Classification

Domain: Eukarya
    All members of the domain Eukarya posses a true nucleus with linear DNA as well as membrane bound organelles.

Kingdom: Plantae
    The kingdom Plantae are a group of eukaryotic organisms that are generally photosynthetic, containing chloroplasts. They share a freshwater algal
    ancestor (green algae). There are many factors that distinguish them from other kingdoms, but some of the main ones are the fact that they posses
    cell walls made of cellulose and they store their food as starch.

Phylum:  Magnoliophyta 
    This phylum consists of almost a quarter million species of angiosperms, also know as flowering plants. These plants, obviously, posses seeds, however
    their seeds have endosperms with in them. Additionally, they posses flowers and fruits as well. Their flowers, however, are not just for looks. They
    actually are specialized structures for sexual reproduction.

Class: Magnoliopsida
    Magnoliopsida are also known as dicotyledons. Their embryo consists of two cotyledons. Go to Hibiscus rosa-sinensis or Psidium guajava to compare
    the common foxglove to other members of this class. 

Order: Scrophulariales
    This consists of plants that usually have a superior ovary and a lack of stipules. Additionally, they either have an irregular corolla, fewer stamens than
    corolla lobes, or even both.

Family: Scrophulariaceae
    The common name for the Scrophulariaceae family is the figwort family. This family is characterized as having irregular or bilateral flowers that are
    bisexual. Also, another another very unique characteristic is that their flowers have two pairs of anther-bearing stamens, as well as a fifth stamen that is
    sterile.

Genus: Digitalis
    The common name of this genus is foxglove. Their scientific name means finger-like, due to the fact that the flower of a digitalis can fit over a human
    finger with ease.

Species: Purpurea
    This species is classified as being biennial, meaning that it takes two years for the plant to complete its life cycle. This plant is also the source of
    Digitalis, which is prescribed by doctors for heart problems.  

Here is a phlyogenetic tree of land plants. It shows how the Digitalis purpurea, which is an Angiosperm, relates to the rest of the land plants, ranging from Hepatophytes to Pterophytes. However, you might be wondering what Hepatophytes, Anthocerophytes, Byrophyte, Lycophytes, Pterophytes, Gymnosperms, and Angiosperms. Hepatophytes are liverworts. Antherocerophytes are hornworts. Byrophytes are mosses. Lycophytes include club mosses, spike mosses, and quillworts. Pterophytes include ferms, horsetails, and whisk ferns. Gymnosperms are are plants with naked seeds and Angiosperms are plants that use reproductive structures like flowers and fruits. This tree is based on the shared derived characteristics between these groups, as well as evolutionary interpretations.

This tree shows the break down of the Digitalis pupurea starting from the phylum it is in, Magniolophyta. Then it breaks down into the class, order, family, genus, species, it is in (as shown on top). The classifications on the bottom are the closest related groups to each ranking. 

To learn more about where you can find the common foxglove go to Habitats.