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Cardinal Flower

Lobelia cardinalis

$9.99
$9.99 $13.32
per Plant - 3" Pot
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ZONES  3-9 | Good to grow! Zone
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Cardinal Flower, a hummingbird favorite, puts on a show in late summer with tall, vivid red flower spikes that add bold color to the late-season garden. Native to North America, it thrives in partially-shaded areas with moist soil and will naturalize if conditions are favorable. Tolerates deer. (Lobelia cardinalis)

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Cardinal Flower

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Description

The stunning Cardinal Flower is one of our most famous native plants, and usually called Americas most vivid native flower. Each summer, brilliant red Cardinal Flower lights up the August woods all over the east, and new generations of hikers are always thrilled when they come across it in our forests. Of course, the fact that it does not bloom in spring, but adds color later, makes it of huge value in a wild garden.

This famous plant is native all the way from Quebec and Minnesota south to Florida and Texas. It is so beautiful it is over picked and now quite rare in some areas. However, if conditions are right (wet, mostly) it will grow easily, even in full sun, but is usually found as a woodland beauty along streambanks or near ponds where the soil is always moist. It is even happy growing right in the shallow water of small creeks and brooks.

This tells you that you must supply constant moisture for Cardinal Flower, and if you do, the rewards are spectacular.

Growing Lobelia cardinalis Allen Armitage, the famous perennial expert writes in his Armitages Native Plants that Cardinal Flower is a short lived perennial but if...(conditions are good)... it will return many years. This is correct. It is not difficult to grow at all; it is simply difficult to maintain a clump of plants over the years, unless you are attentive. Armitage tells us he believes the plants do best in full sun. I found the opposite growing them in Vermont. But sun or shade, the most important item is the moisture. The roots should never really dry out. We had many growing along a small brook in the middle of a wooded garden (See photo above). All went well, and the plants performed with bigger and bigger flower spikes each year, until.....we had a spring flood one year. The brook raged out of its banks, and the rushing water uprooted all the plants and swept them away. So that year, we had to start over with new plants. They have very shallow roots, and come out of the mud easily.

This wild beauty is one that you must watch, and you'll learn to love it. It grows quickly and easily, but it has two very powerful enemies--people who love to pick it, destroying the display, and either too little or too much (rushing) water.

Planting & Care

Further Reading

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As soon as your order is placed you will receive a confirmation email. You will receive a second email the day your order ships telling you how it has been sent. Some perennials are shipped as potted plants, some as perennial roots packed in peat.  The ‘Plant Information’ section describes how that item will ship. All perennials and fall-planted bulbs are packaged to withstand shipping and are fully-guaranteed. Please open upon receipt and follow the instructions included.

Perennials and fall-planted bulbs are shipped at the proper planting time for your Growing Zone. Perennial and fall-planted bulb orders will arrive separately from seeds. If your order requires more than one shipment and all items are shipping to the same address, there is no additional shipping charge. See our shipping information page for approximate ship dates and more detailed information. If you have any questions, please call Customer Service at (802) 227-7200 or contact us by email or chat.

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key features

Advantages
  • Bee Friendly
  • Attracts Butterflies
  • Attracts Hummingbirds
  • Attracts Birds
  • Native
  • Cut Flowers
  • Deer Resistant
  • Rabbit Resistant
Tolerates
  • Wet Sites
Light Requirements
  • Half Sun / Half Shade
Bloom Time
Mid summer to fall

Additional information

Planting Time
  • Spring / Summer
Soil Moisture
  • Average
  • Moist / Wet
Soil Type
  • Loamy Soil
  • Well-Drained Soil
Mature Height
30-36" tall
Mature Spread
10-18" wide
Planting Depth
The base of the stem(s) should be just at the soil surface after watering in
Growing Zones
  • Zone 3
  • Zone 4
  • Zone 5
  • Zone 6
  • Zone 7
  • Zone 8
  • Zone 9
Ideal Region
  • Midwest
  • Northeast
  • Pacific Northwest
  • Southeast
  • Southwest
  • West
Poisonous or Toxic to Animals
Poisonous if ingested.
Neonicotinoid Free
Yes
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