Menu list goes here

Herbal Database Search Results

Back to: Pathways Main Search Page For Metaphysical uses visit The Witchs Haven

Lupinus polyphyllus

Lupinus polyphyllus: Flower
Photo by Derrick Ditchburn. High resolution version

Common name:	Big-Leaf Lupin	Family:	Leguminosae
Author:	Lindl.	Botanical references:	17, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	The seed of many lupin species contain bitter-tasting toxic alkaloids, though there are often sweet varieties within that species that are completely wholesome[65, 76]. Taste is a very clear indicator. These toxic alkaloids can be leeched out of the seed by soaking it overnight and discarding the soak water. It may also be necessary to change the water once during cooking. Fungal toxins also readily invade the crushed seed and can cause chronic illness[65].
Range:	Western N. America - British Columbia to California. A garden escape in Britain[17].
Habitat:	Usually found in wetlands from sea level to 3000 metres[276].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	L. burkei ssp. burkei[B,CPHOTO,CAL,CAL,P] L. polyphyllos[H] L. polyphyllus var. albiflorus[G] L. polyphyllus var. burkei[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Bigleaf Lupine [P], Blue-pod Lupine [B], Burke's Lupine [P], Garden Lupin [L],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	polyphyllus = many leaved;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Fabales. Renamed to Fabaceae -- Pea family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Canada(Salish)

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 1.5m. It is hardy to zone 3. It is in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from July to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. It can fix Nitrogen. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. The plant prefers acid and neutral soils and can grow in very acid soil. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Edible Uses

Root - raw or cooked[257].1

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

A decoction of the plant has been used as a tonic[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

An easily grown plant, succeeding in any moderately good soil in a sunny position[1, 200]. It strongly dislikes excessive winter wet[1]. Requires an acid to neutral soil[200]. Succeeds in poor soils[60].
Plants can be naturalized in the wild garden, especially on stream banks and for flowering above rough grass, where they may be short-lived but will self-seed[200].
Plants dislike root disturbance.
There are some named varieties, selected for their ornamental value[200].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[200].

Propagation

Pre-soak the seed for 24 hours in warm water and then sow in early spring in a greenhouse[1, 200]. Germination should take place within a couple of weeks. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer.
It should also be possible to sow the seed in situ in mid spring. It might be necessary to protect the sowing from mice.
Division in March. Difficult.
Basal cuttings, April in a cold frame. Harvest the shoots when they are about 10cm long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

Latin and Worldwide Common Names From Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database by M. H. Porcher et. al. 1995 - 2000 Landcare Systems Research Laboratory, Department of Crop Production,Institute of Land and Food Resources, The University of Melbourne, Australia.
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Lupinus burkei ssp. burkei (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Lupinus polyphyllos (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[65] Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984 ISBN 0723408394
Brilliant. Goes into technical details but in a very readable way. The best work on the subject that I've come across so far.

[76] Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. HMSO 1984 ISBN 0112425291
Concentrates mainly on the effects of poisonous plants to livestock.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

Main Search Page

Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Lupinus+polyphyllus
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Lupinus+polyphyllus

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
(You can copy, distribute, display this works but: Attribution is required, its for Non-Commercial purposes, and it's Share Alike (GNUish/copyleft) i.e. has an identical license.)
We also ask that you let us know (michael@thewitchshaven.com) if you link to, redistribute, make a derived work or do anything groovy with this information.

Home :: View Cart :: Shipping & Returns :: Contact Us :: Log In :: Privacy Policy :: Home :: Philosophy

We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.