Loopy for Lupines

Credit: Juniper Unlimited

Your money or your lupines! Now that I have the attention of even Monty Python fans, let’s talk lupines.

This distinctive perennial belongs to the genus Lupinus, which includes 200 species of shrubs and annual and perennial herbaceous plants. Hybrid garden lupines are a classic favourite, evoking nostalgia in many of us. I had forgotten how showy they are until I planted a Russell Hybrid lupine last fall, together with daffodils, blue oat grass, heuchera and creeping jenny. As planned, the bulbs died down and by midsummer, the perennials were growing well. The lupine was striking, growing 90 centimetres (36 inches) tall with five strong stems carrying two or three violet-blue flowers—what an eye-catcher—well worth revisiting for something more than memories!

—Sally Spires