Heath lobelia
Lobelia urens
Family: Campanulaceae
Fire effect on plant
The immediate fire effects on heath lobelia are unreported. The presence of a rhizome may mean an ability to resprout but post-fire persistence appears to be linked to abundant recruitment from on site seed.
Key traits
A rhizomatous, perennial herb. Heath lobelia has a long-lived seed bank that is stimulated by fire (Dinsdale 1996). Seeds are dispersed short distances (<1 m; Lososová et al 2023).
Plant response to fire
Fire brings dormant heath lobelia seeds of the seed bank to the surface and into conditions favorable for germination (Harper 1977). Fires in woodlands and plantations have caused a flush of germinating individuals of this nationally (UK) rare species (Dinsdale 1996).
Timing of life history
A perennial. Time to sexual reproduction is unclear. Flowering July to September.
Conservation status
BAP - L. urens
References
Dinsdale, J.M. 1996 The conservation and ecology of the heath lobelia, Lobelia urens L. PhD Thesis, University of Plymouth, UK. [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]
Harper, J.L. 1977. Population biology of plants. Academic Press, London. [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]
Lososová, Z., Axmanová, I., Chytrý, M., Midolo, G., Abdulhak, S., Karger, D.N., Renaud, J., Van Es, J., Vittoz, P. and Thuiller, W. 2023. Seed dispersal distance classes and dispersal modes for the European flora. Global Ecology and Biogeography 329, 1485–1494 [Empirical evidence; Academic literature]