LUPINE BLOOM APPROACHES ITS PEAK

LUPINES GROWING ALONG HWY. 13...

...BETWEEN ASHLAND AND BAYFIELD

Friday,  8:45 AM.  58 degrees F at the ferry dock, 55 on the back porch.  The wind is variable and very light.  The sky is cloudless, the humidity 78% and the barometer more-or-less steady, at 29.95".  It is a gorgeous day.
   We look forward to our annual display of perennial lupines, Lupinus perennis, in the Pea Family, as much as we do the earlier daffodils.  The daffodils usher in spring, the lupines summer.  The lupines can be at their peak from late may to late-June, depending on the weather. This year they are blooming right on time, and should be at their peak for the Summer Solstice.  They will last several weeks, and are well worth a trip to the area.
   The lupines like sandy soil, and can be found along roadsides, on woods edges and in abandoned farm fields and cutovers in varying amounts almost anywhere along the south shore of Lake Superior.  Their colors range from white to pink and blue, with the later being the dominant flower color.  Unlike the daffodils, the lupines require no maintenance in their natural environment except occasional mowing or burning to keep woody vegetation in check.
   Lupines can of course be grown in the garden, but they spread by rhizomes, and tend to wander about, seeking the poorest and driest locations.  Sometimes they will stay where you plant them, and sometimes not, and may end up in your neighbor's yard.   The best way to truly enjoy lupines is to come and see them growing, with great abandon, in their natural habitat.