Lupinus polyphyllus | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Faboideae |
Genus: | Lupinus |
Subgenus: | Lupinus subg. Platycarpos |
Species: | L. polyphyllus |
Binomial name | |
Lupinus polyphyllus | |
Lupinus polyphyllus, the large-leaved lupine, big-leaved lupine, many-leaved lupine, [2] blue-pod lupine, [3] or, primarily in cultivation, garden lupin, is a species of lupine (lupin) native to western North America from southern Alaska and British Columbia [4] and western Wyoming, and south to Utah and California. It commonly grows along streams and creeks, preferring moist habitats.
It is a perennial herbaceous plant with stout stems growing to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) tall. The leaves are palmately compound with 9–17 leaflets 3–15 centimetres (1.2–5.9 in) long. The flowers are produced on a tall spike, each flower 1–1.5 centimetres (0.39–0.59 in) long, most commonly blue to purple in wild plants. The flowers are mostly visited by bumblebees. [5] The polyphyllus variety in particular make up a great number of the hybrids which are generally grown as garden lupines, which can vary dramatically in colours. The majority of lupines do not thrive in rich heavy soils, and often only live for a matter of years if grown in such places, because crown contact with manure or rich organic matter encourages rotting.
This lupine may represent a significant threat to the survival of the endangered Karner blue butterfly, due to its ease of hybridization with the Karner's food plant, Lupinus perennis , the wild perennial lupine. [6] [7] Some sources argue that commercial lupine seeds are already questionable for the Karner due to hybridization. Additionally, incompatible lupines continue to be introduced by humans into places where the Karner lives or once lived. [6]
There are five varieties:
The species epithet polyphyllus means "many-leaved", from Ancient Greek πολύς (polús) "many" and φύλλον (phúllon) "leaf".
The herbaceous lupin Lupinus polyphyllus was brought by David Douglas from North America to Britain in the 1820s. Almost a century later, George Russell, a horticulturist from York, UK, started to breed the (later famous) Russell hybrids (Lupinus × russelliihort). [8] [9] Lupinus polphyllus were originally of basic colours and had large gaps in the flowering spike. Without the use of modern-day plant breeding techniques, Russell took to ruthlessly pulling out any plants which he deemed to be unacceptable in growth or display. He spent two decades single-handedly trying to breed the perfect lupin, crossing L. polyphyllus with L. arboreus, L. sulphureus and one or more annual species (maybe L. nootkatensis).
Over the decades, the plants he selected developed flower spikes that were denser, larger, and more colourful than the original Lupinus polyphyllus. His work may have gone unrecognised if he had not been encouraged by nurseryman James Baker to show the plants to the public. It is understood the pair worked together for several years to perfect the Russell Hybrid, before they were displayed at the Royal Horticultural Society's June show in 1937, where their brightly coloured, tightly packed spires won awards. [10] Russell was later awarded an MBE, and the Royal Horticultural Society awarded him the Veitch Memorial Medal for a lifetime's achievement in horticulture. Baker later secured Russell's entire stock; in their heyday, Bakers Nurseries Ltd. of Codsall, Wolverhampton attracted 80,000 visitors in June to see 40 acres (16 ha) of lupines in flower.
