How to Grow Eggert's Lobelia
Eggert's Lobelia
Lobelia × speciosa 'Eggert'
flowerEggert's Lobelia is a hybrid cultivar known for its vibrant deep blue-purple flowers with distinctive white centers, creating striking contrast. It is a tender perennial often grown as an annual, valued for its long blooming season and ability to attract hummingbirds and pollinators. The plant forms dense, mounding growth habit suitable for containers, borders, and hanging baskets.
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Example Eggert's Lobelia timeline · Pittsburgh, PA (Zone 6b)
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Plant Eggert's Lobelia
Around Apr 17Near Pittsburgh's average last spring frost.
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Tend & protect
Late spring–summerWatering, feeding, and pest-watch reminders.
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First Eggert's Lobelia blooms
Around Jun 16≈ 60 days after planting
Sample dates for Pittsburgh, PA. Sign up to get exact Eggert's Lobelia dates for your own zip code.
Growing Conditions
Soil
Growing Zones
Find your zone →Thrives in zones 9b-11; can be grown as an annual in cooler zones
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Seedling
2-3 weeksTiny seedlings emerge with delicate cotyledons and first true leaves appearing within 1-2 weeks. Plants remain small and fragile.
Maintain high humidity, keep soil consistently moist, provide bright indirect light, thin seedlings if necessary, avoid overwatering which causes damping off
Vegetative Growth
3-5 weeksYoung plants develop bushy, mounding foliage with increasingly dense branching. Stems become more robust and leaves establish their characteristic shape and color.
Pinch growing tips early to encourage bushiness, maintain consistent moisture, provide balanced fertilizer every 2-3 weeks, gradually acclimate to outdoor conditions if grown indoors
Bud Formation
2-3 weeksFlower buds begin forming at stem tips, appearing as small clustered buds with protective sepals. Plants continue growing but energy shifts toward reproductive structures.
Increase blooming fertilizer (higher phosphorus), maintain consistent moisture, ensure adequate light, reduce nitrogen to avoid excessive vegetative growth at expense of flowers
Flowering
6-10+ weeks (extends into fall)Distinctive deep blue-purple flowers with white centers open in succession along spikes, creating abundant colorful displays. Blooming period is extended throughout season.
Deadhead spent flowers to encourage continuous blooming, maintain consistent moisture without waterlogging, fertilize every 2 weeks with bloom-promoting formula, provide afternoon shade in extreme heat
Seed Development & Decline
Ongoing through fall/winterIf flowers are not deadheaded, seed pods develop. Growth naturally slows as temperatures cool. Foliage may become sparse in late season.
Remove seed pods to extend blooming, reduce watering slightly, cut back plants if growing as perennial for overwintering, collect seeds if desired for propagation
Companion Planting
Plan your garden →Plant with:
Avoid planting near:
Common Pests
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Increase humidity, spray with water mist, use insecticidal soap if severe, ensure good air circulation
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Monitor undersides of leaves, use yellow sticky traps, spray with neem oil or insecticidal soap, increase air circulation
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Allow soil surface to dry between waterings, use well-draining soil, apply sand layer on soil surface, use sticky traps
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Improve air circulation, reduce humidity levels, avoid overhead watering, spray with sulfur or fungicide if needed, remove affected foliage
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and
Hand-pick, create barriers with diatomaceous earth, use slug traps, remove hiding places
Uses
Edible flowers for garnish
CulinaryThe distinctive blue-purple flowers with white centers can be used as elegant garnishes for desserts, salads, and beverages, adding visual appeal and a mild flavor. [source]
Container and hanging basket displays
HouseholdEggert's Lobelia is exceptionally well-suited for containers, window boxes, and hanging baskets, providing cascading or mounding growth with prolific blooms throughout the season. [source]
Hummingbird and pollinator attraction
WildlifeThe vibrant blue-purple flowers and nectar-rich blooms attract hummingbirds, bees, and other pollinators, making it an excellent choice for wildlife gardens and pollinator support. [source]
Cut flowers and floral arrangements
CraftThe delicate flowers can be cut in small sprigs and used in fresh floral arrangements and bouquets, providing color and texture to mixed displays. [source]
Traditional herbal use
MedicinalHistorically, Lobelia species have been used in traditional herbal medicine, though modern use requires consultation with healthcare providers due to potency concerns. [source]
This is not medical advice. LizPlants is not a medical resource. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before using plants medicinally.
Harvest Tips
Eggert's Lobelia is a flowering ornamental, not typically harvested. Deadhead spent flower clusters regularly to encourage continuous blooming throughout the season. Pinch off seed pods to extend flowering period. For seed collection, allow some flowers to develop seed pods in late season, collect when pods brown and dry, and store seeds in cool dry location.
Fun Facts
- 🌱 Eggert's Lobelia is named after the 'Eggert' cultivar that was selected for its exceptional flower color and vigor, representing decades of breeding work to create this specific blue-purple hue.
- 🌱 Hummingbirds are irresistibly drawn to Lobelia flowers, and in their natural habitat, some Lobelia species have co-evolved specifically with hummingbird pollinators, whose long beaks perfectly fit the flower shape.
- 🌱 The plant produces thousands of tiny seeds that are so small they can easily blow away or be carried on water, making propagation challenging but possible for patient gardeners.
Gardening Terms
New to gardening? Learn about terms used in this guide:
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