Silvery Lupine
Lupinus argenteus
Hosts 2 caterpillarsPollinator plantNitrogen fixer
(c) Tim Messick, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Tim Messick
Growing it
| When | Flowers June to August; fruits August to September |
|---|---|
| Type | wildflower |
| Sun | Full sun |
| Water | Low |
| Soil | pH 5.5–7.5 |
| Hardiness | zone 3–8 |
| Mature height | 0.7 m |
| Mature spread | 0.75 m |
| Spacing | 0.5 m |
| Years to maturity | 3 |
| Bloom | Jun–Aug |
| Flower colour | White Purple read from a published flora |
| In bloom | June July August |
| Fruit | Aug–Sep |
| Native to | AB |
hand-compound leaves about 10 cm long
Where it has been recorded
Which ecoregions the records fall in
- Cypress Upland south AB / SK: 67 records, high confidence
- Mixed Grassland south AB / SK: 21 records, high confidence
- Moist Mixed Grassland south AB / SK: 14 records, medium confidence
- Aspen Parkland central AB / SK: 8 records, medium confidence
- Fescue Grassland south AB: 7 records, low confidence
- Northern Continental Divide south AB: 7 records, low confidence
These are counts of records collected somewhere in the region, which is the resolution of the evidence: the map above shows where inside it. A region with 3 records is not the same claim as one with three hundred, so the count travels with the region. A region missing from this list means nobody has recorded it there, which is not the same as the plant being absent. Records within 900 m of a border count for neither side, because the border is not drawn finely enough to say which one they are on. Source: GBIF occurrence search + PRESERVED_SPECIMEN pass, retrieved 2026-08-24. Boundaries digitised from the National Ecological Framework for Canada v2.2 (Ecological Stratification Working Group 1995), simplified to about 900 m for display: an outline is accurate to roughly a kilometre, not to the metre. How these counts are made.
See every observation, live and current, on GBIF or iNaturalist.
Documented animals
30 documented relationships.
nectar for
- A Digger Bee LaManna et al. 2020
- Albuna pyramidalis LaManna et al. 2020
- Andrena amphibola LaManna et al. 2020
- Andrena milwaukeensis LaManna et al. 2020
- Anthidium utahense Specimen records from the USDA-ARS:BBSL1176502 collection
- Black-tailed Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Boisduval's Blue LaManna et al. 2020
- Brown-belted Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Brown-tailed Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Central Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Conophorus sackenii LaManna et al. 2020
- Golden Northern Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Hunt's Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Megachile onobrychidis Specimen records from the USDA-ARS:BBSL1165960 collection
- Nevada Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Orange-legged Furrow Bee LaManna et al. 2020
- Osmia albolateralis LaManna et al. 2020
- Osmia atrocyanea Specimen records from the USDA-ARS:BBSL1176087 collection
- Osmia paradisica LaManna et al. 2020
- Osmia pusilla Specimen records from the USDA-ARS:BBSL1165757 collection
- Red-belted Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Silvery Blue LaManna et al. 2020
- Two-ranked Bumble Bee LaManna et al. 2020
- Western Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
- Yellow-fronted Bumble Bee Specimen records from www.bumblebeewatch.org
caterpillar host for
- Lupine Aphid Specimen records from iNaturalist.org
- Melissa Blue Acorn & Sheldon 2006
- Silvery Blue Acorn & Sheldon 2006
pollen for
- Bumblebees Wilson & Carril 2015
- Leafcutter Bees Wilson & Carril 2015
Also worth knowing
Safety
High toxicity to pets; High toxicity to people
Buying it
About $8–$16 per plant (estimate), usually from a native-plant nursery. Estimate (herb default); AB retail as of 2026
Where these numbers came from
- Flower detail: not verified, a genus-level estimate