Russell disliked the blue colours, as they reflected too closely the original plants imported from America almost a 100 years previously. The blue colouring is a recessive allele, and so although Russell might have worked hard to suppress it, lupines left unchecked over several generations will eventually revert to the old blues. Almost all garden lupines today are hybrids of the true Russell hybrids due to their ease of cross pollinating with one another, and with no special interest in lupine cultivating until recent years it has meant the plants have created a large pool of genetic diversity and variation from the original Russells. [11]
There is strong concern that Russell lupine DNA significantly contaminates large percentages of commercially-available wild perennial Lupine, Lupinus perennis , seed, making it potentially unsuitable for the larvae of the endangered Karner Blue, Plebejus melissa samuelis, butterfly. The Karner cannot feed upon Russell lupines, nor can it feed upon the base Lupinus polyphyllus species. [12] Those who wish to protect the Karner should prevent the introduction of Lupinus polyphyllus and Russell lupines into the remaining areas where the butterfly continues to exist, to prevent the toxic lupine hybridization. [7]
The templates created by Russell are still used by other specialist lupine horticulturalists today, e.g., Maurice and Brian Woodfield, nurserymen from Stratford-upon-Avon, who received the RHS Veitch Memorial Medal for their work on lupines in 2000. The Woodfields created more complex plants with more varied and vivid bi-coloured spikes, the red and yellow, and red and purple flowers are particular highlights of the "Woodfield" lupine variety. [13] In 2009, Sarah Conibear who runs the Westcountry Nurseries, displayed several new varieties including the ‘Beefeater', about which the RHS writer Graham Rice commented "[the beefeater] has what looks to be the best red lupine we've seen so far." [14]
It is commonly used in gardens for its attractiveness to bees, as well as its ability to improve poor sandy soils with its nitrogen fixing ability and flowers. Numerous cultivars have been selected for differing flower colour, including red, pink, white, blue, and multicoloured with different colours on different petals. Often hybrids between L. polyphyllus and L. arboreus are used, and sold under hybrid names such as Rainbow Lupins, Lupin Tutti Fruitti, and Band of Nobles (mixed), Chandelier (yellow), My Castle (red), Noble Maiden (white), The Chatelaine (pink), and The Governor (blue). They are very hardy plants, surviving extreme temperatures and withstanding frost to at least −25 °C (−13 °F). The wild varieties can easily become invasive and hard to dispose of unless kept in check on a regular basis. Growing lupins in pots can help prevent them from growing invasively in the ground. [15] They need a reasonable level of sun to survive, and do best in light soils, suffering in heavy and clay types. Once fully established they are extremely resilient and may be divided. Seeds taken from the mother plant will never be a true replica of the original even if they produce similar colourings.
Low alkaloidal or sweet cultivars of this lupine suitable for fodder crops have been bred. To avoid restoration of alkaloid synthesis in cross-pollinated species of lupine, a new approach has been developed on the basis of specific crossing. Only compatible forms are involved in hybridization, with their low alkaloid content controlled by one and the same genetic system. These approaches have allowed transforming this bitter weed into a valuable fodder crop. In the conditions of Northwest Russia positive results from the use of the sweet commercial cultivar "Pervenec" (first sweet variety), which is included in the State Catalogue of selection achievements of Russia. Breeding of sweet lupine is carried out also in Finland. The newer garden hybrids of today are highly poisonous because they are full of toxic alkaloids and should never be eaten.
The species is also toxic to livestock. [3]
In New Zealand, where it is known as the Russell lupin, Lupinus polyphyllus is classed as an invasive species [16] [17] and covers large areas next to roadsides, pastures and riverbeds, especially in the Canterbury region. It is documented as being first naturalised in 1958 and it has been suggested that tour bus drivers deliberately spread seeds of the plant to promote colourful roadside vegetation in areas which some tourists may consider to be rather drab.[ citation needed ] The plant threatens indigenous species especially when it invades the braided river beds in the South Island. [17]
It is also classed as an invasive species in Sweden, Norway, [18] Switzerland, Argentina, the Czech Republic, Finland, Lithuania, and Ukraine.
A daylily, day lily or ditch-lily is a flowering plant in the genus Hemerocallis, a member of the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, native to Asia. Despite the common name, it is not taxonomically classified in the lily genus. Gardening enthusiasts and horticulturists have long bred Hemerocallis species for their attractive flowers; a select few species of the genus have edible petals, while some are extremely toxic. Thousands of cultivars have been registered by the American Daylily Society, the only internationally recognized registrant according to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants. The plants are perennial, bulbous plants, whose common name alludes to its flowers, which typically last about a day.
Lupinus, commonly known as lupin, lupine, or regionally bluebonnet, is a genus of plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The genus includes over 199 species, with centers of diversity in North and South America. Smaller centers occur in North Africa and the Mediterranean. They are widely cultivated, both as a food source and as ornamental plants, but are invasive to some areas.
Lupinus arboreus, the yellow bush lupine (US) or tree lupin (UK), is a species of flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae.
Lupinus sulphureus is a species of lupine, a flowering plant of the legume family, Fabaceae.
Lupinus nanus, the sky lupine, field lupine, dwarf lupin, ocean-blue lupine or Douglas' annual lupine, is a species of lupine native to the western United States. It is found natively in California, Nevada, and on Steens Mountain in eastern Oregon. It tends to grow on slopes and in open or disturbed areas below 1300 meters.
