Named for the vivid red colour of a Roman Catholic Cardinal’s robe, the Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) produces intense red blossoms at a time when many other perennials are declining in the summer heat.
The cardinal plant has tall spikes of brilliant red, trumpet-shaped flowers that rise above the dark green foliage, with flowers that bloom during summer and sometimes into autumn.
The flowering spikes open from the bottom to the top and bloom for several weeks and also make excellent cut flowers.
Most insects struggle to navigate the long necks of the trumpet shaped flowers, so cardinal flowers depend on hummingbirds and butterflies for fertilisation.
The bright red colour of the flowers and the sweet nectar attract many species of hummingbirds to your garden.
They grow best in a location with morning sun and afternoon shade and need a moist, fertile soil.
Plant out in spring, spacing them about a foot apart. Keep the soil very moist, until they become established. Fertilise the plants in autumn with a general purpose fertiliser.
Cardinal flowers begin blooming in early summer and peak in mid to late summer.
Cut out the flower stems when they have finished blooming, or leave them in place if you want the plants to self sow, as parent plants will not persist for more than a few years.
If you cut the spent flower spikes just above the leafy part of the stem, new spikes may arise to take their place, but they will be shorter than the first spike.
Toxic to Dogs, Toxic to Cats, Toxic to Horses
