Lupins

Okay, now I normally buy plants already growing, but after joining this forum and reading about all the great stuff everyone does here I went and ordered seeds.

A pack of lupins arrived this morning.

From what I have read so far I stick a pin in them and put them on a saucer of water in the kitchen window until a "shoot" appears.

Once that happens how deep in the pots should I put them? (i am thinking three to a pot.

I presume they are put in "shoot downwards?

Once they have "shooted" (germinated?) do I just put the pots outside?

 

Hi GeorgeBean.

Lupin seeds have a very hard outer casing, and under normal circumstances it takes a long time for moisture to seep through by itself and initiate germination. You can either nick the outer casing with a file, or prick it with a pin, as I do. Its best to leave them a couple of days in water to soften the outer casing first. Pricking with a pin is not easy - but it works. When water has penetrated, you will see the seeds swell to double or triple the size. Not every enlarged seed will germinate, but most do.

I then put them in a small 2" pot. I lay them sideways - nature sorts them out, and put 2 or 3 mm of soil on top - this helps to keep the moisture in. I would put one per pot - this saves having to seperate them at a later date.

You can then put them outside - out of the sun to prevent them drying up. But the slugs and snails love them, so I would prefer to put them inside somewhere to give them a better chance. Again out of direct sunlight, until they have started to get green leaves. But do try and keep them away from slugs, until they are big plants.

 

Hi Georgebean. You'll find Lupins very easy from seed so don't give yourself too much trouble.
At this date in the year I don't think those lupins will flower this year so there's no need to rush.
I would just soak those seeds in water overnight then plant them 1 to a 3" pot covered with 1/2 inch of compost. They will be fine outside but don't let them dry out. The plants will soon appear and when they have filled their pots plant them out where you want them. You might be lucky and get some late flowers but otherwise you will get your lupins next year.

 

Do I get one flower per plant or several flowers per plant?

 

One large flower and a few small ones per plant in their first year, more in subsequent years, if you leave them in the border and don't do what some do, which is to replenish stock each year.

When you plant them out in the autumn, watch out for slugs, but I've found they seem to survive better the following spring when planted in autumn.

 

Flowering is variable in my experience. I did the same as you 3 years ago and now have two very large groups of lupins which take up a lot of space and collect lots of Aphids so this may be their last year in residence.

Also if you bought a mixed packet of seed you can get a range of colours which is one of the bonuses of growing Lupins.

Best of luck with the seed.......

 

I've always found you get several spikes of flowers off each plant, and if you cut them down after flowering several spikes of smaller flower heads from the same plant.
One of my favourite garden flowers - and I love the smell of them too. Mmmmm !