Red Cardinal Flower: a Hummingbird Favorite

Cardinal Flower A Delightful Dish For Hummingbirds

Lobelia cardinalis, better known as the cardinal flower, is an American wildflower from Southeast Canada through the United States and down to northern Columbia. It is shaped like a spike with dark green leaves that contain bright red tube-like flowers.

Cardinal flowers can grow up to 4 ft. Tall. The leaves have jagged edges that can be up to 8 inches long. The cardinal flower likes to be grown in moist, fertile soil. It also prefers part shade. The plant is hardy from USDA zones 2-9. It may not be reliably hardy in zone 2, however.

The ruby-throated hummingbird loves the nectar of the cardinal flower and is one of the plant's primary pollinators. The Cardinal flower is believed to have been introduced to Europe around 1620. It is supposed to have gotten its name from the red color of the vestments of Roman Catholic Cardinals.

Traditional Uses for the Cardinal Flower

The cardinal flower is a lovely wildflower and garden plant. The Cardinal flower was used in days gone by as a medicinal plant by the native people of North America. Indigenous people made a tea of the root of the plant as a treatment for syphilis and intestinal problems. Drinks made from the plant's leaves were used to treat colds and bronchial distress and prevent cold and flu symptoms. Dried leaves of the cardinal plant were used as a substitute for tobacco and were smoked and chewed. The Zuni people made a cake of the plants, which were then used to treat swelling and arthritis. Any member of the genus Lobelia is potentially toxic. Studies have been done using Lobelia as a treatment for neurological disorders with no conclusive medical results.

Growing the Cardinal Flower

Keep the cardinal flower well-watered. It prefers shade in the afternoon. Deadhead the flowers to keep the plant blooming. Pinch the tops of the plant back to make a bushier plant.

Because the cardinal flower is a short-lived perennial, it is helpful to know how to propagate the plant and keep it an active part of your flower garden. You can also plant the ripe seeds elsewhere. Divide the plant every two to three years to keep the plant blooming and growing. Please do not cut the plants back in the fall, but allow them to self-seed.

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25 Colorful Wildflowers - Mixture Selected For Your Zone - TN Nursery

25 Colorful Wildflowers - Colorful Selections Selected Perfectly For Your Zone

With our exquisite selection of Colorful Wildflowers, enter a world of untouched beauty and wonder. These beautiful plants can transform your garden into a vibrant tapestry of colors and textures, creating a haven for pollinators, wildlife, and yourself. Bring nature a little closer with colorful wildflowers. Perfect for cozy cottages and professional landscapers, this blend of plants is ready to stand out. Colorful Wildflowers Make Stunning Bouquets This assortment showcases nature's endless energy in a convenient package. The more, the merrier; this collection removes the headache of picking and buying individual plants. These gorgeous flowers will boost your creative vision for a knock-out display and beautiful bouquets. Landscaping Benefits Of Colorful Wildflowers A mix of different plants keeps maintenance simple through the growing season. Since all 25 species won’t bloom simultaneously, one planting can create a wave of alternating colors that don’t require frequent replacement over the spring and summer. This helps prevent bare patches or drab beds professionals may need to fill with other plants. Our Colorful Wildflowers Can Do Well Anywhere While these flowers look beautiful in formal gardens, few plants fit the popular cottage core aesthetic like the mix in this package. The vibrant range introduces whimsy and charm to any outdoor space, whether formal beds, large planters, or informal plots. This is a beautiful option for new enthusiasts or experienced gardeners seeking exuberant variety to bring their cottage core dreams to life. These blooms are perfect for the gardener who wants more guests to visit. Not only do the flowers create a warm and welcoming environment for human visitors, but they are fantastic draws for pollinators. A flower bed is one of the best ways to entice nature a little closer to home. This collection may help support local bees and help butterflies enjoy them. As the Colorful Wildflowers turn to seeds, take up bird watching. Dedicated birding enthusiasts can pair this pack with other bird-friendly features like a birdbath to encourage more traffic—plant near a window for the best views. Celebrate with colors, and add a touch of the wild to this year’s garden design. This mix takes the guesswork out of selection; its variety keeps things interesting, and there’s nothing as classic as a fragrant collection of nature’s favorites.

