Spider lupine facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Spider lupine
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Genus:	Lupinus
Species:	L. benthamii
Binomial name
Lupinus benthamii A.Heller
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The Spider Lupine (Lupinus benthamii) is a beautiful wild flower. It belongs to the lupine family. People often call it "spider lupine" because its leaves look a bit like a spider's leg.

Where Does Spider Lupine Grow?

This plant grows only in central California. When a plant grows only in one specific area, it is called endemic. You can find it in the Central Coast Ranges. It also grows across the Central Valley. You can even see it in the Sierra Nevada foothills.

In some places, spider lupine is very common. It can cover entire hillsides. When spring arrives, these hillsides turn bright blue. This is because of all the spider lupine flowers blooming.

What Does Spider Lupine Look Like?

The spider lupine is an annual herb. This means it grows from a seed, flowers, and then dies all in one year. It is also quite hairy! This plant can grow to be about 20 to 70 centimeters tall. That's like the length of a school ruler, or a bit more.

Leaves

Each leaf on the spider lupine looks like a hand. It has 7 to 10 smaller parts, called leaflets. These leaflets can be up to 5 centimeters long. They are very narrow and shaped like a line, only a few millimeters wide.

Flowers

The flowers grow on a tall, straight stalk. This stalk can be up to 30 centimeters tall. The flowers are sometimes arranged in circles around the stalk. Each flower is about 1 to 2 centimeters long. They are a bright to deep blue color. Usually, there is a white or pink spot on the top petal. This top petal is called the banner.

Fruit

After the flowers bloom, the plant makes fruit. The fruit is a hairy pod. It looks like a pea pod and is about 3 centimeters long. These pods contain the seeds for the next year's plants.