The Lobeliaceae or Lobelia family comprises about 375 species of herbs, shrubs, or sometimes trees. Most are native to tropical or warm temperate regions. Not all classifications recognize the family and some place its members in the family Campanulaceae instead.
The leaves are simple and alternate. The plant has a milky juice. The flowers are asymmetrical with five lobes and stamens. The corolla tube opens along the upper side with two lobes above and three below, and the stamens join together in the tube.
