Wednesday, April 9, 2008

ABC Wednesday L

Mrs. Nesbitt sponsors
ABC Wednesday at her blog.
Stop by and visit her
to find out more.


Back to wildflowers at Mt. Rainier National Park for L.

Lupine is the most common L flower in the Sunrise area of the Park. If you see a meadow filled with purple, it will be mostly Lupine.



The leaves are elegant in their own right.

The seed pods are fascinating.

A patch of White Lupine is a treat. I have also seen some with different patterns of purple and white.

The meadows around Sunrise, Paradise, and Tipsoo Lake ,and others reached by longer hikes, have a short growing season. Winter weather is long and harsh, spring and fall are short, and even summer can see an occasional snow flurry.

If you hike up on the Burroughs Mountain trail you reach the tundra--terrain even harsher than the high meadows. That's where you will find patches of the tiny Sub-Alpine Lupine. A close look will show that the flowers and leaves have exactly the same characteristics as the meadow lupines in a compact form adapted to drier, rockier, areas with even shorter growth cycles.

I posted this picture of Bird's Beak Lousewort for B.

...but not the Bracted Lousewort.

Not much more snowshoe hiking left in the season. I'm getting anxious for summer hikes.

29 comments:

Rune Eide said...

We have/had Lupins of several varieties both at home and and at our cottage. I can testify to the fact that they are willing to grow - it is almost impossible to stop them!

Anne-Berit said...

I thought of lupine too,but could not find the photo I know I have of it.Great photos and L-post.Have a nice day!

FO - 2 said...

We chose the same L today. ;)
Flowers, flowers, flowers. I love it! :)

FANCY said...

I want to take of my shoes and run barefoot and lay down on this bed of flower...;-)

ArneA said...

Just to tell you that Lupin is poisenous

Andrea said...

Looks like a wonderful hike to see all these beautiful flowers. I think everyone is ready for summer.

Nessa said...

Lovely lupines. The word Lousewort makes me giggle.

Unknown said...

Very informativ L post and lovely photos! Well done.

Kyanite said...

A lovely wealth of flowers.
UK lupins look different, but no photo's, will take this Summer for future posts.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Lupine. I enjoyed all these photos for your L post.

Michele said...

Your Lupine is beautiful... wow, I'm very impressed... pretty.

Kim said...

I was just about to put my nursery order in for some lupines. I hope mine look that pretty.

Miss_Yves said...

Beautiful pictures .
I love Lupines(lupins)
To day, my neighbours gave me some plants of lupines...but it's not the subject of my "L" wednesday...
Miss Yves

Paulie said...

Nice choice! I don't know how to identify wild flowers much so I am getting an education from your blog!

Kostas said...

Very beautiful the photographs, him I admire because this flowers, are all apiarian! Him visit the bees!
Great '' L '' post!

AVCr8teur said...

Lupines are one of my favorite flowers. Sounds like you do quite a bit hiking and find some wonderful wildflowers.

raf said...

So beautiful. The purplish lupine in Washington and elsewhere. The bluebonnet lupine in Texas. Wildflowers in spring....yes, yes. Thanks Katney for showing them.

hpy said...

I like lupines very much, but the red ones are my favourites.

Mari said...

Lupins are quite a annonyance, but beautiful one. I like them very much when they are growing at highway banks.

kRiZcPEc said...

thanks for sharing. :)

Pernille said...

Lupine are so beautiful. I use to have them in my garden, but last summer the was gone.
You have a very nice collection of nice photos and a nice L:)

Dragonstar said...

I've loved Lupins since I was Little. I thought that fairies washed in the water held in the leaves! The colours these days are wonderful.

Anonymous said...

Oh, I love the wildflowers. My family and I have been to Mt. Rainier a few years back but it was so foggy that we couldn't see anything.
Thanks for visiting me.

Barbara said...

Some lovely flowers here Katney, I especially like the Lupines.

kml said...

Lupine is so beautiful!

nancy said...

I love the flower photos. The lupine especially. We had them everywhere in Alaska, but I never picked them and brought them into the house because they were toxic and we had small children and pets. I always felt it was a shame, there were so many. I love having flowers in my house!
Nancy

Suburbia said...

Lovely flowers. Our lupin are not so natural looking here in UK and I suspect have been cultivated from the 'real thing' that you have photographed so well.
Thanks for visiting me.

Nydia said...

Wow, on a few photos there's such variety of Lupines! :) Beautifully taken, Katney. Loved your choice for the L post. And thanks for topping by at my blog with your comment on my library... yes, I definitely agree with you... wish I could have more time to read more!! Kisses from Nydia.

VP said...

Lovely photos Katney. I remember seeing whole mountains full of them one holiday we had in Colorado - absolutely stunning.

Congratulations on your awards this week - well deserved :)