foxglove

plural foxgloves · alternative fox-glove

1. Any member of the genus Digitalis of about twenty species of herbaceous biennials native to the Old World, certain of which are prized for their showy flowers. The drug digitalis or digoxin was first isolated from the plant.

   There were bunches of wild garlic to keep out evil spirits, foxgloves for healing spells and hemlock and vervain for darker magic.

   1971, Richard Carpenter, Catweazle and the Magic Zodiac, Harmondsworth: Puffin Books, page 41

   2 more examples

   Jemima alighted rather heavily, and began to waddle about in search of a convenient dry nesting-place. She rather fancied a tree-stump amongst some tall fox-gloves.

   1908, Beatrix Potter, The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck, New York: Frederick Warne & Co

   I wonder whether the witches would be wearing on their fingers their ornaments of foxglove blossoms, often called witches' bells or harebells, sometimes known as witches' thimbles.

   1940, Rosetta E. Clarkson, Green Enchantments: The Magic Spell of Gardens, The Macmillan Company, page 258

   Synonyms: dog's fingers, finger flower, sea violet