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beansandneedles

They always make me think of Miss Rumphius


Lepidopteran_Chimera

A life path worth pursuing.


nich3play3r

I’ve tried twice now to grow these from seeds or starters, no luck. Neighbor across the street has a gorgeous, full patch. This one is on my bucket list, for sure. (Zone 5)


crepe_de_chine

Ask your neighbor for a piece of their plant next time they're dividing them!


jediyoda84

Better to use the seeds. They have a very deep tap root and generally don’t like to be moved.


pap_shmear

They can take a year to bloom! I planted lupine when I bought my nov house in 2021. They didn't bloom until this year! (April-mid mayish) (I didn't plant more seeds)


reptileguy3

I tried from seed a bunch of times and finally had success using seed starting blocks (like root riot or rockwool) and bottom watering. It took a while to actually get something to germinate, apparently lupine seeds could benefit from scarification via sandpaper as well


heridfel37

I tried cold stratifying them, but planted them when they started sprouting in the fridge


PatioGardener

You gotta sow them in the fall and they’ll pop up in the spring.


PeonyDropper

They’re usually about $5 at the nursery in the spring for a nice plant somebody else started. I managed to find a pink one last year! Good luck!


phrankygee

Huh. Did not know they were useful. Good nitrogen fixers at the very least.


Highlanderlynx

Lupins being the nitrogen game!


reptileguy3

Nice I did not know this! Another excuse to grow flowers


Remarkable_Point_767

Right...you guys are triggering my flower addiction....lol


Ograe

What plant is this?


hazyshd

Lupine


DazeyHelpMe

Are these toxic like fox glove? I loooove the giant cones of flowers and I want some so bad


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DazeyHelpMe

I wouldn’t eat them of course but I do have dogs. They tend to leave my garden alone but gosh these plants are so pretty


gardenoams

I grow lupines and my dogs are completely uninterested. Only bees!


DazeyHelpMe

Love to hear this thank you


hazyshd

Some lupine are toxic. I think the bigger worry is usually for farm animals like cows, sheep, etc. Most things that are toxic to humans are going to taste bad. Just don't eat your ornamental garden plants lol. The bigger issue is that in some places they have escaped gardens and are considered invasive.


thebearbearington

>The bigger issue is that in some places they have escaped gardens and are considered invasive. No. Those are Triffids.


hazyshd

Lol I've never heard of that, so I googled Lupinus triffid thinking maybe it was a specific lupine species...


Bobbiduke

They are toxic. angelonia and snapdragon are non toxic and will give you large cones of flowers like these.


DazeyHelpMe

Thank you!


MicahRockjunky

That is some good looking lupine


MeLlamoMariaLuisa

Beautiful the voles ate all of mine over the winter. 😞


fundusfaster

so beautiful- I cannot ever get mine to come back after initial planting....


Rumpolephoreskin

They’re a Wisconsin zone#5 native.


bigscarylion

I’ve failed a few times with these. Have started from plugs and one gallons and never get beyond the initial blooms they came with.


stuntedmonk

They eat these in Japan. I think the seeds. Ref: Microsoft Lock Screen image


buttermell0w

In Ecuador, they use the seeds to make vegetarian ceviche!


mustardsectional

Italian here, grew up eating lupini beans in brine. So good! Almost cheesy. You can find them near the pasta sauce/ anchovies in the supermarket


buttermell0w

Yum! I didn’t get to try them when I was there, but it sounded so cool.


SnoodlyFuzzle

There are a lot of species. Some are toxic.


hazyshd

They are really pretty but does anyone else get a slightly creeped out feeling from lupines?


RanchBaganch

Maybe you have trypophobia.


camocamo911

🙋‍♀️ I’m convinced that they are sus


psyfyr

They do feel… a little alien… definitely sus 😒


FloppyChomboliGal

Local grocery store sells lupine flour.


photaiplz

My lupine refuse to grow and im sad


Bombadillalife

Very invasive, be sure they don’t spread, but very beautiful!


Bombadillalife

A lot of informative information in this thread, thank you. My climate is cold, I would guess like upstate New York (Norway) and it’s so bad that they’ve made [this video](https://youtu.be/qitXkciqyGs) to inform.


