I have seen them along ditches and roadsides near Ely in June.

Why does the USDA list bigleaf lupine as native in Minnesota? http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=LUPO2&mapType=nativity&photoID=lupo2_001_ahp.tif

The USDA Plants maps are pretty outdated and there does not seem to be a way to correct them, which is why we started making our own maps earlier this year. The MN DNR is a better source to determine what is native and not, and their big list-o-plants marks Lupinus polyphyllus as not native. It is a western species that's been planted here. The native lupine is an eastern species, where MN is on the western edge of its natural range.

We saw TONS of it along the North Shore!

Broke my heart to read that this is not native. I have some in my garden! I guess it's time to weed....

I LOVE THIS FLOWER!!! We first started seeing it in our area about 20 years ago. The seeds scatter themselves when they pop open, but we helped them along by collecting and scattering where we wanted them to grow. Now we have a huge area at our cabin north of Grand Marais that is just covered with them. They are so beautiful and the fragarance is delightful!!

This was a very big year for lupines in NE Minnesota all along Hwy 61 and inland. Although it is an invasive species I do think they are very pretty.

Hi all. Do you also have sundial lupine, Lupinus perennis, in Minnesota? That species is native in Wisconsin. It would be a shame to accidently rip up sundial lupine mistakenly. Joel

Joel, take a look: all Lupinus in MN

Is it legal to dig Lupine from ditches to replant in my yard?

Please don't spread this around intentionally. It does enough of that on its own.

If these are so invasive, then why in the heck are they being sold in seed packs at the store in "MINNESOTA" where unknowing gardeners can mistakenly plant them.? Sounds to me like DNR is not doing their job...!

Mike, a lot of people think the DNR has any control over what plants or seeds are sold in Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) should be the focus of your ire - they are the governing agency for the nursery trade. They too easily cave into industry pressures to sell anything and everything in the state and are accountable to no one. They are, of course, the Dept. of AGRICULTURE, not the Dept. of Environment.

We have the non-native lupines growing on our septic mound. We are trying to control by cutting the seeds but they are spreading too rapidly. Will this cause a problem for our septic mound? If so, do you have any ideas of how we can safely remove them?

Try herbicide, or hand pulling if you're opposed to chemical treatment.

What is the harmful effect that Lupine cause? the butterflies seem to love them. I have them in my garden and have a heck of a time trying to keep them alive! I love them, but I have not seen any large amounts anywhere. I am surprised that all the synthetic chemical spraying that is done doesnt kill them in the roadsides. Thank you.

I also have the question of why the lupines a problem? What do they hurt; do they kill other plants? Thank you for your answer.

The non-native lupine displaces native plants.

Growing on mounds of discarded dirt near my house. Huge, huge plants. Near Leech Lake.

Sadly there is a lot of ignorance concerning invasive species and none more than about the big leaf lupine. Initially I spread them around my yard, then spent lots of time eradicating them and will kill all big leaf lupine I ever come across. And by the way, have you seen them after bloom? Fuugggly.

I am not ignorant about what invasive species can do, but I am curious as to what, exactly, the invasive Large-leaved Lupines are displacing. What measurable harm have they done? What other native species are at risk or have actually been harmed? I was just all over the roads on the North Shore and in the National and State Forests up there and saw other wildflowers and plants thriving next to and even amongst the Lupines. Does the harm they cause outweigh their attraction? They definitely lure visitors up to the North Shore area. The Lupines, themselves, have become an attraction for some people.

Martha, the value to people is insignificant, particularly if it's only aesthetic. It's the value to the ecosystem that really matters. Virtually all of the "wildflowers" now seen along the north shore are non-native invasive species. Gone is the high diversity of native habitat, displaced by a handful of exotic species that have limited value to our native insects and other wildlife.

I read that this variety of lupine fools the Karner Blue butterfly into laying eggs on this plant but the caterpillars cannot eat the leaf and starve. Is this knowledge confirmed?

Mitchell, it is unlikely a Karner blue will lay eggs on any old lupine - it needs a specific habitat (oak savanna) for its mating ritual and this non-native lupine is not normally present there.

This spring 2019 the city of of Grand Marais Minnesota put up welcome banners with a painting of lupine on them. They hung one on nearly every lamp post down town. It's sad to see the ignorance people have towards the plants that surround them.

Phillip, unfortunately the city (and others on the north shore) see it as marketing for tourists: come see the pretty wildflowers. It doesn't matter that almost any flowering plant you see along roadsides from Duluth to Grand Portage are weeds, many of which are invasive. And it's getting worse every year. :-(

I swear I have seen these plants being sold at Bachman's. They have more leaves than the native kind. Are they able to sell it even though it's invasive?

Angie, the nursery trade is free to sell anything and everything that isn't specifically listed by the MN Dept. of Agriculture as some level of noxious weed. Regrettably, this lupine isn't on any of those lists.

This year the lupines seem to be everywhere! They are taking over. Sad to see.

So, say I was ready to eradicate all of the invasives on my property, such as this type of lupine. Since my entire yard, field, and ditch are almost 100% full of various invasive plants listed on your Invasives page, what natives would you suggest I plant that can survive and take over and how would you suggest I go about it? It almost seems impossible for the average property owner. Won't more invasives just continue to take over the same space immediately? I'd love to know what can be done in a real and practical way.

