Blue Lobelia - Add some late season color to your garden with this attractive native perennial

Blue lobelia is a great late season perennial that will attract both bees and hummingbirds to your garden.

[@helenaragon6539]

I have these all over they spread like a fire....they are beautiful the bees love them.....I'm glad I planted them.

[@Jem544]

Very nice! Thanks for the comment ☺️

[@itswilliee]

I really appreciate you promoting growing native plant species! 🙏 living in California almost every plant we see is non native and it’s hurting us

[@Jem544]

Thanks for the comment. Planting native makes a big difference.

[@edwinbrown855]

This is why I’m so jealous of people with wet areas and ponds on their properties!

[@Jem544]

Thanks for the comment. I is just a small wildlife pond that I put in a few years ago but it actually attracts a lot of stuff

[@edwinbrown855]

That’s amazing! It makes me sad whenever I see ponds or lakes that are just lawn right to the edge. So much potential there to create something that isn’t harming the environment and is beautiful at the same time!

[@ShadowindART]

i just planted one of these this year, and there is no pond or water source were i panted it in the front yard, its only its first year....but it seems to be thriving so far. I will say this tho my dad puts down a TON of mulch were it is planted....so if you mulch it well enough, and water it often in dry periods, it may still thrive even without a nearby water source.

[@tulipa763]

It's a host plant for he Pink-washed Looper Moth.

[@zmizoomuchinformation45]

It's so helpful to be able to see how this plant looks in a garden! Seed catalogs just don't give me all the info I need, so I really appreciate your videos. By the way, Illinois Wildflowers does list a moth that uses this as a host plant. Faunal Associations: The nectar and pollen of the flowers attract primarily bumblebees and other long-tongued bees (Anthophora spp., Melissodes spp., Svastra spp.). Less common visitors include the Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, large butterflies, and Halictid bees. The Halictid bees collect pollen only and they are non-pollinating. The caterpillars of a moth, Enigmogramma basigera (Pink-washed Looper Moth), feed on the foliage of Great Blue Lobelia (Schweitzer & Roberts, 2007). Most mammalian herbivores don't eat this plant because the foliage contains several toxic alkaloids, chief among them being lobeline and lobelanine. These toxic substances produce symptoms that resemble nicotine poisoning. However, it has been reported that deer occasionally eat this plant, perhaps enjoying greater immunity to these toxic substances than other animals. The seeds are too small to be of much value to birds. www.illinoiswildflowers.info/wetland/plants/gb_lobeliax.htm

[@TheSuburbanGardenista]

You had asked about host plants - according to A Garden for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee, both great blue lobeila and cardinal flower are larval host plants to the pink washer looper, the lesser black-letter dart, and red banded leafroller moths. The same author has a US version called A Northern Gardener's Guide to Native Plants and Pollinators by #lorrainejohnson and #sheilacolla. I have the Ontario version and it's the best book I have for native plants.

[@Jem544]

Great tip! I'll get a copy. Thanks

[@TheSuburbanGardenista]

@@Jem544 you're welcome! Hope you like it!

[@moplantdaddy]

Great video! I think blue lobelia is so pretty! I'm going to have to go get some photos of it before it goes all the way away for the year

[@Jem544]

Thanks for the comment. They really are a nice plant to add to the garden.

[@TheSuburbanGardenista]

Your great blue lobeila look awesome! I've got a few wee plants that I've started from seed - fingers crossed I can keep them as happy as yours. I don't have very moist gardens - hope they can handle more normal conditions!

[@Jem544]

Thanks for the comment. They seem to be pretty adaptable so you shouldn't have any problems...good luck and happy gardening!

[@beverlycharles6534]

How is it going? Did it come back again? Did it spread? I purchased one last year it came back strong & has done GREAT this year. My yard is NOT moist (I try to stick with drought tolerant plants, I only water 1/week. This was beautiful and almost double the size of last year. My new favorite plant.

[@TheSuburbanGardenista]

@@beverlycharles6534 mine are doing so well in three different spots on my property! One in shade/dry, one in part sun/moderate, and another in part sun/moderate to dry, and they're all doing great! It's about to bloom soon, and I'll capture that this week, but you're welcome to take a peek at my July native plant garden tour if you're interested - it's at 9:42 kzbin.info/www/bejne/m3i4nIKIfbd-Zposi=SLJ9CX11v5r5pm1_

[@charlespax]

You should check you audio levels. I noticed your voice recording is quite low compared to the music of the intro.

[@edwinbrown855]

The only info I could find on insect species utilizing lobelia was weevils eating their seeds (still pretty cool)

[@Jem544]

that is cool.

[@skipleft]

Why are my cardinal flower leaves the size of my hand?

[@Jem544]

Thanks for the comment. I've never seen that happen. To much nitrogen maybe?

[@phillygdev]

Great info! I just planted these in the spring and am now starting to enjoy their bloomage. And it's nice that they're now coming into form while my Cardinal flowers are fading. The hummingbirds are now gravitating to them and various bees seem to enjoy. I'm curious about the green pom-pom looking plants next to your Lobelias. IWhat are they?

[@Jem544]

Hi. Thanks for the comment. The pom-pom plant is an Anabelle hydrangea which are a native hydrangea ( hydrangea arborescens). They'll eventually fill in more but they are beautiful shrubs