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Cardinal Flower - TN Nursery

Cardinal Flower

The Red Cardinal Flower has vibrant red blooms and tall, erect stalks. It adds color and elegance to gardens, parks, and various outdoor spaces. Beyond its aesthetic appeal, it offers several advantages, making it a popular choice for landscapers and gardeners. The scarlet-hued Lobelia cardinalis is a perennial in the bellflower family. Its tall, nectar-filled bloom spikes attract hummingbirds and create a beautiful display in your garden. The plant's common name refers to the red robes a Roman Catholic cardinal wears.     Natural Habitat Of The Cardinal Flower Lobelia is native to the North and South American continents and blooms from July through September. This moisture-loving plant grows on stream banks and in low woods, marshes, and meadows across the United States. If you want to create a handsome show in your garden, Lobelia will surely delight. The plant's fiery spires yield brilliant red blooms that open gradually from the bottom to the top of their racemes. Each long, narrow, tube-shaped blossom has two flat upper petals and three lower petals at the tips. The delicate plant crown leafy 2’-4' stems, covered with shiny, lance-shaped, bright green leaves that sometimes have a bronze or reddish tint. The leaves alternate as they climb the stems, enhancing the blooms to create a lively riot of color. Cardinal Flower is a favorite of gardeners who love adding bold splashes of crimson. This plant is perfect for shady woodland plots, wet meadow plantings, water gardens, pollinator gardens, and rain gardens. Its long stems can add height to borders and create depth when placed in the back sections of your landscape. The blossoms are most spectacular from midsummer into fall and make excellent cut blooms. Ecology Of The Cardinal Flower Some people say Lobelia will bring hummingbirds in from the sky. The plant's blooming period coincides with the late-summer migration of ruby-throated hummingbirds traveling south to Mexico. The birds pollinate the plant by dipping their beaks into the plants' long, red tubes. The blossoms are also beautiful to swallowtail butterflies and bees, making them a wonderful centerpiece in a pollinator garden. Cardinal Flower Is A Bold Statement In Any Garden  When you want to make a bold, beautiful statement in your garden, include the Cardinal Flower in your plan and celebrate the summer season.

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Coneflower Plant - TN Nursery

