I haven't grown this specific type but in general lupins are not long lived plants. When I grew them they usually lasted a couple years at best.

I have grown L. Tutti Frutti for the last couple of years from seed and it will bloom the first year but it is the plants that overwinter and bloom the following spring that are SPECTACULAR. They can be easily four feet tall with many flowering stems - the vigor doesn't last in these plants and they should be replaced every year for the best display. They are so amazing it is worth it!
Give lupin well drained, slightly acidic soil, lots of sun, elbow room to grow and feed them with a balanced garden fertilizer - a shot of blossom booster while they are budding makes a stronger showier plant.

If you have the place for them, you can easily collect seed from them and sow a new batch.

Wow, sounds like it's definately worth growing! And saving the seed, like prairiemoon2 says.

Lupins *are* weird. We've had a couple that lived for 5 years or more (Russel types), got huge, and then just never came back one year. We do have a problem with powdery mildew on them here. And 'well drained' is a VERY big problem here.

Since they are easy to save seeds from, I'll put them on my 'serious consideration' list.

Thanks!

Yes, they are very easy to collect seed from. The seed is a good size.

I grow Tutti Frutti and have the same growing experience as jebfarm. Very beautiful the second year but gone the third. Al

I thought lupines reseeded themselves. There are fields and fields of them growing wild on NZ's south island. Amazing.

They will reseed, especially the species types- there is a purple species that grows in the road ditches around here. But the fancy types don't always to it reliably, and you get much higher germination rates doing it under controlled conditions. And they grow where you want them to- lupins are kind of hard to dig and transplant- big root systems.

Not trying to be discouraging, but if drainage is an issue, maybe lupines aren't the best perennial for you. Lupines need very well drained soil to do well, especially in winter. Also, they don't tolerate hot weather (like during summer) one bit. The best lupines I've seen are grown in the northeast and in the northwestern states (like colorado and wyoming). I'm trying a cultivar this year called "morello cherry". Supposedly it's more heat tolerant than other lupine cultivars, but I suppose only time will tell.

Here in the PNW, I have great luck with my Lupine. I grow the Russell hybrids and the Tutti Frutti from seed and then when I have a color I like, I sprinkle the seeds in the beds. In the spring, I have lots of new tiny plants to dig up and transplant. The plants only last a few years but I always have new ones.
They are really spectacular but do need care for aphids and mildew. Well worth the effort.

Sigh. I love them, but I don't think I'd be successful here-too hot in summer and too much shade in our yard. Oh well.

I still dream... {{gwi:203402}}From Drop Box

How long is the blooming period?

TIA!

Gosh! I guess we can all start dreaming with our "Wish lists for 2012"