Planting, tending, pruning and more

Lupins combine rural charm with sublime elegance. With their colorful blossom candles, the versatile summer flowers adorn the garden and serve as fodder, green manure and vegetable plants. Wondering how to properly cultivate this wondrous flower? Then read all the basic answers here.

Plant lupins properly

Planting time for the self-prepared or ready-bought younglupine starts in mid-May after the ice saints. While preparing the soil, soak the flower's potted root ball in a jar of water. Follow these steps to get to work:

Create a planting pit with twice the volume of the root ball
Lay out a drainage made of grit or potsherds on the sole
Plant the potted flower, press down the soil and water
Place more lupins at a distance of 40-50 centimeters

The lupine also cuts a fine figure in a large pot with a volume of more than 20 liters. Use commercially available ones as a substrate potting soilwho is emaciated with a handful of sand. Don't forget to put the indispensable drainage over the water drain in the bottom of the pot to protect against dangerous waterlogging. A water- and air-permeable fleece prevents earth crumbs from settling between the inorganic material and clogging it.

care tips

As a prime example of a low-maintenance flower, the lupine is perfectly satisfied with the following measures:

Water regularly in the first year
Pull weeds every few days until the lupine is established
From the second year, only water the flower during summer drought
Always water lupins in the planter when the substrate dries
Trim down occasionally during flowering to make room for fresh flowers
Instead of mineral too fertilize, administer a portion of compost every 4-6 weeks

The flower does not want to be mulched with leaves or lawn clippings. However, the lupine has no objection to a thin layer of gravel or grit. The legumes provide themselves with nutrients, as the deep-reaching taproots absorb the nitrogen and phosphorus present in the soil.

Which location is suitable?

The lupine not only scores with its multifaceted talents, but also convinces with frugal demands on the location. In order for the majestic flower to develop its beauty to perfection, it depends on this position:

Sunny to partially shaded with at least 4 hours of sunshine per day
Warm and sheltered from the wind
Deep, humus-rich soil, fresh and often slightly sandy
Ideally with a pH between 4.5 and 6.5
No other lupins in the previous 4-5 years at the site

The opulent flower feels in good hands along a sunny edge of a wood or a hedge. Above all, however, lupins do not want to be confronted with waterlogging or extreme drought.
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When is flowering time?

The lupine owes its popularity not least to a never-ending flowering period from May until well into August. Regular trimming and a slight pruning after the first flowering extends the flowering period into late summer.
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Cut lupine properly

With a targeted pruning at the right time, the chances of a second flowering in late summer increase. After flowering, cut the flower back to 10 centimeters. In this way, enough buds remain on a lupine from which it will sprout again. Shortly before the first frost, prune the plant to a hand's breadth above the ground or make the cut in early spring.

If the clippings contain legumes, these are not disposed of in the compost. The risk of unsuspecting animals poisoning themselves with the grains is too great.
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Fertilize lupine properly

Among the best plants for a green manure count the lupine. The flower enriches the soil with nitrogen, makes phosphorus more accessible and loosens even compacted soil with its mighty taproots. As a preceding crop, lupins pave the way for vital growth for other plants.
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multiply lupine

One of the many uncomplicated characteristics of a lupine is its easy propagation. To do this, dig up the rootstock of an established flower in March or April. With a sharp knife or something spade divide the bale into several segments. Each section should have at least 2 buds. Replant the rejuvenated lupins in a suitable location.

With cuttings, breeding during the summer is also done in no time at all. Suitable shoots are 10-15 centimeters long. After the bottom half has been defoliated, place each cutting in a nursery pot with poor soil. At a warm 20-25 degrees in a bright place, rooting takes place quickly.
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Lupine in pot

A variety of enchanting lupine varieties are excellent for pot cultivation. In order for the flower to develop well in the limited substrate volume, the following aspects are important:

Water regularly when the substrate surface has dried
Give a dose of diluted liquid fertilizer every 4-6 weeks
Cut back to the ground before winter
Protect the root ball in the pot from frost with fleece or bubble wrap

Is lupine poisonous?

Lupins contain toxic alkaloids, which are also known as bitter substances because of their taste. In particular, the consumption of lupine grains causes symptoms of poisoning, such as vomiting or cramps. Due to the unpleasant taste, people rarely ingest a harmful amount of parts of this flower. For animals, however, garden lupins pose a danger. Horses, pigs, cows, dogs, cats or rabbits are affected.

It has been possible to almost completely breed out the bitter substances from special lupine varieties. Therefore, this flower is now finding its way into the vegetable garden under the name sweet lupine is cultivated as a fodder plant, because the grains of its legumes are rich in healthy ones proteins.

The perennial lupine

The lupine is one of the deciduous perennials. This property implies that before the first frost the flower sheds all its leaves. The withered stems can then be cut off close to the ground. The root ball overwinters in the ground to sprout again in the next season.
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The lupine in the garden

Caring for a garden lupine requires only a small amount of gardening attention. The natural rainfall covers the water requirement from the second year. The watering can is only used during summer droughts. With its long taproots, the flower gets all the important nutrients from the soil by itself, so that fertilizer is superfluous. Pruning after flowering will encourage rebloom.
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grow lupins

To grow lupins in your green kingdom, you have two different methods to choose from. Direct sowing of the robust seeds is possible from mid-March. The sowing depth is 2-3 centimeters at a distance of 40-50 centimeters. At a temperature of 4-6 degrees Celsius, germination begins within 7 days. Daily weeding and regular watering are essential for a successful culture.

To the imponderables sowing To get out of the way, hobby gardeners favor planting a preferred flower. When the ice saints are over in mid-May, place the lupine, which has previously been soaked in water, in the loose, permeable soil in a sunny location. The administration of fertilizer of any kind can be dispensed with, while in the first few weeks an adequate water supply is the be-all and end-all of care.
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Sow lupins

Since blue lupins can tolerate up to -8 degrees Celsius after sowing and white or yellow species still -4 degrees, early direct sowing is an option. Since a minimum temperature of 4-6 degrees Celsius is required for germination, the window for sowing opens in mid/end of March. August is another date to sow lupins. How to do it right:

Prepare the seedbed finely crumbly and loosely
Plant the seeds 2-3 centimeters deep at a distance of 40 centimeters
Press the soil lightly and water with a fine spray
A garden fleece protects against unexpected ground frosts, a net against pecking birds

Germination begins after a few days. Keep the seedbed constantly slightly moist and free of weeds. Alternatively, sow the seeds in peat pots on the partially shaded windowsill or in the greenhouse. As a substrate, we recommend a low-nutrient peat-sand mixture or commercially available seed soil. This form of cultivation is possible all year round.
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Is the lupine perennial?

Once settled in the bed, the lupine delights you every year with its blossom festival. The herbaceous flower retreats to its frost-resistant root ball throughout the winter. Young shoots appear in early spring, from which the flower spikes quickly develop.
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Is the lupine hardy?

The lupine is one of the hardy perennials. This means that it pulls in its above-ground plant parts before winter in order to sprout happily again next year. You can safely do without protection against frost and snow. Only in the year of sowing or Planting and in the bucket, the flower requires suitable precautions against frosty temperatures.
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The yellow lupine

Like no other lupine within the diverse plant genus, the yellow lupine is predestined for a sandy location with acidic soil. In general, this flower requires the least care and will still thrive if left to its own devices. The downside of the coin, however, is their high susceptibility to the plant disease anthracnose. With varieties such as Bornal or Desert Sun you avoid this shortcoming.
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