Shaggy lupine facts for kids

Lupinus covillei, also known as the shaggy lupine, is a beautiful wildflower. It belongs to a group of plants called lupines. This special plant grows only in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, USA. You can often find it in wet, grassy areas like meadows.

Meet the Shaggy Lupine

The shaggy lupine is a type of perennial plant. This means it lives for more than two years, coming back each spring. It can grow quite tall, reaching up to about 90 centimeters (that's almost 3 feet!). The plant gets its name "shaggy" because it has long, soft hairs all over its stems and leaves.

What Does It Look Like?

The shaggy lupine has interesting leaves. They are called palmate leaves, which means they look a bit like the palm of your hand with fingers spreading out. Each leaf is made up of several smaller parts called leaflets. These leaflets can be up to 10 centimeters (about 4 inches) long.

The flowers of the shaggy lupine are very pretty. They grow in a tall cluster called a raceme. Sometimes, these flowers are arranged in circles, or "whorls," around the stem. Each individual flower is about one centimeter long. They are usually a lovely blue color, and many have a small, bright yellowish spot on one of their petals.

After the flowers bloom, the plant produces fruit. For the shaggy lupine, this fruit is a fuzzy pod called a legume. These pods can grow up to 4 centimeters (about 1.5 inches) long and contain the plant's seeds.

Where Does It Grow?

The shaggy lupine is a plant that is endemic to a specific place. This means it naturally grows only in the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California. It loves places that are moist, like wet spots in meadows.

You can find many shaggy lupines in some of California's famous national parks. These include Sequoia National Park, Yosemite National Park, and Kings Canyon National Park. If you visit these parks and look closely in the wet meadows, you might spot this unique blue wildflower!