Lobelia cardinalis – Cardinal Flower

Characteristics: Herbaceous perennial with slender spike of intense scarlet flowers.

Flowers: July - October

Fruit: capsule with seeds in fall

Growth: up to 5 feet tall, slow rate of spread (less than 0.2 ft per year)

Shade: full sun to partial shade

Habitat: fresh tidal marshes, nontidal marshes, wooded swamps, seeps, pond, river, and stream banks

Hydrology: facultative wetland +, fresh water, salinity less than 0.5 ppt, regularly to permanently saturated approximately 26 to 100% of the growing season

Range: New Brunswick to Michigan and Minnesota, south to Florida and Texas

Comments: tolerates part shade, attracts hummingbirds