Lupinus Species, Brewer's Lupine

I'm not very knowledgeable about this plant, nor have I attempted growing it yet, but it is a lovely little ground-cover that pops up in ...Read MoreSpring in undisturbed areas of well-drained, rocky soil. I've seen it in full sun to light shade up here (where it grows wild), none in full shade. Wild flower that grows three to five inches high, most leaves stay close to main body of plant, with runners (?) that trail outward and are covered in thick, moisture-retaining, silvery fuzz. None of the leaf "palms" seem to get larger than an inch across, from what I've so far seen. The flower spikes barely deserve the name, as they tend to be short and podgy in form, almost rounded- with individual flowers numbering around eight to ten or less. This little guy stays very low-profile, both to conserve moisture and to survive the high winds that whip the cliff-sides and small, rocky meadows where I've seen it grow. Did some reading, and this is a tough little alpine wild-flower that can be found in Oregon, California and Nevada. Here's a write-up on Lupinus breweri: http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=LUBR3

I've personally seen a deep purple-blue colour-phase, a paler purple one (the more common type near me), and there are photos of a white-phased form on the USDA profile. :-)

When I get some better photos of them, I'll upload them, since the pictures on that site are seriously lacking in proper colour-values- very greyed out and just do not do the grace of this little wild-flower justice.