shade. But the types that I've tried appeared to dislike the richer, wetter sections of the garden. They seem to prefer to grow, as Gerard commented, "in barren sandy ground."
This tendency for foxglove to "go its own way" should be a warning to us. If treated with respect by people who know what they're doing, so-called toxic plants can be a Godsend. But careless use frequently leads to disaster. As an old saying about foxglove warns direly, "It can raise the dead, but it can kill the living."
Note: Photos are by author, all rights reserved, and may not be copied or reproduced without permission. Image is from Carl Lindman's Bilder ur Nordens Flora, courtesy of the Texas Vascular Plant Image Gallery at http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/gallery .
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