Common Name:

General Information

Lobelia sessilifolia is a herbaceous perennial plant with unbranched stems; it can grow around 20 - 170cm tall[].
The plant is possibly harvested from the wild for local use as a food.

Known Hazards

Many, if not all, species in the genus Lobelia contain a range of piperidine alkaloids, particularly lobeline and lobelanine. If ingested, these can cause a range of symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, salivation, exhaustion and weakness, dilation of pupils, convulsions, and coma. Generally, the degree of toxicity is only moderate and plants are only harmful in larger quantities - indeed several species have medicinal uses and a few are even eaten as wild foods[]

Botanical References

, ,

Range

E. Asia - eastern Siberia, Russian Far East, eastern China, Japan, Korea.

Habitat

Wet places in meadows in lowland and mountains; at elevations up to 3,400 metres[, ].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.70 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Requires a wet soil[].

Edible Uses

The buds and young plants are cooked and used as a famine food[, ]. Caution is advised because they contain a toxic alkaloid[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame[]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in spring[].
Basal cuttings in spring[]. Harvest the shoots when they are about 10cm long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.
Layering in moist sand, it forms roots at the nodes[].