Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Crystal Palace Lobelia (Lobelia erinus)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Edging Lobelia, Trailing Lobelia, Garden Lobelia.

More about crystal palace lobelia

About Crystal Palace Lobelia

Lobelia erinus · also called Edging Lobelia, Trailing Lobelia · flowering

Crystal Palace Lobelia is a compact, mounding annual bedding plant bearing dense clusters of deep gentian-blue flowers with contrasting white or yellow eyes, backed by dark bronze-green foliage. A classic summer bedder and container plant for sun to partial shade. All parts are toxic — keep away from children and pets.

Cold limit: USDA 2-11 (frost-tender annual in most temperate zones) · RHS H2 (10-23°C)

Watch for — Mid-summer dormancy: Plants stop flowering in prolonged heat; cut back by half, water well, and apply a balanced liquid feed — a fresh flush of flowers should follow when temperatures drop.

What crystal palace lobelia's hardiness rating actually means

Crystal Palace Lobelia is half-hardy (RHS H2). It survives a mild winter outdoors in a sheltered spot, but a hard frost kills it — so in colder zones it is lifted, potted, or grown as a tender plant. Its RHS rating of H2 means: Tender — survives a frost-free greenhouse or a very mild, sheltered spot. On the US scale that maps to USDA 2-11 (frost-tender annual in most temperate zones) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 1 to 5 °C — tolerates cold but no real frost. Crystal Palace Lobelia shrugs off cold nights but a real, sustained freeze will kill it.

Concretely, for crystal palace lobelia as it gets too cold:

Down to roughly about 1 to 5 °C it copes, especially if dry and sheltered.
A sustained hard frost collapses the top growth; whether it returns depends on whether the roots, crown or tubers froze.
Wet cold is far more lethal than dry cold for this plant — soggy, frozen soil is the usual killer.

Can crystal palace lobelia go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can live outside year-round only in the mildest, most sheltered part of USDA 2-11 (frost-tender annual in most temperate zones) or a frost-free UK microclimate.
In colder zones, grow it in a pot you can move under cover, or lift its tubers/roots and store them frost-free over winter.
A south-facing wall, free-draining soil and a dry winter position can push it a full zone hardier than the books suggest.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when crystal palace lobelia can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H2 figure above.

Frost protection for borderline crystal palace lobelia

Crystal Palace Lobelia is right on a hardiness edge in many gardens, so if you are pushing it, these measures buy it the margin it needs:

Mulch the crown or root zone deeply with bark, straw or leaf-mould before the first hard frost.
Move container plants against a warm wall or into an unheated but frost-free porch or greenhouse.
Fleece the top growth on the coldest nights, and keep it on the dry side — dry roots survive cold far better than wet ones.
Lift dahlia-type tubers or tender crowns after the first light frost blackens the foliage and store them somewhere cool but frost-free.

Crystal Palace Lobelia hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is crystal palace lobelia cold hardy?

Crystal Palace Lobelia is half-hardy (RHS H2). It survives a mild winter outdoors in a sheltered spot, but a hard frost kills it — so in colder zones it is lifted, potted, or grown as a tender plant. Borderline outdoors. In its mild end of USDA 2-11 (frost-tender annual in most temperate zones) (and sheltered UK gardens) crystal palace lobelia can stay out; in colder areas it must be lifted, brought in, or treated as a frost-tender plant.

What is the minimum temperature crystal palace lobelia can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 1 to 5 °C — tolerates cold but no real frost. Crystal Palace Lobelia shrugs off cold nights but a real, sustained freeze will kill it.

What hardiness zone is crystal palace lobelia?

Crystal Palace Lobelia is rated USDA 2-11 (frost-tender annual in most temperate zones) and RHS H2 — Tender — survives a frost-free greenhouse or a very mild, sheltered spot.

Can crystal palace lobelia survive winter outside?

It can live outside year-round only in the mildest, most sheltered part of USDA 2-11 (frost-tender annual in most temperate zones) or a frost-free UK microclimate. In colder zones, grow it in a pot you can move under cover, or lift its tubers/roots and store them frost-free over winter. A south-facing wall, free-draining soil and a dry winter position can push it a full zone hardier than the books suggest.

How do I protect crystal palace lobelia from frost?

Mulch the crown or root zone deeply with bark, straw or leaf-mould before the first hard frost. Move container plants against a warm wall or into an unheated but frost-free porch or greenhouse. Fleece the top growth on the coldest nights, and keep it on the dry side — dry roots survive cold far better than wet ones. Lift dahlia-type tubers or tender crowns after the first light frost blackens the foliage and store them somewhere cool but frost-free.