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arctic lupine

Habit Herbs, perennial, 1–4 dm, hairs thinly appressed silky-sericeous, or few to many and spreading; caudex superficial, divisions closely tufted.
Stems

ascending to erect, hollow, tufted, branched at crown.

Leaves

mostly basal with a few cauline proximal to inflorescences;

stipules 8–10 mm;

petiole 5–19 cm;

leaflets 6–10, blades 13–90 × 10–15 mm, abaxial surface thinly strigose, adaxial surface glabrous.

Racemes

5–8(–15 in fruit) cm;

flowers spirally arranged or in 3–7 whorls.

Peduncles

4–8.5 cm;

bracts caducous to tardily deciduous, 8–14 mm.

Pedicels

4–6 mm.

Flowers

14–19(–21) mm;

calyx bulge or spur 0–1 mm, abaxial lobe 6–11 mm, entire or faintly notched at tip, adaxial lobe ± gibbous basally, adaxial lobe teeth with slight notch at tip, 4–8 mm;

corolla usually blue to purplish, sometimes pink, rarely white, banner spot white or yellow, sometimes becoming purple, banner glabrous abaxially, lower keel margins densely ciliate near claw or glabrous or sparsely ciliate towards tip, adaxial margin glabrous or sparsely ciliate towards tips.

Legumes

2–4.3 cm, silky-pilose.

Cotyledons

deciduous, petiolate.

Seeds

5–8, mottled.

2n

= 48.

Lupinus arcticus

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Well-drained hummocks of alpine and arctic tundra, moist to mesic meadows, gravel bars, clearings, roadsides, thickets, open forests.
Elevation 0–2000 m. (0–6600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; BC; NT; NU; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

The relationship between Lupinus arcticus and L. latifolius is unclear. They may be distinguished by the presence of proximal keel ciliation in L. latifolius, and basal rather than cauline leaves dominating in L. arcticus.

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

Source FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa 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. 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. 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
Synonyms L. borealis, L. donnellyensis, L. gakonensis, L. multicaulis, L. multifolius, L. nootkatensis var. kjellmannii, L. polyphyllus subsp. arcticus, L. toklatensis, L. yukonensis
Name authority S. Watson: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 8: 526. (1873)
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