Indian Tobacco

(Lobelia inflata)

Indian Tobacco (Lobelia inflata L.)

Identification: Flowers typical of the lobelias with 5 petals fused into a basal tube. Three lower petal lobes projecting downward. Upper 2 petals curled upward. Flowers whitish tinged with pale blue to violet. Base of flower inflated, enlarging into a round, bulblike structure as the flower fades and goes to seed. Sepals of calyx elongate, bent backwards. Flowers arising from leaf axils and with short flower stalks. Leaves ovate with toothed outer margins. Plant 6 to 30 inches.

Distribution: Throughout eastern North America.

Habitat: Indian Tobacco is a weedy species found in fields, empty lots, roadsides, and in open woods and forest margins.

Flowering period: July to October.

Similar Species: The swelling of the of the flower into a round, bulb-shaped structure and the thin, divergent sepals readily identify Indian Tobacco.

Comments: Indian Tobacco is by far the commonest of the species of Lobelia and is commonly found in disturbed habitats.