Lupinus affinis
Fleshy lupine
(c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Ken-ichi Ueda · licence
Family: Fabaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Lupinus affinis (Fleshy lupine) is a native California herb in the Fabaceae family, recognized by the toothed keel margin.
Fleshy lupine is a California native annual found in northern coastal, north coastal, central coastal, and San Francisco Bay Area bioregions in open areas at elevations below 800 meters. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces blue flowers with white banner spots, each 8 to 12 millimeters long arranged in distinctive whorled clusters. Growing 20 to 50 centimeters tall with hairy stems, it develops an erect and spreading habit. Its leaves have 5 to 8 leaflets, each 20 to 50 millimeters long and 4 to 11 millimeters wide, carried on petioles 3 to 10 centimeters long. The fruit is a 3 to 5 centimeter pod covered in coarse hairs.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 40 sympatric species; key feature is the toothed keel margin
Habitat and range
Habitat: Uncommon. Open areas
Elevation: < 800 m
California counties: Los Angeles, Mendocino, San Mateo, Del Norte, Santa Clara, Butte, Lake, Napa, San Francisco, Marin, Contra Costa, Santa Cruz, Trinity, Glenn, Riverside, San Diego, San Bernardino, Sonoma, Alameda, Humboldt, San Luis Obispo, Colusa, Tehama, Monterey, Santa Barbara, Sutter, Solano
Outside California: Oregon
Bloom period
Lupinus affinis blooms Mar-May.
How to tell it apart
vs Salvia: Lupine has pea flowers and palmate leaves; sage has tubular two-lipped flowers and opposite leaves.; vs Artemisia: Lupine has large showy flower spikes; sagebrush has tiny inconspicuous flowers and silvery aromatic foliage.; vs Thermopsis: Lupine typically has 7-11 leaflets; false lupine has exactly 3 leaflets and bright yellow flowers.; vs Delphinium: Lupine has pea flowers; larkspur has flowers with prominent backward-pointing spur.; vs Vicia: Lupine is upright with palmate leaves; vetch is climbing with pinnate leaves and tendrils.
Frequently asked questions
Is Lupinus affinis native to California?
Yes. Lupinus affinis is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Lupinus affinis bloom?
Lupinus affinis blooms Mar-May.
Where in California does Lupinus affinis grow?
Lupinus affinis occurs in Los Angeles, Mendocino, San Mateo, Del Norte, Santa Clara, Butte, Lake, Napa and other counties, at elevations of < 800 m.
What plant family does Lupinus affinis belong to?
Lupinus affinis is in the Fabaceae family, genus Lupinus.
What habitat does Lupinus affinis grow in?
Lupinus affinis grows in Uncommon. Open areas.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Lupinus albicaulis — Sickle keeled lupine
- Lupinus albifrons — Silver bush lupine
- Lupinus albifrons var. abramsii — Abrams' lupine
- Lupinus albifrons var. albifrons — Silver bush lupine
- Lupinus albifrons var. austromontanus — Southern mountain lupine
- Lupinus albifrons var. collinus — Low-growing silver lupine
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.