Lupinus albus, commonly known as the white lupin or field lupine, is a member of the genus Lupinus in the family Fabaceae. It is a traditional pulse cultivated in the Mediterranean region.
Lupinus angustifolius is a species of lupin known by many common names, including narrowleaf lupin, narrow-leaved lupin and blue lupin. It is native to Eurasia and northern Africa and naturalized in parts of Australia and North America. It has been cultivated for over 6000 years as a food crop for its edible legume seeds, as a fodder for livestock and for green manure.
Lupinus perennis is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae.
Lupinus bicolor is a species of lupine known as the miniature lupine, Lindley's annual lupine, pigmy-leaved lupine, or bicolor lupine.
Lupinus nootkatensis, the Nootka lupine, is a perennial plant of the genus Lupinus in the legume family, Fabaceae. It is native to North America and was introduced to Europe in the late 18th century. It grows up to 60 cm tall, and has bright bluish-purple flowers.
Lupinus albifrons, silver lupine, white-leaf bush lupine, or evergreen lupine, is a species of lupine (lupin). It is native to California and Oregon, where it grows along the coast and in dry and open meadows, prairies and forest clearings. It is a member of several plant communities, including coastal sage scrub, chaparral, northern coastal scrub, foothill woodland, and yellow pine forest.
Lupinus formosus, the summer lupine or western lupine, is a species of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae. It is native to California and Oregon in the United States.
Lupinus leucophyllus is a species of lupine known by the common name velvet lupine. It is native to western North America, where it grows in many types of mountain, prairie, and plateau habitat. It is a robust, branching, erect perennial herb growing up to 90 centimetres (35 in) tall. Each palmate leaf is divided into 7 to 11 leaflets up to 7 centimetres (2.8 in) long. The herbage is coated in white woolly fibers and stiff hairs. The inflorescence is dense raceme of many flowers, each around a centimeter long. The flower is purple in color, fading brown, the patch on the banner petal yellow or brownish. The pointed sepals and the back of the banner are hairy to woolly in texture.
Lupinus saxosus is a species of lupine known by the common name rock lupine. It is native to eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, and the northeast corner of California,where it grows in sagebrush and other habitat. It may also be native to Idaho and Nevada.
Lupinus aridorum is a rare species of lupine known by the common name scrub lupine. It is endemic to Florida in the United States, where there were 10 known populations remaining in 2003. Fewer than 6000 individual plants were counted. It is threatened by the loss and degradation of its habitat. The scrub lupine is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Lupinus sericeus is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name silky lupine or Pursh's silky lupine. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to Arizona and east to Alberta and Colorado.
The genus Lupinus L. and, in particular, its North-American species, were divided by Sereno Watson (1873) into three parts: Lupinus, Platycarpos and Lupinnelus. Differences in habit and in the number of ovules were accepted as the basis for this classification. A majority of perennial and annual species from the American continent described by Watson were referred to Lupinus. To the Platycarpos section were attributed some annual species with two ovules in the ovary and two seeds in the pod. The section Lupinnelus consisted of one species, with axillary and solitary flowers, scarcely reflexed banner, and also with two ovules in the ovary.
George Russell (1857–1951) was born in Stillington and lived in York, England. He is most notable for his work developing the Russell Hybrid Lupins. A gardener by occupation, he began experimenting with Lupins in his fifties, after being inspired by the sight of a vase of the flowers at the home of one of his employers.
Lupinus prunophilus, commonly known as the hairy bigleaf lupine or chokecherry lupin, is a medium-sized herbaceous plant that grows in the Great Basin and other parts of the U.S. interior between the Sierra-Nevada and the Rockies. It is a close relative and very similar to Lupinus polyphyllus and is considered a subspecies by some botanists.
Lupinus caudatus is a widespread species of wildflower in genus Lupinus from western North America known by the common names tailcup lupin and spurred lupin. It is distinctive for the short spur on its purple-blue flowers, for which it is named. Because of its wide distribution and toxicity it commonly causes poisonings of susceptible livestock such as horses, cattle, and sheep, though it is eaten without harm by wild herbivores like deer and elk. It is generally found from the Coastal Ranges and Sierra Nevada Mountains in the west to the Rocky Mountains in the east.