The folks up the hill at Tony’s Foodland are so cruel. Right inside the first set of sliding doors, to your left, where you can’t help but see them are all the seeds and bulbs. It’s like the grown-up equivalent of the candy aisle. I do not have enough self-control to walk by and not buy something.
So, yesterday, I bought some gladiolus bulbs and some ixia bulbs (I suspect that neither of those things are actually bulbs, though. Gladiolus are definitely corms. Ixia may be, too.). Everything demands to be somewhere well-drained. In my yard, this is like demanding to be placed on the moon. But what can you do? You have to try to oblige, right?
So, I have placed the gladiolus by the front of the shed, in the only sunny spot where the peas grew last year. This will add some nice color there, and, if they need some support, we can tie them to the framework the peas grew up. I know they get really tall, but I’m not exactly sure what constitutes “really,” so they may end up looking really cool.
The front of the shed is just this really white surface and it gets a lot of sun. I really want to grow something tall and colorful and striking there. If I can get the Butcher to help me do some prep work, it might be a good spot for hollyhocks.
The ixia I put in at the edge of the perennial bed. We’ll have to see how that goes. I need to get a good measure this year of where exactly the peonies are in that bed so that I can more effectively plant around them. Still, I’m excited. Much of what I planted last year will bloom for the first time this summer. Not only will that be awesome, it will give me a good idea of where the bare spots in the bed are going to end up being.
Oooo, and my seeds came! So, now I have lots of questions and have to settle on where everything should go.
But here is my main question. Last year, I tried to plant foxglove along the shady side of the house, where the bluebells are now coming up. Nothing came of it. Which, you know, fine, now I have the bluebells there and, hopefully, they will take over that whole side of the house. But I really would like foxglove in my garden. And I have foxglove seeds. And, in general, foxglove are pretty hearty. They reseed themselves, blah blah blah. Should I try again direct sewing them or should I start them in the house? My goal, honestly, was to start nothing in the house this year, but there are a few things I really, really want to have in my garden.
Okay, I have talked myself into it. Now I just have to figure out how to rearrange the cacti to give me a sunny spot in a window to start seeds.
Tiny Cat Pants 
It does look creepy.
This site has info about growing it. I don’t know what your site is like but maybe you planted too early? Too much shade?
http://oldfashionedliving.com/foxgloves.html
I’m trying to resist the garden pron, too, and it helps that my entire yard is one mucky mess. No point in planting just yet as it’ll just rot. Plus, unless I put things under a cold frame, they might well get nipped by the frosts that I know will return between now and mid-May.
Start the foxgloves inside. Dunno, I know they’re supposed to be hearty but mine have been *really* picky about how much sun they like. Some shade, but not too much, etc.
I had pretty good luck starting the hollyhocks inside too. Maybe my seed was just old, but that which I sowed outside never did diddly.