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Lupines have blossoms typical of the Pea Family. Several blossoms grow
on a tall stalk. The leaves are palmately compound, with several "fingers"
radiating out from a center.
The name "lupine" is taken from the Latin name for "wolf".
It was believed at one time that this plant stole nutrients from the soil.
Actually the lupine (and other legumes) put nutrients back into the soil
by converting nitrogen from the air.
However, this plant contains chemicals in its leaves which may be poisonous
to livestock if they eat it.
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It is often difficult to tell one species of lupine from another -- and
to make matters more confusing, they sometimes hybridize with each other.
Some species of lupine which might be found at Albion Basin are:
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- Lupinus argenteus -- Silvery Lupine
- Lupinus sericeus -- Silky Lupine
- Lupinus kingii -- Annual Lupine
- Lupinus caudalus -- Bluebonnet Lupine (the state flower of Texas)
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Albion Basin
Wasatch Mountains
Salt Lake County, Utah
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Photographed
by Sandra Bray
August 1999
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