E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Lobelia kalmii L.
Kalm's lobelia (Ontario lobelia)
Campanulaceae (Bellflower family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Lobelia kalmii
Click here to view our interactive map and legend

Details about map content are available here
Click on the map dots to view record details.

Species Information

Click on the image below to view an expanded illustration for this species.

Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

General:
Perennial herb from a fibrous root; stems erect, simple or sometimes branched, 10-50 cm tall, glabrous or inconspicÃ¡uously hairy.

Leaves:
Basal leaves soon deciduous, spoon-shaped or rounded, stalked, 1-3 cm long, entire to obscurely toothed; stem leaves similar, linear, 1-5 cm long, not much reduced upwards.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of stalked, terminal racemes, loose, few-flowered; corollas blue with a large white eye, 7-13 mm long, the lower lips glabrous, longer than the tube.

Fruits:
Capsules, 4-8 mm long, seeds roughened, abruptly sharp-pointed at both ends.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Wet to moist calcareous fens, shorelines and meadows in the montane zone; frequent in SE and N BC; infrequent in SC BC; E to NF and S to PA, SD, MT and WA.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Lobelia kalmii

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information	Value / Class
Site Information	Minimum	Average	Maximum
Elevation (metres)	676	921	1430
Slope Gradient (%)	0	16	84
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]	60	240	335
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	1	5	8
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	C
Number of field plots species was recorded in:	12
Modal BEC Zone Class	IDF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in:	BWBS(2), ICH(2), IDF(7), MS(1)
Source: Klinkenberg 2020

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Native	S5	Yellow	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer, the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Lobelia kalmii var. strictiflora Rydb.
Lobelia strictiflora (Rydb.) Lunell

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the World Flora Online
Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer
USDA

Additional Photo Sources

Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2020. E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 2024-04-27 8:18:25 AM ]

Disclaimer: The information contained in the E-Flora atlas pages is derived from expert sources as cited in each section. This information is scientifically based. E-Flora also acts as a portal to other sites via deep links. As always, users should refer to the original sources for complete information. E-Flora BC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the original information.