Arizona lupine facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Arizona lupine |
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Platycarpos (Wats.) Kurl.
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L. arizonicus
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| Lupinus arizonicus S.Watson
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The Lupinus arizonicus is also known as the Arizona lupine. It is a type of flowering plant in the Fabaceae family. This family is also called the pea or bean family. You can find this plant growing in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts. It likes to grow in open areas and sandy riverbeds. It is usually found below 1,100 meters (about 3,600 feet) in height. This plant is very common around Joshua Tree National Park and Death Valley National Park in California.
About the Arizona Lupine
The Arizona lupine is an annual plant. This means it lives for only one growing season. It grows from a seed, flowers, produces new seeds, and then dies.
What the Arizona Lupine Looks Like
This plant can grow to be about 10 to 50 centimeters (4 to 20 inches) tall. Its leaves are shaped like a hand with fingers spread out. This is called "palmately compound." Each leaf has 6 to 10 smaller parts called leaflets. Each leaflet is about 1 to 4 centimeters (0.4 to 1.6 inches) long. They are also about 5 to 10 millimeters (0.2 to 0.4 inches) wide. The stem that holds the leaflets is about 2.5 to 7 centimeters (1 to 2.8 inches) long.
The flowers of the Arizona lupine are a beautiful color. They can be magenta or dark pink. Each flower is about 7 to 10 millimeters (0.3 to 0.4 inches) long. Many flowers grow together in a tall spike. There can be 20 to 50 or even more flowers on one spike. This makes the plant look very colorful when it blooms.
