Lupin growing guide

Lupin

Botanical Name: Lupinus texensis ('Texas Bluebonnet')
Family: Fabaceae
Plant Type: Short-lived perennial / annual wildflower
Size (HxW): 30—60cm x 30—45cm
Depth: Plant at pot depth
Spacing: spacing around 30cm apart; best planted in drifts for a meadow-style effect.
Soil: Well-drained soil; dislikes heavy, waterlogged ground.
Aspect: Full sun for the strongest flowering; tolerates a little semi shade.
Climate: Cool to Mediterranean
Frost: Hard (fully frost hardy)
Water: Water to establish through its spring growing and flowering period; resilient to drier conditions once established.
Fertiliser: Little required — a nitrogen-fixing legume. Avoid high-nitrogen feeds; a light, low-nitrogen feed only if soil is very poor.
Flowering Time: Spring
After Flower Care: Allow some flower spikes to set seed to self-seed and return in future seasons, or deadhead selectively for a tidier display. Cut back spent growth once flowering finishes.
Notes: Striking spires of vivid blue flowers tipped white; nectar-rich and a magnet for bees and butterflies. Behaves as a short-lived, meadow-style plant that regenerates from self-sown seed in favourable spots. Watch for aphids, slugs/snails on young seedlings, and late-season powdery mildew.

Lupin