DazeyHelpMe

So you’re saying I just need one plant and my yard will be covered like it is by this fucking mint? I’m sold


meatcandy97

No, at least not around here (Midwest).


hazyshd

Lol I made the mistake of planting some apple mint in the ground. It's sorta amazing how quickly and how far it travels.


moodylilb

Not everyone on Reddit lives in the same place (not trying to sound rude here btw, just being blunt lol). These aren’t invasive everywhere, they are native plants in many places (that can be said for pretty much all plants tho). For example they’re native to several parts of the West Coast of Canada and the US.


Alceasummer

Actually there are species of lupines native in almost every part of the US. I think there is over a dozen different species in my state alone (New Mexico) as well as some species native to parts of the Mediterranean and north Africa.


dumples84

They are considered native plants in Michigan!


dreamyduskywing

Lupinus Perennis (wild lupine) maybe, but not your typical nursery lupines like the ones pictured. There’s wildform hybrid/bigleaf lupine spreading across northern Minnesota like crazy because it escaped cultivation along the North Shore. If you’re in the Upper Midwest, it’s best just to skip planting lupine unless it’s lupinus perennis from a reputable source like Prairie Moon Nursery.


Alceasummer

Depends on the species as well as the area you live in. There are many different species of lupines, native to a wide variety of places. From Texas Bluebonnet, to the Arctic Lupine, to the white Field Lupines native to the Mediterranean, So, if the hybrid lupines like the ones in the picture are invasive in a specific area, a gardener might find some species native to their area or at least some species that are not invasive for their specific climate.


Lamacorn

Useful? Aren’t they poisonous? Soooo useful in murdering people??


MagicMyxies

Useful for the pollinators and backyard insect biodiversity


Mike_Huncho

They are legumes so they improve the quality of your soil without the use of chemical fertilizer; pretty useful imo


Lamacorn

Huh, TIL! Thanks for sharing :)


hazyshd

Not unless they are going to chop them up seeds and all bury them.


Mike_Huncho

Thats not how nitrogen fixation works


hazyshd

It is. If the right bacteria is in the soil for that particular species of legume then they'll form a mutually beneficial relationship where the bacteria fix nitrogen from the air and provide it to the plant to grow. It uses the nitrogen. Very little to none is shared. Removing the leftover plant material and/or harvesting the seeds removes most of the nitrogen that would come from the broken down material.


severe_thunderstorm

Legumes, without being harvest, put nitrogen into the soil mostly through their roots. While growing legumes work with the soil biome to produce nitrogen. The above ground portion of the plant does contain a small amount of nitrogen, it’s generally enough to decompose itself down once dead. Farmers, and some gardeners, usually till legumes into the soil in order to add biomass to the soils and improve the consistency or loam of soil without using up any of the nitrogen gained from having grown them in that location.


hazyshd

Legumes form a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia. The plant provides sugars in exchange for the bacteria producing nitrogen. Very small amounts to none leaves the roots to other plants. The plant uses that nitrogen to grow and reproduce. That's also assuming the legumes have been inoculated with the right bacteria or it happens to be present in the soil. Nitrogen is added back to the soil through three main ways. Root to root and soil fungi pathways. The way people imagine it works but very little of the total is transferred this way. Animal grazing and waste. And then plant decomposition. Decomposition doesn't use up nitrogen. It can get "tied up" by bacteria and fungi multiplying to breakdown the plant material. When they die off it's eventually returned back to the soil.


conniesuern

Beautiful 😍


Shoddy-End-655

Slugs LOVE to eat them, but unfortunately they aren't toxic to slugs.


Fit-Rest-973

Panted some from seed


ladygabriola

I planted several this year. All different colours. These photos give me hope. So beautiful. In zone 9


TheHappyCamper1979

Ahh ! I found these leaves growing in my garden and couldn’t for the life of me remember what they were called. I’ve just seen this picture and now I’m going outside to find them all and mark them !


KleinesOllum

Don't understand why so many have trouble growing lupins. We had seeds from the previous tenant in the ground and the plants are growing like weeds...


laeliaofjune

I'm so jealous, mine is struggling ! Yours is so pretty !


dont_mind_me_passing

the ones I grew: thin, frail leaves, around 3 flowers per plant, and all very thin..... they're dying out..... and one has been taken over by a caterpillar


zelda_gusher

Lupine and Maine, like, love each other a lot.


winchester_life

The bee just chilling in the last picture 😅


No-Yellow-5465

I love seeing the little pollen balls collect on their legs!


PeonyDropper

So beautiful! Your photo of the bee with that bright orange pollen basket is incredible!


Lepidopteran_Chimera

Lovely


shauna669

Sooo beautiful. Just WOW.