Lupinus brevicaulis
Sand lupine
Family: Fabaceae · Type: annual · Native
Sand lupine is a California native annual found in southern Modoc Plateau, White and Inyo Mountains, and eastern Mojave Desert regions in sandy washes, grasslands, and pinyon/juniper woodlands at elevations of 300 to 2,400 meters. Flowering from May to June, this plant produces bright blue flowers with a white or yellow banner spot, clustered in dense inflorescences about 1 to 2.5 centimeters long. Growing with compact stems 3 to 10 centimeters tall and covered in fine hairs, it forms a low, dense cluster near the ground. Its leaves are clustered near the base, composed of 6 to 8 narrow linear to oblanceolate leaflets 10 to 15 millimeters long, with upper leaf surfaces smooth. The fruit is an ovate, hairy pod approximately 1 centimeter long containing one or two smooth seeds.
Habitat: Sandy washes, open areas, grasslands, creosote bush scrub, pinyon/juniper woodland
Bloom period: May-Jun
Elevation: 300-2400 m
Bioregions: s MP, W&I, e DMoj
California counties: San Bernardino, Inyo, Mono, Modoc, Lassen, San Diego, San Benito
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.