bio.wikisort.org - Plant

Lupinus pusillus, the rusty lupine[1] or dwarf lupine, is an annual plant in the legume family (fabaceae) found in the Colorado Plateau and Canyonlands region of the southwestern United States(California),[2]^: 159 and north to Montana.

Lupinus pusillus
Lupinus pusillus, Montana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Genus:	Lupinus
Species:	L. pusillus
Binomial name
Lupinus pusillus Pursh

Description

Growth pattern

It is an annual plant growing up to 9 inches (23 cm) tall. "Pusillus is for the small size of the plant.[2]^: 159

Leaves and stems

Leaves are compound palmate with 3-9 1⁄2 to 1+1⁄2 inches (1.3 to 3.8 cm) long inversely lance- shaped leaflets.[2]^: 159

Plant stems and leaf stems (petioles) have long spreading hairs.[2]^: 159

Inflorescence and fruit

It blooms from April to June.[2]^: 159

Flowers are in stalks of 4-38 and bluish to purple or bicolored, with a yellow spot on the upper petal.[2]^: 159

Seedpods are nearly oval and have constrictions separating the seeds.[2]^: 159

Habitat and range

It can be found in desert shrubland and pinyon juniper woodland communities, from as far north as Washington, to California, and throughout the southwest.[2]^: 159

When growing in reddish sand, the blue flowers make a striking contrast with the sun at a low angle.[2]^: 159

Ecological and human interactions

It is pollinated by bees.[2]^: 159

References

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