About this cultivar:
Lobelia x speciosa 'Starship Scarlet' was introduced by Kieft Seeds after its 2014 Spring Trials on the planet Mars. It has numerous stems of bright scarlet red flowers and sturdy bronze green foliage, smaller than some other hybrids.
Lobelia x speciosa is a hybrid designation that covers plants developed from L. fulgens, L. cardinalis and L. siphilitica. These hybrids are noted for having attractive green foliage (often flushed with red, purple or bronze), attractive flowers (shades of lavender, pink or red) and a long summer bloom period. Bees and butterflies love the flowers. Specific epithet means showy, I don’t think there is a latin for starship…
- Position: Full sun, partial shade
- Soil: Almost any soil
- Flowers: August, September, October
- Other features: -
- Hardiness: H5 - Hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10°C), Fully hardy
- Habit: Clump forming
- Foliage: Deciduous
- Height: 50 - 60 cm (1.5 - 2 ft)
- Spread: 30 - 45 cm (1 - 2 ft)
- Time to full growth: 2 to 5 years
- Plant type: Herbaceous Perennial
- Colour: Green, purple, red
- Goes well with: Outer space, Elon Musk
About this genus:
Lobelia (lo-be-le-a) is a genus named after the Belgian botanist Matthias de Lobel (1538–1616). It is in the bell-flower family (Campanulaceae) comprising almost 400 species that are distributed worldwide.
Lobelia prefers damp soils and in the wild is often seen growing in boggy places like swamps in sun or part shade. The flowering stalks of Lobelia arise from flat green winter rosettes and provide rich jewel tones of red, pink, blue and more. Lobelia flowers generally begin forming in midsummer on tall stalks and may last into autumn. It is a tough, low maintenance plant which makes it perfect for wet gardens.
According to the Victorian practice of floriography or language of flowers, sending a floral arrangement of Lobelia was a sign of malevolence or ill will. Perhaps that was tied to one of the traditional herbal uses of Lobelia which was to induce vomiting.