Palespike Lobelia
Lobelia spicata
In the Carolinas and Georgia, found in meadows, woodlands, disturbed areas. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Louisiana. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- 2 feet
- Light
- Deep shade, Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- Summer
Not yet recorded · Spread
Recorded in 22 Louisiana parishes.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Open, grassy or flowery ground that is not wet, such as mountain meadows; wet meadows are separate.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Who uses this plant?
5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including LA
Genus host records with ranges including LA · Lobelia
- Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
- Enigmogramma basigeraPink-Washed Looper Moth
- Palthis angulalisDark-Spotted Palthis
- Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
- Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
30BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Lobelia
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claimAdult butterflies / moths 4
- Ancyloxypha numitor
- Limochores taumas
- Pholisora catullus
- Pontia protodice
Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Campanulaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 3a–8b
- Flower color
- Blue, purple or white
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “Summer” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
- Flower color · “Blue, purple or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differs)
- Hardiness · “Zones 3a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “2 feet” · Tennessee Smart Yards (ranked first; Minnesota Wildflowers, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Deep shade (less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight); Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
- Soil · “Good drainage; Moist; Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; NC Extension Plant Toolbox, Tennessee Smart Yards, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
Conservation status
| Louisiana rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| LA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Growing cautions
- Self-seeds freely. Self-seeds freely once established. Tennessee Smart Yards
For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.
Sources
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Louisiana occurrence source
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications