| The name lupinus is derived from the Latin lupus, meaning wolf, because these plants were thought to exhaust the nutrients from the soil. However, like other members of the pea family, lupins actually fix nitrogen from the air and add nitrogen to the soil. Flowers are arranged on pea-like terminal clusters in upright spikes varied in color from deep blue to purple shades, flowering between April to June. Lupin cannot tolerate heavy soils and requires a dry, well-drained sandy or gravelly soil in full sun. A hardy perennial, very adaptable and versatile, it is native to Maine and Southern Ontario extending westward throughout the central and mid-western regions of the United States south to Florida. CAUTION: LUPIN SEEDS ARE POISONOUS! |
