PlantFiles: Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis

All of mine came up as surprises...I have no clue where they came from. They self sow profusely. I have harvested the seeds and they have never let me down...and grow just about anywhere I have spread the seeds. The hummingbirds flock to them and seem to stake them out as part of their territory, so they are a wonderful asset to any garden.

I have successfully rooted cuttings of this plant under a glass jar in a pot of miracle grow on my shady front porch. I have the red-violet or magenta colored form of the wildflower. It is not a hybrid.

For decades I admired Lobelia cardinalis when I would encounter it in Massachusetts wetlands. I also found it when I lived in the Midwest and in Texas. Now that I am back in New England and have my own garden, I decided to try to grow this beautiful wildflower.

I purchased a plant in May 2008 from a reputable area nursery. It had three stalks. I planted it in a sunny location, and gave it plenty of water. As time went by, more stalks sprouted. I then bought four more plants. These four did not survive, probably because they were planted at a time when we had 90+-degrees weather (the heat was not helpful to the plants already stressed from transplanting). This year (2009), the first plant I had bought last year came back, strong and healthy. The nursery replaced the four plants I had lost last year.

All but one of my plants have flowered beautifully, and hummingbirds have been paying frequent visits!

My plants are now getting ready to make seeds. For this year, I think I'm going to leave the plants alone to see if they self-sow. The intensely pure scarlet red of this flower makes it worth the effort to try to get it to grow in the garden.

One of the most intense, deep red flowers. The only drawback is that it will make you realize how your other red flowers aren't as intensely red as you thought in comparison. It is must in a native rain garden, and likes well-drained soil that gets a bit more rain runoff than usual (swales and depressions in your garden). It can tolerate some drought as well, as it is very deep rooted.

As others have said, it is a hummingbird magnet supreme. We have honeysuckle, trumpet vine, columbine, monarda, royal catchfly, etc., but none of our other hummingbird-attracting plants draw them like cardinal flower.

It looks really good interplanted with its sibling great blue lobelia (L. siphilitica) with its blue flowers matching the cardinal flowers in intensity of color, and their similar bloom time.

It is a shorter lived species than siphilitica, but as some have pointed out reseeds readily. Still, in a mature native garden with lots of assertive species, you may need to add a few plants from time to time. You'll probably find yourself adding a few more plants in future years just because you want more of it as time goes by anyway.

I have had enormous success with this lobelia, which I planted from 4" pots. The first year, they just sort of sat there (like most perennials), but each successive year the plants have done wonderfully, and I have divided them several times. They are extremely easy to grow and only require being consistently moist, and not allowed to dry out.

A great brilliant red !

This is 37" out of the pot and doing great. I got it when is was very small and it's just doing great in 10b ZONE.....

I was a bit confused at the beginning because the flower arose from a stem that was over an inch wide. Infact it looked like more of a stalk then a stem. Hap

Hummingbirds flew to the plants as I was carrying them to the backyard after purchasing them at Lowe's Garden Center.

Hummingbirds fiercely guard my Lobelia cardinalis, sometimes even chasing me away from them.

Easily grown and propagated.

The hummingbirds would not leave this flower alone. It survived the winter and came back in my zone 5. Always a positive. I did need to stake the flower stalk a bit in the midwest winds.

The pH requirements listed for this plant are questionable. It grows in the Appalachian Mountains wild, but the soil is very acid. I also see it growing in ditches regularly. I don't think it needs good drainage. It may tolerate soil that is mildly alkaline but my experience is that it likes acid soil.

While I have not yet tried to grow the domesticated version of this plant at my current Zone 7 location, when I lived in a Zone 6 mountain area of Virginia, I had quite a few of the wild plants growing along the marshy edges of a stream that flowed thru a dense woodland area of my property.

The plants were truly lovely & the flowers seemed to "glow" in the dense shade. A really true brilliant red. With all the deer we had there, they never touched these plants, so I assume that this might be a good plant for gardeners with a moist shady area + a deer problem.

This plant has a beautiful, firey red flower. In cold winter areas much to protect from frost heaving. In the warmer winter areas winter mulch may rot the crowns. This plant selfsows prolifically. pokerboy.

The Lobelia species contains alkaloid lobeline which is poisonous in large doses but in small quantities is used in a number of medicinal preparations used quit smoking, revive persons from drug overdoses or as a psychoactive drug.

An interesting historical account relates that cardinal flower and lobelia, in sites in Nebraska were found in close association to historic Pawnee villages, suggesting the Pawnee introduced and cultivated it. Another source relates that Cherokee medicine men cultivated it for medicinal purposes.

This plant pops up in the shady dampish back water marsh areas of the Wisconscin River (zone 4b). But ut never seems to show up in the same place two years in a row.

Hummingbirds like this. Great late bloomer in my area when most bright colors have faded.

I have just planted a Cardinal Flower Lobelia in a damp area. I hope it will survive there. I bought it at a watergarden nursery.

excellent pond plant

a hummingbird magnent.

I found these plants flowering near the bank of the lake where I live. I am watching carefully for ripe seeds for my garden. The flowers are absolutely beautiful and blooming when my late season garden could use a big shot of dazzaling color like this.

The plants I have produced large, showy spikes of red flowers. It definitely prefers moist soil and will grow from seeds if the soil conditions are favorable. This flower is a hummingbird attractor.

An upright perennial native to North America.

Has lance shaped, mid to bronzy green, shiny, toothed leaves borne on reddish or green fleshy stems. Bears 2-lipped, bright red flowers on tall flower spikes.

Flowers July - September

Loves a moist but well drained soil in sun or light shade. Make sure the soil never dries out for too long.