| Identification | This is one of several wetland species of Lobelia that are quite similar, and thus you must take care in the identification. These species are fairly tall, growing as an erect herb to 2 feet tall, rarely to 3 feet tall, usually unbranched. They have numerous alternate stem leaves. In this species, each leaf is lanceolate to elliptical, about 4 inches long and about 3/4-1-inch wide, with entire to serrated margins (with tiny knoblike teeth). The top 3-5 inches of the stem is a raceme of numerous (20 or more) flowers, each of which is violet-blue to medium blue; the raceme tends to be secund (one-sided). The flower is about 3/4-inch long, tubular and with two lips, the lower with three lobes and extending far beyond the two small upper lobes. The narrow bracts beneath each flower typically have knoblike teeth. In this species, the leaves are thick and stiff, as opposed to thin and flexible in L. amoena, which does not overlap in range but is a montane and southwestern Piedmont species. However, L. georgiana can occur in the same area with L. elongata; that species can be separated by usually thick leaves "with a parchmentlike texture" (Weakley 2018); and some calyx segments usually with small teeth (as opposed to all calyx segments entire and thus no teeth). L. glandulosa often occurs in the same area in the Coastal Plain; that species has very narrow leaves, always under 1.5 cm (3/5-inch) wide. The common L. puberula has a densely pubescent stem, whereas L. elongata has a smooth stem. In summary, this is a thick-leaved species with entire sepals, and leaves wider than 3/4". Also, Sorrie (2011) mentions that this species can be separated from L. glandulosa and L. batsonii by "the denser raceme, the much wider leaves, the longer calyx lobes, and its habitat". | |
