Blue Bonnet

Blue Bonnet Care

Lupinus Texensis

What is the plant

Lupinus texensis, the Texas bluebonnet or Texas lupine is a species of lupine endemic to Texas, plus the Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas. It is an annual which begins its life as a small, gravel-like seed. The seed has a hard seed coat that must be penetrated by wind, rain, and weather over the course of a few months (but sometimes several years). In the fall, the bluebonnets emerge as small seedlings with two cotyledons, and later a rosette of leaves that are palmately compound, with five to seven leaflets 3–10 cm long, green with a faint white edge and hair.

Texas recognizes all native lupine species occurring in the state as the official state flower.

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Humidity

Dry

Lighting

Full Sun

Difficulty

Medium

Hibernation

Cold Period

How to Care for the Plant

Water
Water your bluebonnets, if possible, using light, well-spaced waterings.
Pruning
Cut your garden bluebonnets back to the ground with a pair of pruning shears when the flowers fade in late winter or early spring. This practice cleans up the garden and makes room for your summer-to-fall bloomers, if they are in the same garden.
Fertilizer
You may want to fertilize lightly in early spring.

Disease diagnosis

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Temperature
Killed by temperatures below 0 degrees F. In these colder areas, bluebonnets should be cultured as a spring-seeded annual.
Additional
Believe it or not, the bluebonnet is actually toxic if ingested. Leaves and seeds from the entire Lupinus plant family are poisonous, although actual toxicity is determined by a number of different biological and environmental factors (see 'Benefit'). Even animals steer clear of bluebonnets when they get the munchies. In the Spring of 1901, the Texas Legislature named the bluebonnet as the state flower. There are a variety of bluebonnets but it wasn't until 1971 that the Texas State Flower was changed to include all of these species as part of our official state flower.
Popularity
275 people already have this plant 68 people have added this plant to their wishlists