Lobelia speciosa Starship Rose seeds

Lobelia 'Starship Rose' is a very beautiful, floriferous perennial plant for moist to wet soil, well-suited to container cultivation and for borders or banks. From summer to autumn, this variety develops purple flowering stems adorned with bright pink flowers that attract pollinators. Its dense foliage and prolonged flowering make it an excellent accent plant, both in naturalistic settings and in more formal compositions.

Lobelia × speciosa 'Starship Rose' is a herbaceous perennial plant from the Campanulaceae family. It is one of many hybrids resulting from the cross-breeding between several North American species, particularly Lobelia cardinalis, Lobelia siphilitica and Lobelia fulgens. All grow in damp places such as riverbanks, marshy areas and wet meadows.
The 'Starship Rose' cultivar is part of the 'Starship' series, developed by PanAmerican Seed, which also includes varieties with red and blue flowers. It was selected particularly for its earlier flowering and better branching. The hybrid lobelia 'Starship Rose' forms a dense clump of sturdy stems coloured purple to burgundy. It reaches 50-60 cm in height with a spread of 30 cm in the ground. In a pot, it reaches about 40 cm in height. Its dimensions are perfectly suited to 5 to 7 litre containers. The flowering period extends from June-July to September-October in the form of dense spikes of bright pink flowers along the stems. Each flower measures 2 to 3 cm long with a tubular corolla with 5 lobes. The two upper lobes are smaller and erect, while the three lower lobes are wider and spreading, forming a prominent lower lip. Pollination is carried out by bees, bumblebees and especially butterflies, attracted by the bright colour of the flowers. The dark green leaves are lanceolate, measuring between 5 and 8 cm long and grouped at the lower part of the stems. The plant enters dormancy during winter and regrows from the base the following spring. A well-protected crown can withstand temperatures down to -8/-10 °C at the lowest.

Lobelia speciosa 'Starship Rose' will perform at its best in rich, moist soils in summer. Grown in a pot, it will need frequent watering and fertiliser, but it is worth the effort! For companion planting, choose plants with decorative foliage or soft flowering, such as Heuchera 'Forever Purple' with luminous purple foliage or Carex oshimensis 'Evergold' with fine variegated leaves, which will highlight its bright pink spikes and purple stems. This variety can even serve as a focal point in a container display, combined with some well-chosen annuals like Petunia Supertunia Vista 'Bubblegum' for a colour echo and Coleus Copinto 'Manhattan' for its very dark foliage.

Coated seeds are seeds surrounded by a thin protective layer, composed of clay, nutrients or a natural binder. This process facilitates their handling, particularly for very small seeds like those of lobelia, by making them larger and more regular. The coating also improves sowing precision, promotes more uniform germination, and can sometimes contain elements beneficial to germination.