It might surprise you to hear that cardinal flower is a woodland plant.
It can be found in wet meadows or on the edges of woodland streams and rivers, as well as in dappled-light floodplains, to a fairly magical effect when in bloom (see photos).
Cardinal flower is a favorite of hummingbirds and butterflies.The anthers with white pollen on them are placed in such a way that as a hummingbird feeds on nectar, the pollen rubs off on its forehead. When the hummingbird moves on to other flowers for nectar, they will be pollinated. It flowers mid to late summer and is really a stand-out plant that adapts well to the home garden. Consider watering it and/or mulching it for dry spells.
Related is Great Blue Lobelia (sometimes called blue cardinal flower), and they can sometimes be found in the same locations. Both plants have basal leaves and then send up a stalk in mid-late summer. The stalk has many flowers on it and takes the plant from 3” high to 2-4 feet high.
Companion Plants: cattail sedge, long-beaked sedge, lizard’s tail, iris, great blue lobelia, sensitive fern, moonseed vine, wild yam
Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
Michigan Flower reference page for state distribution: Cardinal Flower
Height: 1-4 feet
Bloom time:August-September
Soil: muck, loam
Sun: dappled light to sun
Plant spacing: 12-18”
Flower: scarlet
Life cycle: short-lived perennial
Family: Campanulaceae
Seed source: Michigan
Sizes:
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It might surprise you to hear that cardinal flower is a woodland plant.
It can be found in wet meadows or on the edges of woodland streams and rivers, as well as in dappled-light floodplains, to a fairly magical effect when in bloom (see photos).
Cardinal flower is a favorite of hummingbirds and butterflies.The anthers with white pollen on them are placed in such a way that as a hummingbird feeds on nectar, the pollen rubs off on its forehead. When the hummingbird moves on to other flowers for nectar, they will be pollinated. It flowers mid to late summer and is really a stand-out plant that adapts well to the home garden. Consider watering it and/or mulching it for dry spells.
Related is Great Blue Lobelia (sometimes called blue cardinal flower), and they can sometimes be found in the same locations. Both plants have basal leaves and then send up a stalk in mid-late summer. The stalk has many flowers on it and takes the plant from 3” high to 2-4 feet high.
Companion Plants: cattail sedge, long-beaked sedge, lizard’s tail, iris, great blue lobelia, sensitive fern, moonseed vine, wild yam
Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
Michigan Flower reference page for state distribution: Cardinal Flower
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