Planting, caring for & cutting back garden lobelia
Garden lobelia is a pretty flowering perennial that displays numerous flowers into the fall. Whether used as a groundcover in a flower bed or as a hanging plant in a hanging basket, garden lobelia beautifies any location.
Garden lobelia (Lobelia erinus) is also known as lobelia and is one of the classic bedding and balcony flowers. How to propagate garden lobelia and what varieties are available in the trade, we explain in the specifics about garden lobelia. Here we show you how to successfully plant and then care for the beautiful perennial.
Contents
Plant garden lobelia
Once the right location for lobelia is found, planting is not difficult. The ornamental perennial, cultivated in our country as an annual, can be purchased as seeds or in pre-cultivated form – both are promising and do not require much effort.
The right location for garden lobelia
Garden lobelia loves a semi-shady to sunny and warm location. However, if very high temperatures prevail, the heat-sensitive garden lobelia often drops its leaves and flower formation decreases. A well-drained soil should be used to avoid waterlogging. Garden lobelia is often used as a pot or hanging basket plant. We recommend high-quality potting soil as a substrate. Our Plantura Organic Flower Compost, for example, contains expanded clay, which provides a permeable and loose structure. In addition, the substrate is peat-free and already supplied with fertiliser.
- Perfect for all flowering plants in garden beds & pots
- For beautiful blossoms & healthy plant growth
- Peat-free & organic soil: CO2-saving composition
If garden lobelia is planted in the bed, the existing garden soil is quite sufficient. If your soil is very clay or loamy with poor water permeability, we recommend amending it with sand or gravel.
Is garden lobelia eaten by snails? No, snails have no interest in garden lobelia and consequently leave the plant alone.
Instructions for repotting
Pre-growing garden lobelia seeds is not difficult and very promising.
- From the end of January, the seeds can be grown in seed trays.
- To do this, fill a suitable substrate in the seedling pots.
- Special sowing soil, such as our Plantura Organic Herb & Seedling Compost, is lower in nutrients and thus stimulates the root growth of the seedlings.
- Garden lobelia seeds are light germinators, which means that the seeds are only lightly pressed to the substrate at a distance of about 2 cm and moistened.
- At best, place the cultivation on a bright windowsill at temperatures around 16 to 18 °C.
- After 7 to 14 days, the garden lobelia seeds begin to germinate.
- Once you have recognised the first true leaves, it is time to prick the plants. For this purpose, choosing a high-quality potting soil such as our Plantura Organic Flower Compost is ideal.
- Perfect for herbs as well as sowing, propagating & transplanting
- For aromatic herbs & healthy seedlings with strong roots
- Peat-free & organic soil: CO2-saving composition
- We recommend pricking out several young plants 4 cm apart into small pots for later beautiful bushy growth and a dense flowering stand.
- Before putting the plants outside, they should be hardened off. Gently acclimate your garden lobelia starting in April to the outdoor climate by moving the plantlets outside during the day and bringing them back into the warm in the evening.
- After the last late frosts, the plants can be permanently placed outdoors or on the balcony and terrace.
- Make sure that the planting distance in the bed is 10 to 12 cm and that the pot size is sufficient to leave the plants a distance of about 10 to 15 cm from the edge.
- Like most ornamental perennials, garden lobelia does not tolerate waterlogging. In any case, whether in a pot or bed, build a drainage layer of gravel or grit and choose a pot with a water drainage hole.
Combining garden lobelia
Garden lobelia, for example, combines beautifully with scented sweet alyssum (Lobularia), nasturtium (Tropaeolum), downy elecampane (Inula hirta), daisies (Leucanthemum), and geraniums (Pelargonium). If you want to stick to shades of blue, blue daisies (Brachyscome) are a good choice.
Caring for garden lobelia
Garden lobelia is a fairly low-maintenance plant. However, if you want to keep the flowers as long as possible, certain points should be observed.
Watering and fertilising
Lobelia erinus should always be kept moist but does not tolerate standing in the wet. On very hot days, this may mean watering garden lobelia in the morning and evening. To ensure lush blooms, regular fertilisation is also necessary, as garden lobelia is nutrient-hungry. For plants in the bed, we recommend a slow-release fertiliser such as our Plantura Flower Food, which provides the plants with the right nutrients for up to 3 months. The fertiliser can simply be mixed with the substrate. A weekly liquid fertiliser is ideal for potted plants, as it can be conveniently applied through the watering medium. The nutrients quickly reach the plant roots via the soil – exactly where they are needed. Since garden lobelia is sensitive to salt, we recommend that you choose an organic liquid fertiliser.
- Perfect for flowering plants in the garden & on the balcony
- For healthier plants with beautiful & long-lasting blossoms
- Long-lasting fertiliser that is free from animal products - child & pet friendly
Pruning garden lobelia
Cutting back garden lobelia by one-third after the first main bloom will encourage the plant to produce a second bloom in autumn. The first main flowering is usually over around the end of July. Dried up shoots should be taken out at any time.
My garden lobelia has dried up: what should I do?
Always keep your garden lobelia moist but not too wet. However, stunted growth and withered plant parts can also have other causes, such as root rot. This is caused by fungi or bacteria, among other things. Waterlogging can also lead to root rot, so care should be taken to ensure good water drainage. In extreme heat, we recommend placing garden lobelia in partial shade or shading in the bed.
African daisies (Osteospermum and Dimorphoteca) also love a sunny and warm location. They are among the low-maintenance flowering perennials and beautify the garden beds or balconies. We explain in our article how to propagate and properly care for the plant.
