This week... lupins

If you want height and colour in your garden, grow lupins

- GRAHAM RICE

Bright and bold perennial lupins, such as 'My Castle' (red) and 'The Governor' (blue and white) are sure to make a spectacle in a typical cottage-style garden

LUPINS are annual, perennial or sometimes shrubby plants in the pea family, with two-lipped flowers similar to sweet pea and pole beans, and available in a wide variety of bright and pastel colours. Their roots have the valuable capacity to trap nitrogen from the air, so enriching the fertility of the soil.

Most have divided leaves with anything from 5-25 'fingers', and a few have attractive silvered foliage. The flowers are carried in spikes with the flowers spread around the stems. The spikes may be short and sparse or long and densely packed.

Flowering plants later in the season can be expensive, pick up as young plants instead

Beware of the seeds

Some have seeds the size of broad beans, or larger, while others have seeds like small lentils. The seeds are edible, and widely eaten in South America and in the Mediterranean region. However, the seeds of some lupins are toxic so do not eat the seeds without expert advice. Some people with a peanut allergy are also allergic to lupins.

Lupins include some attractive species, some rarities, some dazzlingly colourful perennial types and were an important feature of English cottage gardens. Some with tall spikes are good for cutting, a few are nicely scented.

Lupins are among the most flamoyant of flowers and are easy to raise from seed in large numbers to fill gaps in borders. Although not a rich source of nectar, the flowers attract bees for the bright orange pollen.

Cut back lupins after flowering

Care tips