Getting the best from your lupins

Lupin seed has been used as a form of protein as long ago as the Roman times. They ate the roasted seeds of white lupins (Lupinus albus) and also made them into coffee. The newer garden hybrids available today are highly poisonous and should never be eaten.

Perennials are any plant living for at least three years. The term is also commonly used for herbaceous perennials which grow for many years (To compare: annual = one year, biennial = two years).

perennials

Growing lupins

Cultivation

When growing lupins from seed, each seedling will be unique in colour, form and habit. You can call it what you like because no one else will have it! For those working to a definite colour scheme, it is best to use vegetatively propagated plants of the very best lupins available, to know what you will get.

A seedling is a young plant grown from seed.

Seedlings

Flowering time

With the earliest of our new lupin varieties forming flower

A bud is a small, undeveloped shoot that contains the potential for new growth. Buds are typically found on stems, where they can be apical (found at the tip) or axillary (found between leaf axils) and may develop into leaves, shoots or flowers.

Lupinus ‘Manhattan Lights’

Lupinus ‘Polar Princess’

A succession of blooms

Lupinus ‘Masterpiece’, L. ‘Red Rum’ and L. ‘Terracotta’ are among the first out, quickly followed by L. ‘Blossom’, L. ‘Persian Slipper’, L. ‘Manhattan Lights’, L. ‘Desert Sun’ and L. ‘Salmon Star’. Last to arrive on the scene are L. ‘Polar Princess’, L. ‘Tequila Flame’, L. ‘Gladiator’ and L. ‘Towering Inferno’.

Lupinus ‘Red Rum’

Display including Lupinus ‘Salmon Star’

Soil type

The latin name for lupin, Lupinus, is derived from lupus meaning wolf or destroyer. As lupins will grow in poor soil, a myth has arisen around them that they may destroy the soil’s fertility. This is not true. Lupins make their own nitrogen, enabling them to grow in poorer soils but not chalk. Ideally a well-drained, neutral to slightly acidic soil will ensure successful growth, although most soils are fine.

Position

Just like us, lupins love the sun and their flower spikes will follow its movement east to west on a bright day. However, we also have lupins

Transferring young plants from one container to a slightly larger one, where they will have more room to grow and fresh potting compost. This encourages continuous, healthy growth.

Feeding and weeding

Caring for your lupins is easy. Buy them from a good source, keep

Hoes are multi-purpose tools for weeding (especially between rows of veg), loosening the soil surface, making seed drills, earthing up plants, and more. There are various types with different shaped blades. Hoeing to remove weeds is best done on a warm, dry day, so you slice easily through weed stems just below the surface.

How to use your lupins

As a statement plant in a border, few plants can match the tall, colourful flower spires of lupins. They make excellent pot plants too. Put one or two on your patio and enjoy their heavenly morning and evening scent reminiscent of peppery moss.

Westcountry Nurseries

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