@dirtdorphins: in response to your query -
Most of the available land in these parts is farmland for corn a/o soybeans (cen. Il. reportedly has some of the best soil for agronomic purposes in the world). There are quite a few ditches that serve these farms but most are manicured by said farmers and thus unable to support wildflowers. There are other areas, usually in a/o near smallish forests where wildflowers may be present. State parks/lakes have wilds in some abundance. I am sure some other sites in cen. Il. have the native red lobelia but the site noted above is the only one I know close enough to visit that do support a colony of the reds.
