Lobelia

Lovely Lobelias at Nature Hills Nursery!

There are more than 200 species of annual and perennial Lobelia grown around the world! Found growing mostly in the temperate and tropical zones. Lobelia are a large genus of plants belonging to the Bell Flower family, and the name Lobelia is derived from the sixteenth-century Flemish botanist, Matthias de Lobel.

Medicinally, Lobelia flowers were once associated with the treatment and cure of lung-related ailments. Some of these ailments are asthma, bronchitis, coughs, pneumonia, and other upper respiratory problems. But their unique blooms and dramatic colors have earned them a modern reputation as garden gems and seasonal container accents!

Being small and tubular-shaped blossoms with fan-shaped lower petals, Lobelia's blooms display a variety of colors that range from red and pink to blue, purple, yellow and white.

From the green lance-leafed upright forms, the black-leafed Cardinal Flower types, to the heat-tolerant Bronze Leaf™ forms, Lobelia also includes low-growing types with tiny spreading foliage as well!

Landscaping With Lobelia

Fast becoming a popular garden and bedding plant, Lobelia produces beautifully attractive flowers and vivid colors for pollinators and landscape enhancement.

Use Laguna White, Sky, or Compact Blue as fantastic low-growing edging and filler flowers in beds, fillers and spillers in large pots, window boxes, and hanging baskets!

The big and bold Cardinal Flower or the more dramatic Black Truffle Cardinal Flower form towering red flower spikes that are irresistible to Hummingbirds! Or include the large, alluring pink blooms of Monet Moment Lobelia in Cottage gardens and pollinator borders! You'll even love adding them to your bouquets and floral arrangements!

Starship Scarlet Bronze Leaf™ Lobelia and Great Blue Lobelias look incredible in poolside planters or as dramatic height in front porch container gardens! Dress them up or dress them down, these gorgeous blooming perennials and annual accents fit the bill!

All do incredible in the Rain Garden and along moist water features in the sun or shade. Plant the Fan Scarlet Lobelia as part of a pond planting to give dragonflies a place to alight and rest!

Caring For Lobelia

These plants like moist, well-drained soil that is rich in organic matter, and even thrive in boggy to high-moisture conditions. This plant requires full sun for some forms to full shade for others, especially those planted in the hottest of their favored USDA growing zones 9 to 11. However, Lobelia can also be remarkably cold-hardy down to hardiness zones 3 to 4.

Provide regular moisture for these plants and do not let them dry out. They appreciate a 3-4 inch thick layer of arborist mulch or bark chips to hold moisture consistently and enrich the soil.

To promote further growth, the colorful spikes should be removed as the flowers fade. This plant can be self-seeding deadheading will reduce this in areas where seed dispersal isn't wanted. Shear groundcover Lobelia after flowering to encourage a rebloom!

Every 3-5 years, perennial Lobelia can and should be divided in the fall.

Order Lobelia Plants At Nature Hills