Flora of New Zealand Series

blue lupin

Herbaceous annual becoming somewhat woody at fruiting; stems sericeous, branched. Leaflets 6-9, glabrous above, sericeous below, elliptic-oblong to linear, obtuse, 15-40 × 2-5 mm; stipules linear-subulate, 4-10 mm long. Infl. 3-13 cm long, few- to many-flowered; peduncle 5-30 mm long. Fls usually alternate, sometimes subverticillate in upper part of infl.; pedicels 2-4 mm long. Calyx densely hairy; upper lip very deeply 2-partite; lower lip longer and entire or shallowly 3-toothed, with 2 smaller lobes often present between it and upper lip. Corolla light blue to dark purplish blue, not scented, 11-15 mm long. Pod villous, 3-6-seeded, 45-60 mm long; seeds globular, smooth, variously mottled grey, brown and yellow, 4-8 mm diam.

N.: scattered localities in N. Auckland, S. Auckland and Wellington Provinces; S.: Maude Id, established locally in lowland Marlborough and Canterbury, Upper Clutha Valley.

S. Europe, Asia Minor, N. Africa 1958

Dry waste places and riverbeds.

FL Aug-Apr.

Poisonous when infected by a fungus (Connor 1977).

Blue lupin is sometimes grown for fodder and is also used as a green crop in home gardens, but is now used much less extensively than formerly [ see, Claridge, J. H., Arable Farm Crops of New Zealand (1972)]. Some cultivated forms have white or pink fls but all naturalised material appears to be of the more typical blue-flowered form.