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Sundial lupine

Lupinus perennis

Also called Blue Bean, Perennial Lupine, Wild Lupine

Sundial lupine
Photo: cassi saari, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sundial lupine is a native North American wildflower with blue to violet pea-like flowers, grown in dry, sandy, sunny spots. It is the larval food of the endangered Karner blue butterfly and suits wildlife and native gardens.

Family
Fabaceae (Pea & bean family)
Grows as
Perennial
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Water
Water during establishment, then allow the soil to dry between waterings; it tolerates drought once established.
Soil
Well-drained, sandy or gritty soil; poor soil is fine and rich soil is not wanted.
Temperature
Hardy in cold winters; typical of temperate climates, with cold tolerance well below freezing.
How easy
Moderate
Safety
Toxic: Seeds and other parts contain quinolizidine alkaloids such as lupinine that can cause nausea, weakness and other symptoms if eaten.
Native range
SE. Canada to NC. & E. U.S.A.
Climate
temperate

About

Lupinus perennis (also wild perennial lupine, wild lupine, sundial lupine, blue lupine, Indian beet, or old maid's bonnets) is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae.

Where it grows

Lupinus perennis is widespread in the eastern part of the USA (from Texas and Florida to Maine) and Minnesota, Canada (southern Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador), and on the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, where it grows in sandy areas such as dunes and savannas.

Other Lupinus plants

Drew's silky lupine · Fleshy lupine · Lupinus albert-smithianus · Sicklekeel lupine · Silver lupine · White Lupin · Lupinus alopecuroides · Lupinus amandus · Lupinus anatolicus · Anderson's lupine · Narrowflower lupine · Narrowleaf lupine

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Lupinus perennis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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