Digitalis purpurea range of colours from white through pink to purple, such as "Dalmatian Purple". Cultivated forms often show flowers completely surrounding the central spike, in contrast to the wild form, where the flowers only appear on one side. "D. purpurea" is easily grown from seed or purchased as potted plants in the spring. The following selections have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit: "Digitalis purpurea" is hardy to zones 4-9. Digoxigenin (DIG) is a steroid found exclusively in the flowers and leaves of the plants "Digitalis purpurea" and "Digitalis lanata". It is used as a molecular probe to
Radioactive contamination from the Rocky Flats Plant of substantial contamination from the 1957 plutonium fire until after the highly visible 1969 fire, when civilian monitoring teams confronted government officials with measurements made outside the plant of radioactive contamination suspected to be from the 1969 fire, which consumed hundreds of pounds of plutonium (850 kg). The 1969 fire raised public awareness of potential hazards posed by the plant and led to years of increasing citizen protests and demands for plant closure. Releases from previous years had not been reported publicly prior to the fire; airborne-become-groundborne radioactive contamination extending well beyond the Rocky Flats plant was not publicly reported