Tina, contact a gardening organization like Wild Ones, or a restoration specialist such as Prairie Restorations/Boreal Natives. They can help.

I agree with Renee, if the harm they cause to native plants and wildlife isn't enough for you to consider not propagating them, consider the fact that they become quite unattractive once they go to seed.

Hope this helps. A source I stumbled upon said research has found that Garden Lupine is not edible to the endangered Karner blue butterfly and that it and its hybrids with Wild Lupine can fool the adults to lay eggs on their plants and that when the caterpillars hatch, they either starve to death or are poisoned by eating this invasive plant:

Designing Gardens with Flora of the American East By Carolyn Summers

I have this plant growing along my driveway. It arrived as seeds incorrectly labeled as wild lupine. I'm in the process of eliminating it which is a hard job. Also, I've seen scattered plants locally that appear to have been intentionally planted.

How can I safely get rid of purple lupine that has taken over one of my gardens? It was about 6 plants last year and this year it is about triple the number! I like the look and all, just want fewer of them!!!!

Anne, this is a prolific spreader. You may regret ever letting it in your garden in the first place. Try digging it out. And dead-head spent flowers so no seed is produced.

I have seen these beauties along the ditches of the north shore. I was sad to learn they were not native, but now have the true native lupine growing in my wildflower garden. Of note-I saw someone on Etsy from Minnesota selling large leaved Lupine seeds with the statement that they are a "North American Native Wildflower". Such as this only perpetuates this misconception along with spreading the seeds even more.....

Patience, technically the Etsy seller is correct - this is native to North America. Just not to Minnesota. I hope you were able to send that person a message asking them to qualify their statement. Sadly, many who live in the area where this is widespread are only interested in its aesthetic value to humans. :(

If I am hand-pulling invasive plants to remove them, what should I do with them afterward? I've never known if you should just discard them like weeds from your garden, or if there was something specific that must be done to ensure it doesn't grow back.

Brittney, what I do with garlic mustard is uproot it, pull off any flowers then leave the stems there to compost. If it has already gone to seed, carefully cut off the top of the stem just below the seed and either throw it in the fire pit or bag it and put it in the trash. If your county has a yard waste site, you might be able to take it there because their compost is probably heat-treated and will kill the seed.

Lots on local roadsides that I have not inspected closely. Isolated patch on edge of our woods which I am pulling. Does not appear to be perennis, but all purple so likely not Russell cultivar and at least so far not wildly invasive.

I just wanted to confirm your report about Iceland. When I was visiting a couple of years ago, the mountainsides were covered with lupine. It looked beautiful, but I quickly learned that there is a lot of concern that native species will have little opportunity to display the exotic plants once they are so firmly entrenched and established.

Just bought one at the local nursery figuring it was native. Going to pot it up and see if it will survive in the kitchen window.

Note: All comments are moderated before posting to keep the riff-raff out. Read that: All comments are censored to keep the truth out. Truth Is all life forms on earth deserve a chance to thrive wherever they can adapt. Leave it to government to try and stop evolutionary progress.. This type of ignorant know it all narcissistic compassion always leads to failure and destruction.. Why don't you just go and shoot some more wolves? Science listens and disseminates all viewpoints in the search for truth, lies censor.

Paul, Minnesota Wildflowers does not censor truth, just spammers. I might agree with you up to a point, but in the case of this lupine and other invasive species, they are not here due to a natural migration, but due to the hand of man. Human destruction of habitat and the introduction of invasive species has had a detrimental effect on local ecosystems and biodiversity. These matter to me. Do they not matter to you?

Yup saw these flowers all over the road side from two harbors to past ely by the boundary waters...from what I am reading it's a beautiful native plant killer...I wonder If it would outcompete creeping charlie? I mean I don't know which would be worse in my back yard near the twin cities X_X...but it sucks they are invasive

I was given some seeds. Hoe can I tell if they are from a true native lupine?

Pat, you could grow some in a pot and see what emerges.

Wild Lupine in full bloom from Duluth to Two Harbors as of June 12, 2024.

I don't understand why they are added to the "invasive" plant list. They only last 3 weeks and help feed bees and hummingbirds in the early season. The Ferns you see along roadways should then be considered as "invasive"?

I understand that this plant, and so many others, choke out native plants and destroy biodiversity. But the ancestors of every species of plant, animal, and fungi were all introduced to new areas at one point in history, some of which likely became invasive. Heck, birds dropping seeds on islands probably wiped out countless endemic species. If, in the far future, the lupine is able to find balance in the Minnesota's ecosystem and contributes to it, would it then be considered a native species? Really my question is, at what point does an invasive plant become a native one? If ever.

AJ, this lupine will never be considered native in Minnesota, nor will any other invasive species. It did not evolve here over time with our local native birds, insects and other wildlife, but was intentionally introduced by humans for no reason other than aesthetics. You can call it naturalized but never native.

So, if lupine were to evolve with other native species it would then become a native plant? It would more likely than not be a new species at that point, but eventually this invasive lupine would be the ancestor to other native plants? I just don't fully understand the do-or-die mentality that people have with invasive species. Species have been introduced to new areas since life first started. although today humans have sped up the process, eventually the continents will collide again. Everything that we are trying to protect today, can't be protected from the future.

AJ, this will never be considered native in Minnesota. I won't speculate what might happen if/when the continents collide again.