Who Gives A Fish Forums

I was browsing various aquatic plant seller websites and came across Cardinal Flower (lobelia) being sold as an aquarium plant. I've had limited success growing the garden variety over the past few years.

I'm curious to know if the two varieties are actually the same. I know the garden plant thrives in damp conditions. I also read that in an aquarium, the leaves remain all green when fully submerged, but develop a reddish hue when partially submerged.

Has anyone here had experience with Cardinal Flower as an aquarium plant?

From what I'm aware, Cardinal Flower is indeed the same plant used in both garden and aquarium settings. These plants naturally thrive in marshy environments, which might explain their adaptability to aquatic conditions. Although I haven't personally kept them in an aquarium, I'm sure someone on this forum has experience with it. I've always been a bit skeptical about using garden plants in aquariums, so I'm looking forward to hearing about your findings.

I've had experience with Cardinal Flowers in both my indoor storage tanks and outdoor stock tanks.
They're pretty fast growers when submerged with decent lighting. Like most plants, they tend to shed their emersed growth and regrow submerged stems.
Getting that nice red/purple color can be a challenge - it usually requires high lighting. If you're not providing enough light, you'll likely end up with a long, pinkish-green stem that, in my opinion, isn't particularly visually appealing.

I noticed one seller actually labels them as "difficult" - makes me wonder if they're more high maintenance than I initially thought.

Honestly, I wasn't a fan of Cardinal Flowers, but I'd heard they'd bloom if they reached the surface, so I always tried to coax mine to grow above the waterline. Unfortunately, they never seemed to want to break the surface, and I never got to see any flowers. On the other hand, if you let your PSO grow above the waterline, you'll be rewarded with these gorgeous purple blooms that are just incredible.