- Type: bell-shaped
- Flowering Period: June, July, August, September
- Height: 8-1000cm
- Color: Blue, Magenta, White, Red, Cyan
- Perennial
- Sun loving
- Loving
Lush rugs scattered among the greenery delight the eye and give the garden a sophisticated charm. From the first summer days to autumn frosts, the lobelia is completely covered with miniature flowers of delicate shades: blue, pink, sky blue, violet, purple. It is not easy to grow it in the domestic climate, it is a beautiful, but whimsical flower.
Plant description
Lobelia is a perennial flower, but in the conditions of central Russia it is grown in open ground as an annual plant. It looks great as a curb along the garden path, along the contour of a flower garden or pond, on an alpine hill and in flowerpots. It is also good as a groundcover in carpeted planting and as an ampelous plant in hanging baskets. Harmonious partners: petunia, balsamine, cloves, verbena, rudbeckia, pelargonium, salvia and other garden flowers.
At the end of autumn, a flower can be dug up, planted in pots and stored in a greenhouse or on a balcony so that in summer, in the second round, planted in the garden. The plant during the wintering period is poorly developed, but, subsequently, it will bloom more abundantly.
The lush color of sky blue lobelia pleases the eye from June to late autumn
Especially touching are the blue lobelias with a white eye in the center
Compact spherical bushes beautifully set off a garden path
Garden forms and types:
- Compact Rounded bushes up to 20 cm in height.
- Upright. Columnar bushes about 30 cm high.
- Wicker. Cascading shoots from 30 to 50 cm long.
Varieties of lobelia:
- White. "White Riviera", "Snowball", "White Cascade", "Minx", "White Fountain", "Nicole", "White Lady".
- Blue. Sapphire, Blue Crystal, Cambridge, Niagara, Nostalgia, Beads, Blue Breeze.
- Blue. "Blue Cascade", "Emperor Wiley", "Crystal Palace", "Cozy Corner".
- Pink. Rosamund, Pink Riviera, Pink Cascade, Raspberry Jingle.
- Lilac. Miss Clibran, The Lacemaker, Margot.
- Reds. "Marquise", "Red Cascade", "Red Fountain".
- Multicolor. "Pearl thread", "Serpentine", "Funny notes", "Viennese waltz".
Small lobelia of a shade of ultramarine harmoniously combine with white flowers. Flowers planted in tandem with pansies in a decorative pot look spectacular
A delicate combination is formed by white and pink flowers, planted next door along the curb and in a decorative pot
Planted in a hanging flower basket, snow-white lobelia grows in the shape of a balloon resembling an air cloud
The main conditions for successful cultivation and abundant flowering of plants:
- Loose and light, not very fertile soil (sandy loamy, loamy soil).
- Landing in a well-lit, sunny place.
- Regular watering - the plant loves moisture.
- Dosed fertilizing with mineral fertilizers.
- Pinching or cutting seedlings, pruning adult plants for better tillering.
Sowing seeds for seedlings
It is better to start sowing seeds from the end of February, or at any time throughout March. True, some gardeners practice flower sowing in December-January. But if there is no possibility of additional illumination, it is advisable not to rush when sowing lobelia for seedlings: seedlings in this case develop slowly, and when there is a lack of illumination, they are pulled up. A flower planted in March and grown only in natural light is more viable and compact, less often affected by the "black leg" disease.
Proper cultivation and care of seedlings will contribute to its abundant flowering.
The seeds are small, dusty - for uniformity, they are often mixed with sand. Seeds are planted in purchased soil for seedlings or in a soil mixture prepared from autumn, consisting of turf garden soil, compost (humus), peat and river sand. To normalize the acidity of the soil substrate, you can add dolomite flour or lime.
You can purchase granular seeds that are conveniently planted in peat tablets and cassettes - so you get rid of the time-consuming stage of the pick.
The sequence of planting a flower for seedlings:
- The container for planting is filled with a soil substrate, which is slightly tamped, watered and aged for 24 hours. Lobelia seedlings feel best in a wide and shallow tray equipped with drainage holes. A fungicide can be added to the water for primary irrigation of land for seedlings.
