''Lupinus texensis'', the Texas bluebonnet or Texas lupine is a species of
lupine found in
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, and the Mexican states of
Coahuila
Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico.
Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...
,
Nuevo León
Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. Wit ...
, and
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...
. With other related species of lupines also called
bluebonnets, it is the
state flower of Texas.
It is an
annual
Annual may refer to:
*Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year
** Yearbook
** Literary annual
*Annual plant
*Annual report
*Annual giving
*Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco
*Annuals (band), ...
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
cotyledon
A cotyledon (; ; ; , gen. (), ) is a significant part of the embryo within the seed of a plant, and is defined as "the embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants, one or more of which are the first to appear from a germinating seed." The numb ...
s, and later a rosette of
leaves
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...
that are palmately compound, with five to seven leaflets 3–10 cm long, green with a faint white edge and hair. Growth continues over the mild winter, and then in the spring takes off, rapidly grow larger, before sending up a 20– to 50-cm-tall plume of blue flowers (with bits of white and occasionally a tinge of pinkish-red). The scent of these blossoms has been diversely described; many people say they give off no scent at all, while a few have described the scent as 'sickly sweet'.
Bluebonnet seeds have a hard outer shell to protect from dry conditions as the plant grows better in moist years. Seeds may be scarified - a process to weaken the seed casing to encourage germination - before being stored. If scarified and stored at twenty-two degrees Celsius, the seeds face no reduction in germinability one year after being harvested and treated.
Effect of Scarification, Seed Storage Temperature, and Relative Humidity on Lupinus havardii Wats. and Lupinus texensis Hook. Seed Germination
/ref>
It has been found in the wild with isolated mutations in other colors, most notably all-white flowers, pink, and the maroon
Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown".
According to multiple dictionaries, there are vari ...
' Alamo Fire' variation. These mutations have since been selectively bred to produce different color strains that are available commercially.
Texas recognizes all native lupine species occurring in the state as the official state flower. That fact leads to other species such as ''L. subcarnosus'' and ''L. havardii'' also being referred to as bluebonnets, but distinctions are seen among the species that differentiate them from ''L. texensis''.
References
External links
Texas Endemics: Distribution of ''Lupinus texensis''Naturalista: Altramuz de Texas ''Lupinus texensis''Carlos Velazco, Flickr: Lupino de Texas / Texas bluebonnet ''Lupinus texensis'', HÁBITAT
{{Authority control
texensis
Endemic flora of Texas
Symbols of Texas
Flora without expected TNC conservation status