Seeds: Lobelia siphilitica, great blue lobelia
 
Includes a brochure with instructions on how to sow native seeds.
 
Seed sowing instructions
 
A = Lobelia siphilitica seeds should germinate when sown in a warm location. No treatment necessary.
 
D = Sow on the surface of the soil. These seeds are very small.
 
You can find more information about how to sow native seeds HERE.
 
Plant information
 
The great blue lobelia sounds like the title of a nature documentary, but it aptly describes Lobelia siphilitica. Tall spikes of lavender-blue flowers that bring welcome color to the late summer garden, when most other blooms are starting to fade.
 
As with the cardinal flower, this plant is a favorite food source of hummingbirds and requires moist to wet soil. If you have this plant in its favorite spot, it will likely self-seed, otherwise you can easily grow the colony by dividing the clumps in the spring.
 
As L. siphilitica is an endangered plant in Massachusetts, care must be taken when it is spotted in the wild not to disturb it. It is native to western Massachusetts but we also have it planted here in eastern MA.