- Seeds are placed on a sheet of paper bent by a corner and, gently tapping on it, they are poured onto the prepared soil, evenly distributing them.
- After sowing, the seeds are by no means sprinkled with earth, but sprayed with a very weak solution of potassium permanganate from the spray gun.
- A dish with seedlings is covered with glass and placed in a warm place.
Soil substrate for sowing seedlings can be prepared from a mixture of garden soil and vermiculite. Vermiculite increases the porosity and friability of the soil, normalizes its moisture. It also protects the root system of plants from temperature changes in the environment, neutralizes soils with high acidity.
Proper seedling care
Every day, it is recommended to ventilate the seedlings: raise the glass, wipe the condensate from it and, turning it over, again cover it with a bowl. As soon as the first shoots appear, and this happens a week and a half after planting, it is advisable to remove the glass, move the bowl with seedlings into the "greenhouse" - a transparent plastic bag, and, tying it, put it in a well-lit place, but not under direct sunlight. . The package must be removed every day, shake off condensation from it and again wrap the seedlings.
At a temperature of 20 to 25 degrees, seedlings may appear earlier - after about a week. But, so that they do not stretch too much and gradually harden, it is recommended to move the trays with seedlings to a glazed balcony or loggia in the afternoon, where the temperature is low and there is enough light. At night, it is better to return the seedlings to the house, providing additional illumination in the evenings, as well as in cloudy and rainy periods.
Humidification of crops is best done from below, pouring a little water into the pan, because the likelihood of mold formation on the surface of the earth and decay of seedlings. But you can water from above, very carefully: from a teaspoon or a disposable syringe. If mold does form, they carefully remove it and sprinkle the soil with a thin layer of crushed activated carbon or pre-washed and calcined sand. To prevent diseases, it is necessary to ensure that the soil is loose and moderately dry, but it must not be allowed to dry out either - moderate watering is recommended for lobelia.
Dive into the ground
The grown seedlings dive - they are planted in small heaps, grabbing with a coffee spoon several plants along with the soil and moving into a separate container. Before picking, it is recommended to moisten the soil in the tray well, so that it is more convenient to divide the densely grown seedlings into piles. When transplanting between groups of plants, an interval of about 2-3 cm is left, the soil is lightly tamped with fingers and then watered. After a pick, lobelia will begin to grow rapidly, when the sprouts reach 3 cm, it is recommended to cut them a few mm - so they will shrub better.
Lobelia dive must be done very carefully, moving the small bushes of seedlings from the tray into separate containers
To water the lobelia seedlings, use a disposable syringe or a small spoon so that drops of water do not fall on young leaves
A plant is planted from temporary containers in open ground at the beginning of June, observing the distance between the bushes of 10-15 cm. Transplantation is performed according to the same principle as diving: in small groups, capturing the plants together with the soil with a small shovel or construction spatula. For planting, choose a sunny or partial shade of the garden with humus-rich moist soil. An excessively fertile land is bad for lobelia - the plant grows lush greenery and sparsely blooms.
Quite often resort to cutting bushes to a height of 5 cm in the middle of summer, which leads to its growth and a new wave of flowering. At this stage, the plants can be slightly fed approximately once a week with water-soluble mineral fertilizers.
Lobelia in landscape design
Option # 1 - in the flowerbed
When planting a flower on a flower bed or a discount, you must first consider the color scheme of the floral composition. Delicate nuance flowerbeds form from related shades: blue, blue and purple; pink, purple and white. The contrasting combinations of colors on the flowerbed look expressively: blue and yellow, blue and red, raspberry and white.