Coneflower Plant

The coneflower plant, or echinacea, is known for its distinctive daisy-like, purple flowers with a prominent cone-shaped center. These flowers attract pollinators and add color to gardens.  The Coneflower Plant Blooms Mid-Summer Coneflowers, which resemble daisies, typically bloom in the middle to end of summer. Certain types may begin blooming earlier or continue into the autumn. They are available in a rainbow of hues, from yellow to deep pink, and with both single and double blooms that are incredibly vibrant. Magnus Superior variants bloom from the end of spring until the end of summer with rosy-violet rays that can reach a diameter of seven inches. These plants respond exceptionally well to deadheading. They spread gracefully like wildflowers thanks to their abundant seed production and self-sowing capabilities. Their delicate branches and colorful flowers make them perfect for gardens, where they provide visual interest without drawing attention to themselves. This naturalizing effect makes the plant look better and works well to fill in gaps between flower beds. Add Uniqueness to Your Garden With It Because of their unusual shape and composition, cones are a great way to add variety to your landscape. Their unique cone shapes also make them eye-catching accents among other garden plants. They provide textural variety to a garden by growing erect, contrasting wonderfully with trailing or mounding plants. In expansion, they can adjust to a broad range of soil types and light levels, giving you more alternatives for planting them. Invite Pollinators to Your Yard With It Since Coneflower Plants produce both nectar and pollen, many pollinators rely on these flowers for sustenance. Each 250 to 500 blooms that make up its black, cone-shaped flower head serves as a little cup of nectar for the pollinators. Bees and hummingbirds are just a few of the pollinators that love it. This variant can grow up to three feet tall and typically blooms between the middle of summer and the beginning of September each year because they produce seeds and are a popular nectar source for birds. They are of the same genus as the daisy, which you could guess by looking at. They bear stunning purplish-pink petals and are naturally drought-tolerant. As a native plant, they provide professionals and gardening enthusiasts with a low-maintenance option for adding complexion to outdoor spaces. What Do They Look Like?  The Coneflower (also called Echinacea) may be well-known for its petals' deep to pastel purple tinge. However, a closer look will reveal one of the most intricate and alluring central disks of all flowering plants. This flower gets its name from this striking and unique central disk.  It has received this moniker thanks to the spiny central hub. The spines are spread out in an almost exact order of distance, giving the cone a symmetrical shape and order that is truly stunning when observed closely.  In full bloom, their petals may splay out parallel to the ground or stretch downward. This positioning puts the central cone on full display and accentuates its bulbous shape. The spines on the cone can adopt a rust, red, orange, or yellow pigmentation throughout the blooming season.  Of course, the petals are nothing to sneeze at. Being a daisy gendaisieshe, the petals are lance-shaped and can grow to about 1.5 inches long. The flower is mostly an intense purple, where it connects with the stem and washes out gradually towards the tip. In some lights, this creates a pastel effect that is perfect for pairing with other flowers without drawing too much attention.  The stem grows erect and can reach heights between 2 and 4 feet. This makes this plant a great contrast to creeping or bunching plants. The leaves are basal and arranged alternately. They are a deep, cool green reminiscent of forest floors.  What Should You Plant Coneflowers If their chromatic and structural traits aren't enough to entice you, check out some of the more practical benefits of adding this flower to your landscape:  Planting Options: They are very versatile when it comes to planting. Once established, they are highly adaptable and can live with varying degrees of light and soil types. So, no matter what soil you have or what kind of space you have to work with, you can still enjoy these flowers. They Attract Pollinators. Hummingbirds and bees love the pollen and nectar they produce. The cone can house 250-500 spines, which are filled with food for a wide variety of pollinators.  Easy to Maintain - While they will require regular watering after planting, they only need a little maintenance after they are established. They respond well to deadheading, which can also help control seeding if you want them to spread only a little. They can handle several types of soil as long as it is well-drained.  They're Drought Tolerant - Want to contribute to the palette of your garden without spending a fortune on water? The plant is drought-tolerant. Once the roots have been established, maintaining them takes very little water. They Come in a Variety of Colors-They come in a bouquet of colors, from the typical purplish-pink to yellow shades. This makes them a popular choice for gardeners who want their landscapes to explode with color while maintaining strong uniformity.  Frequently Asked  Are you ready to start planting them in your lawn or garden? The following answers to commonly asked questions may prepare you.  When Do They Bloom?  The blooming season for them is typically between mid-summer and later summer. Some variants can bloom into autumn.  Do They Like Sun or Shade?  Like most flowers in the daisy family, daisies love sunshine. Planting them in an area with at least six hours of direct sunlight daily would help.  Do They Come Back Every Year? They are perennials, which means they come back every year. This makes them a good choice if you want to add consistent color and variety to your outdoor spaces.  How Tall Are They?  They can stretch to 2-4 feet tall. The stem holds the flower clear above the basal leaves, allowing it to be the show's star, even on the shorter end.  How Do You Plant Them?  Start by digging a hole twice the width of the root ball's diameter. The root ball should be set to level with the soil line. To help retain moisture, add a small amount of compost and mulch to the plant site. After planting, they will need regular watering until the plant has established.  Will They Bloom Again If Deadheaded?  Coneflower respond well to deadheading. They will bloom again if you deadhead them. There are particular advantages to deadheading. Firstly, it will keep them from overtaking other plants in your garden (deadheading prevents seeding). Secondly, it may prolong the bloom time.  How Do You Deadhead A Coneflower It will help if you always deadhead (prune) yours with shears, as the stems can be very hardy and rugged to snap by hand. Deadhead after the flower has faded, cutting it down to a leaf close to new growth.  TN Nursery Provides Year-round Beauty for Your  Whether you want the whole gamut of colors or lush greenery to add to your garden, TN Nursery has you covered. We offer many ferns, flowers, plants, mosses, shrubs, perennials, vines, trees, and more. Your order is backed up by a full, year-long, 100% satisfaction guarantee. Our prime specimens make planting and maintaining easy and allow you to enjoy the fulfillment of gardening. Place an order now and beautify your outdoor spaces.

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