Summary ²

Lobelia cardinalis (syn. L. fulgens, cardinal flower) is a species of flowering plant in the bellflower family Campanulaceae native to the Americas, from southeastern Canada south through the eastern and southwestern United States, Mexico and Central America to northern Colombia.

Description ³

Family:
Campanulaceae (Bellflower)

Height:
2 to 4 feet

Leaves:
Alternate, dark green, with irregular teeth, up to 6" long

Flower:
Bright red, alternate on stem forming a spike, irregular shape (3 lower and 2 upper petals) forming a tube

Bloom time:
July-September

Nicknames:
Lobelia, Asthma Weed, Gagroot, Bladderpod

Habitat:
Tolerates part shade to sun. A common plant of wet meadows, moist open woodlands, and pond or marsh edges.

Wildlife Benefits:
Nectar source for hummingbirds and some swallowtail butterflies.

Can I plant this in my garden?
Cardinal flower does well in moist to wet soils high in organic matter. Keep soil damp if planted in full sun. It is a short-lived perennial so it must re-seed to persist.

References:
https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/cardinal-flower
https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/wetland/plants/cardinal.htm

Range ³

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District, all rights reserved, uploaded by Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District
2. Adapted by Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobelia_cardinalis
3. (c) Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Calflora
• CalPhotos
• eFloras.org
• Flora of North America (beta)
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• Go Botany
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
• IPNI (with links to POWO, WFO, and BHL)
• Jepson eFlora
• Maryland Biodiversity Project
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• SEINet Symbiota portals
• Tropicos
• USDA PLANTS database
• VASCAN by Canadensys
• World Flora Online
• 日本のレッドデータ検索システム
• 植物和名−学名インデックス YList

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