Common Name: lobelia
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Campanulaceae
Zone: 3 to 8
Height: 3.00 to 5.00 feet
Spread: 1.00 to 2.00 feet
Bloom Time: July to September
Bloom Description: Dark purple
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Rain Garden
Flower: Showy
Tolerate: Deer, Wet Soil
Culture
Grow in rich, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Needs constant moisture. Tolerates full sun in northern climates, but appreciates part afternoon shade in hot summer climates of the lower Midwest and South. In nature, lobelias are typically found in wet areas such as bogs, moist meadows and along streams. Divide clumps in spring. Root mulch should be applied in cold winter climates such as St. Louis to protect the root system and to prevent root heaving.
This hybrid is similarly well-suited to wet soil conditions, but does surprisingly well in average garden soils as long as the soils are not permitted to dry out.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Lobelia is a genus of about 370 species of annuals, perennials, shrubs and some aquatics. They grow in tropical and temperate areas worldwide but many come from North, Central and South America.
Genus name honors Matthias de l'Obel (1538-1616), French physician and botanist, who with Pierre Pena wrote Stirpium Adversaria Nova (1570) which detailed a new plant classification system based upon leaves.
'Purple Towers', sometimes commonly called purple cardinal flower, is a vigorous, clump-forming perennial which features erect, terminal spikes (racemes) of velvety, dark purple flowers on alternate-leafed stalks typically growing to 4-5' tall. Stalks rise up from basal rosettes. Flowers are two-lipped, with the three lobes of the lower lip appearing more prominent than the two lobes of the upper lip. Long late July to September bloom.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems. Snails and slugs may damage the foliage.
Uses
Effective in moist areas of woodland/shade gardens, wet meadows or along streams or ponds. Also adds late summer bloom and height to borders as long as soils are kept uniformly moist.