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Lupinus brevicaulis

sand lupine, short stem blue lupine, short-stem lupine

magnificent lupine, Panamint Mountain lupine

Habit Herbs, annual, usually less than 1 dm, pubescent, hairs more than 1 mm. Herbs, perennial, 6–12 dm, white-woolly.
Stems

very short, tufted, branched.

erect, branched at base, hairs 1–3 mm, sharp, stiff.

Leaves

cauline, crowded near base;

stipules well developed;

petiole 1–6 cm;

leaflets (3 or)5–9, blades 8–20 × 2–9 mm, adaxial surface glabrous.

usually basal;

stipules 10–24 mm;

petiole 6–30 cm;

leaflets 5–9, blades 20–55 × 6–15 mm, adaxial surface densely woolly.

Racemes

dense, 3–16-flowered, 1–8 cm;

flowers spirally arranged, crowded.

10–45 cm;

flowers whorled or not.

Peduncles

1–8(–10) cm;

bracts persistent, straight, 2–3 mm.

10–50 cm;

bracts deciduous, 4–5 mm.

Pedicels

0.3–1.5 mm.

2–8 mm.

Flowers

6–8 mm;

calyx abaxial lobe entire or shallowly cleft, ± 6 mm, adaxial lobe 2-toothed, 3 mm, less than 1/2 as long as abaxial;

corolla bright blue, banner spot white or yellow, keel glabrous.

fragrant, 10–18 mm;

calyx bulge or spur 0–1 mm, abaxial lobe entire, 5–11 mm, adaxial lobe, 2-toothed, 5–9 mm;

corolla lavender to rose, banner patch yellow turning purple, banner glabrous abaxially, lower keel margins glabrous, adaxial margin ciliate middle to tip.

Legumes

not undulate, 1 cm, thinly pilose to coarsely hirsute.

3–7 cm, densely hairy.

Cotyledons

persistent, disclike, sessile.

deciduous, petiolate.

Seeds

1 or 2, smooth.

5–8, tan, 3–4 mm.

Lupinus brevicaulis

Lupinus magnificus

Phenology Flowering spring.
Habitat Sandy washes, open areas, grasslands, pinyon pine-juniper forests, creosote bush scrub, mesquite.
Elevation 300–2400 m. (1000–7900 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; NM; NV; OR; UT; WY; Mexico (Chihuahua, Sonora)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from USDA
California
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Lupinus brevicaulis resembles L. flavoculatus except that its flowers are smaller.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Flowers (13–)16–18 mm.
var. magnificus
1. Flowers 10–13 mm.
→ 2
2. Keel petals curved; racemes 20–40 cm.
var. glarecola
2. Keel petals straight; racemes 10 cm.
var. hesperius
Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lupinus Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lupinus
Sibling taxa
L. adsurgens, L. affinis, L. albicaulis, L. albifrons, L. andersonii, L. angustiflorus, L. antoninus, L. apertus, L. arboreus, L. arbustus, L. arcticus, L. argenteus, L. arizonicus, L. benthamii, L. bicolor, L. breweri, L. cervinus, L. chamissonis, L. citrinus, L. concinnus, L. constancei, L. covillei, L. croceus, L. dalesiae, L. diffusus, L. duranii, L. elatus, L. elmeri, L. excubitus, L. flavoculatus, L. formosus, L. fulcratus, L. gracilentus, L. grayi, L. guadalupensis, L. havardii, L. hirsutissimus, L. huachucanus, L. hyacinthinus, L. kingii, L. kuschei, L. lapidicola, L. latifolius, L. lepidus, L. leucophyllus, L. littoralis, L. longifolius, L. ludovicianus, L. luteolus, L. magnificus, L. malacophyllus, L. microcarpus, L. nanus, L. neomexicanus, L. nevadensis, L. nipomensis, L. nootkatensis, L. obtusilobus, L. odoratus, L. onustus, L. oreganus, L. pachylobus, L. padrecrowleyi, L. peirsonii, L. perennis, L. polyphyllus, L. pratensis, L. pusillus, L. rivularis, L. sabineanus, L. sericatus, L. sericeus, L. shockleyi, L. sierrae-blancae, L. sparsiflorus, L. spectabilis, L. stiversii, L. subcarnosus, L. succulentus, L. sulphureus, L. texensis, L. tidestromii, L. tracyi, L. truncatus, L. uncialis, L. villosus, L. westianus
L. adsurgens, L. affinis, L. albicaulis, L. albifrons, L. andersonii, L. angustiflorus, L. antoninus, L. apertus, L. arboreus, L. arbustus, L. arcticus, L. argenteus, L. arizonicus, L. benthamii, L. bicolor, L. brevicaulis, L. breweri, L. cervinus, L. chamissonis, L. citrinus, L. concinnus, L. constancei, L. covillei, L. croceus, L. dalesiae, L. diffusus, L. duranii, L. elatus, L. elmeri, L. excubitus, L. flavoculatus, L. formosus, L. fulcratus, L. gracilentus, L. grayi, L. guadalupensis, L. havardii, L. hirsutissimus, L. huachucanus, L. hyacinthinus, L. kingii, L. kuschei, L. lapidicola, L. latifolius, L. lepidus, L. leucophyllus, L. littoralis, L. longifolius, L. ludovicianus, L. luteolus, L. malacophyllus, L. microcarpus, L. nanus, L. neomexicanus, L. nevadensis, L. nipomensis, L. nootkatensis, L. obtusilobus, L. odoratus, L. onustus, L. oreganus, L. pachylobus, L. padrecrowleyi, L. peirsonii, L. perennis, L. polyphyllus, L. pratensis, L. pusillus, L. rivularis, L. sabineanus, L. sericatus, L. sericeus, L. shockleyi, L. sierrae-blancae, L. sparsiflorus, L. spectabilis, L. stiversii, L. subcarnosus, L. succulentus, L. sulphureus, L. texensis, L. tidestromii, L. tracyi, L. truncatus, L. uncialis, L. villosus, L. westianus
Subordinate taxa
L. magnificus var. glarecola, L. magnificus var. hesperius, L. magnificus var. magnificus
Name authority S. Watson: Botany (Fortieth Parallel), 53, plate 7, figs. 1–4. (1871) M. E. Jones: Contr. W. Bot. 8: 26. (1898)
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