Lupinus rubens Seeds | Red Lupine
LATIN NAME: Lupinus rubens
COMMON NAME: Red Lupine
Plant Profile
A distinctive member of its genus, Red Lupine (Lupinus rubens) is an upright, bushy annual. Red lupine ribbons upright, bushy annual with palm-shaped leaves of narrow leaflets and tall, dense spikes of rich, reddish-magenta, pea-like flowers that ribbon stem through early summer, flowers opening from bottom of spike upward, hairy, green seedpods following. It likes sun, and light, well-drained soil. The blooms are worked steadily by bees for as long as they are open. For the gardener, the sum of these traits is a plant that is easy to live with.
Science & Biotechnology
Botanists studying the Lupinus group regularly include Lupinus rubens in comparative work, and the species also appears in horticultural trials aimed at gardeners and growers. Dense, coloured flower spikes of red lupine give it a recognised place in research on annual ornamental lupines of great pea family, and rubens species appears in studies of nitrogen-fixing garden plants and flower colour build. Gardeners benefit directly from its long cultivation: what the plant will do in a garden is well understood.
Uses & Benefits
Beyond its ornamental appeal, Red Lupine has the practical versatility that makes a plant worth growing from seed year after year. In sunny border, red lupine ribbons early-summer border with the colour. Magenta flowers open through early summer for bees, plant feeds soil with nitrogen it gathers through roots, and it makes fine cut flower and meadow plant. It grows well in light, well-drained, sunny ground. Given the right start, it carries on with minimal intervention.
Lupins are protein-rich legume crops, lupini beans being a Mediterranean snack after debittering, while the ornamental spires feed bumblebees; alkaloid-rich garden types are not for the table without processing.
Growing from Seed
Red Lupine is one of those generous plants that come along well from seed. Use a fine, free-draining seed compost, scatter the seed evenly, cover it lightly and hold it just moist in good light. The seed responds well to a cool, moist stratification period, which helps it break dormancy evenly. Grow the youngsters on steadily in pots until well rooted, then move them to their final positions.
Our Take
Red Lupine repays a little patience at sowing time with plenty of garden presence later.
Related Reading
Gardeners who grow Red Lupine often pair it with these related subjects: