Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria

View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora

Lupinus luteolus is a species of lupine known by the common names pale yellow lupine and butter lupine. It is native to the coastal mountain ranges of Oregon and California as far south as the Transverse Ranges, where it grows in open habitat such as clearings and sometimes disturbed areas. It is an annual herb with a rigid stem growing to maximum heights anywhere between 30 centimeters and 1.5 meters, and known to exceed that at times. Each palmate leaf is made up of 7 to 9 hairy leaflets 1 to 3 centimeters long. The flower cluster is a raceme of crowded whorls of flowers each just over a centimeter long. The flower is often pale to bright yellow, but can be blue or pinkish. The fruit is a hairy, rounded or oval legume pod generally containing 2 seeds.

Plant type

Annual herb

Size

1 - 5 ft Tall

Form

Upright

Growth rate

Fast

Calscape icon
Color

Yellow, Blue, Lavender, Purple

Flowering season

Summer

Sun

Full Sun

Water

Moderate

Soil description

Adaptable, tolerant of sand, loam and clay.

Propagation

For propagating by seed: Fresh seeds need no treatment. Stored seeds scarification or hot water.

Site type

Open places

Plant communities

Foothill Woodland, Northern Oak Woodland, Pinyon-Juniper Woodland, Valley Grassland, Yellow Pine Forest

Birds
Bees
Caterpillars
Butterflies

Butterflies and moths supported

0 confirmed and 48 likely

Confirmed Likely

Agrochola purpurea

Painted Tiger Moth

Arachnis picta

Oso Flaco Flightless Moth

Areniscythris brachypteris

Orange Tortrix Moth

Argyrotaenia franciscana