Lobelia Family. — Lobeliaceæ
Spiked Lobelia. Lobelia spicata.
Found in pastures and waysides during July and August.
The single, very erect stalk varies from 1 to 2 feet in height, and is very slender, grooved, and noticeably twisted; its fibre is fine, and near the foot it is hairy to the touch. In color green, with a trace of red at the leaf.
The foot-leaves are large, and a wide oval in shape, and set on margined stems; the upper leaves are a long narrow, oval shape, diminishing in size to a mere line, and are set immediately upon the stalk; the margins are irregularly notched, they are downy to the touch, and light green, tending to yellow. Their arrangement is alternate.
The small flower is 2-lipped, the lower lip being 3-parted with a pair of swellings at the throat of the tube, the upper lip divided by a cleft down the length of the tube; all parts of the corolla are sharp-pointed, and flaring from the 5-parted calyx; the texture is fine and smooth, and the color a pure pale lavender, faintly lined with dark, white near the throat, and pinkish in the tube, the green calyx being also tinted with pink. The flowers, on short foot-stems, are set alternately, and close, in a long, very pretty spike.
There is something individual about the alert carriage of this plant, its whole gesture is erect and animated. It grows numerously in pastures, though in less close fellowship than its little brook sister.
Brook Lobelia. Lobelia Kalmii.
Found on moist ground in limestone soil, blossoming in July and August.
The erect, minutely angular stem, is slender, smooth and polished, fine and at the same time strong in fibre; in color a light grass-green.
The small, narrow and grass-like leaf is about an inch long; towards the root it broadens a little at the tip; color grass-green. The growth is alternate.
The corolla of the small, irregular flower is in 2 divisions, the upper one with 2 narrow, upright parts, between which the stamens show; the lower one with 3 broad equal lobes; the color varies from deep lavender to light, and from a bluish to a pinkish tone, the lower division is marked with a broad white wedge-shaped spot near the throat. The small calyx has 5 thread-like divisions, green, tinged with lavender. From 3 to 4 flowers blossom at once on the top of the stem.
This little Lobelia flourishes especially in the limestone regions of the Green Mountains. It grows in communities among the short grass, beside some wayside spring or runlet; the flowers, all facing in the same direction, appear as though turned to greet the wayfarer. It is a plant of delicate finish and color, with a lithe and graceful gesture.
Indian Tobacco. Lobelia inflata.
Found in damp places, and along roadside ditches, in August.
The leafy, sometimes branching stalk grows from 12 to 18 inches, and is not large, though less slender than the Spiked Lobelia, its texture being also coarser; it is very slightly rough to the touch, and light green in color.
The leaves near the foot are about an inch long, and a blunt oval shape; near the top they become smaller and narrower; with coarsely toothed margins, a thin texture, and dull green color. They clasp the stalk alternately.
The flowers are smaller than the other Lobelias mentioned; the corolla is lilac, with a white spot on the lower lip; the calyx, whose 5 divisions are thread-like, is purplish-green. The flowers, on their little foot-stems, are placed in a scattering fashion upon the stalk to form a long terminal spike; each flower is supported by a little leaf or bract.
As the blossoms fall the seed-pods swell into a round and inflated shape, which, together with the scantiness of its bloom, gives the spike an untidy look, unusual in this class of delicate forms and elegant proportions.
Cardinal Flower. Lobelia cardinalis.
Found on the margins of small streams, in light shade, and in low moist ground, from July to October.
The single, rather large stalk is round, and somewhat irregularly grooved, smooth to the touch, and a full green color. It grows from 2 to 4 feet high.
The leaves are generally from 2 to 3 inches in length, tapering at both ends with the veins distinctly showing, and irregularly toothed margins; their texture is fine, and the color a full dark green. They are set immediately upon the stalk, in an alternate arrangement.
The irregular corolla is somewhat 2-lipped, with a long slender tube which is split down its upper side; the lower lip is broad and 3-cleft, the upper being narrow and in 2 parts; its color is a deep and glowing red, with a darker spot near the throat upon the lower lip. The pistil and 5 stamens, which curve outwards noticeably, are of a lighter red color with fine gray tips; the calyx is 5-parted and green. The flowers are arranged in a long, usually one-sided, spike.
Coming into bloom when the midsummer vegetation is growing dusty, this plant fills the eye with the richness of its dark green leafage toned into perfect accord with the glowing hue of its flowers,—their color a truly royal one, of unusual depth as well as brilliancy. The Cardinal Flower should not be plucked ruthlessly, lest it be exterminated, an ever-present danger to the beautiful annuals man appreciates. It can be cultivated from the seed with considerable success.