They go well with limnantes. You can learn more about this flower from the material: //diz-cafe.com/rastenija/limnantes-vyirashhivanie-iz-semyan.html
The red upright lobelia looks great next to the motley yucca and orange marigold flowers
Blue lobelia erinus forms the lower tier of the rock garden, adjacent to the emerald-violet survivor creeping “Burgundy Glow”, red pelargonium, arborvitae and silver wormwood
The original discount is made up of lobelia, tenacity “Metallic Crisp”, purple pansies and silver edelweiss
Blue flowers are successfully combined with whitish star-shaped inflorescences of edelweiss
A contrasting solution for decorating a flower bed: a direct-growing view of red Queen Victoria lobelia paired with yellow-hot rudbeckia flowers
The red erect lobelia surrounded by a lush multicolor flower bed looks extremely original
The scheme of the flowerbed: 1. The stem rose "Pleniflora": yellow, red and white. 2. Sunflower "Capenoch Star". 3. Poppy Icelandic. 4. St. John's wort. 5. Lobelia cardinal. 6. Catman of Fassen. 7. Bell Pozharsky. 8. The Katananha is blue. 9. Gravil "Feuerbal". 10. Sedum "Matrona".
The scheme of the flower beds at the reservoir: 1. Bamboo leaf-grate. 2. Hybrids of bearded iris. 3. Lobelia. 4. The survivor is creeping. 5. Bell Pozharsky. 6. Hybrids shaved. 7. Bruner is large-leaved. 8. The brow is subulate. 9. The tenacious creeping red-leaved. 10. Arundo.
Option # 2 - in hanging baskets
Ampelic species are spectacular in hanging spherical baskets - they form a continuous floral cover that completely hides the wire or vine frame. The easiest option for planting lobelia in the form of a flower basket is the use of coconut inserts, in which holes are made and the plant is planted on the outside of the basket, after filling it with soil mixture.
A contrasting combination of blue lobelia with yellow flowers planted in a hanging flower basket creates a cheerful atmosphere on the garden terrace
Miniature blue flowers planted in wicker planters will brighten up the monotony of rough masonry
Sphagnum moss is also used as an insert, which is pre-soaked, squeezed and laid out in the shape of a basket from the inside. Then, soil mixed with peat and long-acting fertilizers is poured into the basket. In the upper part of the basket, erect types of lobelia are planted, ampel varieties are planted in a circle, observing the distances between the bushes. With this type of planting, you can combine the plant with petunias, phlox, pelargonium, ivy.
Option # 3 - in decorative flowerpots
The flower looks amazing in decorative flowerpots, it is only important to properly match it with companion plants. If you use low flowers paired with lobelia, you can diversify the composition in a round pot by planting plants with different texture of foliage and the size of inflorescences.
Wide flowerpots of considerable diameter of a laconic configuration or equipped with a constriction and a pedestal are ideally suited for such a landing. The flower arrangement will be more dynamic if you combine a compact look with direct-growing plants.
Combining lobelia of various shades, you can give a colorful entourage to any corner of the garden
A bright floral arrangement will decorate your garden if you plant blue lobelia, white petunia, red pelargonium and ivy in a pot
Small flowers of blue lobelia perfectly imitate water poured from a clay jug - you can create such an unusual flowerbed by planting a flower in a terracotta flowerpot lying on its side
Outdated children's rubber boots will come in handy as a pot for planting blue lobelia
The flowerpot in the form of a large tall vase will originally complement the landscape of the garden - the ampel lobelia can be planted in the bowl itself, and its compact form can be planted at the foot, against the background of light dusting. A spectacular touch in the garden design will be made by a group of flowerpots of different diameters and heights, in which you can grow a flower in contrasting shades.
Option # 4 - flower tower of flowerpots
The plant looks advantageous in a vertical container gardening, planted in a flower tower or the so-called "whatnot" of pots. To form such a composition, you can take from 3 to 5 terracotta or white flowerpots with a difference in diameter of about 7 cm. After filling the bottom pot with earth, a rebar is installed, which is buried in the garden soil through the drainage hole for the stability of the flower tower.
An unusual version of vertical gardening from one set of white flowerpots with blue lobelia and delicate alissum
The remaining flowerpots, selected for a vertical composition, from larger to smaller, are strung on reinforcement, filled with soil substrate, rammed and not reaching the top edge of the container 5-7 cm. Planting in combination with other colors is carried out from bottom to top, and then abundantly watered. In this version of vertical gardening, blue lobelia goes well with red and white balsam, pink and purple petunias.
