This flower is more worth growing than pothos or spider plant; drop it in soil and it lives, blooming in all four seasons until it fills the pot

Introduction

Green plants and potted flowers are essential accents for home life; they beautify the room and lift the spirit. Keeping some flowers and plants at home brings many benefits. "Flower Sound Potted Plant Diary, Issue 1011" introduces you to a flower very much worth having.

Today's star

Pothos and spider plant are the most common indoor plants; easy to grow, yes, but their ornamental value is a bit lacking. Summer is almost here, and growing flowers is getting harder and harder; plants like succulents, Rieger begonia and small hibiscus are all famously "certain to die in summer." The flower introduced today, called lobelia, is very heat-tolerant and blooms eagerly, making it suitable to grow right now.

Lobelia

Lobelia, also known as edging lobelia, is the plant that most easily blooms until it fills the pot, ranked alongside baby's breath and much loved by flower enthusiasts. Native to southern Africa, it has been introduced to China, where it has naturalized in most southern provinces; it is an excellent groundcover and street flowerbed landscaping plant, with an enormous quantity of blooms, fresh flower colors and very high ornamental value.

Long blooming period

Lobelia has a very long blooming period; in its natural state it flowers for as long as half a year, and if cultivated in a greenhouse it can bloom all four seasons. Its flowers are terminal or axillary; the upper part of the corolla is split into five lobes and the lower part into three. The leaves are fairly large, shaped like a butterfly spreading its wings. Flower colors include red, peach red, purple, violet-blue and white. When in bloom they look like a swarm of dancing butterflies, and mixed-color planting gives an even better ornamental effect.

Easy care

Lobelia was introduced from Africa and can take root and grow in most provinces and regions of China, which is enough to prove its adaptability. Cultivation and care are very easy; it is generally propagated by seed. Throw the seeds into moist potting soil without covering them, and they will take root and sprout in about 6-10 days. From sowing to flowering takes only about 65 days, so it is very easy to grow. During the growing period, pinch and top it multiple times so it will bloom until it fills the pot; otherwise it will grow messy and disorderly with untidy blooming.

A small hanging bonsai

Lobelia's drawback is that it is not cold-tolerant; in northern regions it must be moved indoors for the winter to survive safely. Some encyclopedia entries say lobelia is an "annual herb," but that is actually wrong; lobelia is a perennial. I have grown lobelia in the south for six years, and this year it is still continuing to bloom. Plant it once and it blooms until it fills the pot year after year, very much worth having.