Plant Profile

Great Blue Lobelia - (Lobelia siphilitica) is an herbaceous perennial in the Campanulaecae family (Bellflower) and is native to central and eastern North America. The genus was named to honor Matthias de l'Obel, a French physician and botanist who helped write a new plant classification system based upon leaves. The specific epithet is thanks to the plant being believed to be a cure for syphilis; thus the species was given the unfortunate name of siphilitica.

Great Blue Lobelia may grow 3 to 4 feet tall and 1 to 1.5 feet wide. It prefers wet to moist soil and partial sun. Full sun is tolerated if the soil is consistently moist. The soil should be fertile and loamy. This plant forms clumps that may be divided in spring and has been known to self-seed.

Showy blue flowers first mature in mid-summer and continue into early fall. The flowers are larger than other lobelias and are attractive to pollinators. This plant may be used in a butterfly, native, pollinator or rain garden. It is also effective in borders, meadows, naturalized areas and near ponds or streams. The nectar and pollen of the flowers attract primarily bumblebees and other long-tongued bees.