Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Snapdragon-like pink spikes for late summer, beloved by bumblebees and hummingbirds.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
- Home
- Plant guide
- Great Blue Lobelia
Deep blue
Perennial wildflower
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Spikes of true blue for late summer shade and damp ground, worked hard by bumblebees.
the Northeastthe Mid-Atlanticthe Southeastthe Midwestthe Great Plains
Growing Great Blue Lobelia
Pairs beautifully with cardinal flower in the same moist conditions. Tolerates more shade than most blue-flowered natives. It’s deer-resistant, and showy.
Where it grows
Great Blue Lobelia is native to the Northeast. In the wild you’ll find it across Alabama · Arkansas · Colorado · Connecticut · Delaware · Florida · Georgia · Illinois · Indiana · Iowa and 32 more states. Always confirm it suits your specific county with your state native plant society before planting.
Regional Garden shows Great Blue Lobelia on 42 state pages.
Good for
Sourcing
Where to buy Great Blue Lobelia
Seeds & live plants on Amazon
Seed packets, plugs, and starter plants for many of these species ship to your door.
Browse on AmazonSome links here are affiliate links — we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. The surest source of locally-adapted stock is a native-plant nursery or a native plant society sale in your area.
Plant it with
Companions & kin.
Natives that share Great Blue Lobelia’s range and conditions.
Blue Vervain
Verbena hastata
Candelabras of tiny violet flowers for wet ground, working for small native bees all summer.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
Elegant white candelabra spires that bring vertical structure and a haze of bees to midsummer.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
Vertical wands of magenta that open top-down and pull in every swallowtail in the neighborhood.
- Full sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug