''Lupinus microcarpus'', the wide-bannered lupine or chick lupine, is a species of lupine native to western North America from southwestern

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

south through

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

and

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, including the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

, and into

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

. There is also a disjunct population in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

, with locations in central

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

and western

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Description

''Lupinus microcarpus'' is an annual plant growing to tall. The leaves are palmately compound with 5-11 leaflets – long and up to broad. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are generally pink to purple in color, but can also be between white and yellow; they are produced in open whorls on an erect spike. ''Lupinus microcarpus'' grows from sea level in the north of its range, up to high in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...

Varieties

There are three named botanical varieties: *''Lupinus microcarpus'' var. ''densiflorus'' - whitewhorl lupine or dense-flowered lupine.

Endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

and restricted to western California (formerly ''Lupinus densiflorus''). *''Lupinus microcarpus'' var. ''horizontalis''. Endemic and restricted to southeastern California deserts. *''Lupinus microcarpus'' var. ''microcarpus''. Widespread, British Columbia to Chile. Jepson Manual treatment for LUPINUS microcarpus var. microcarpus
. accessed 10.21.2011

Phytoremediation waste management

an scientists (

Universidad de Santiago de Chile The University of Santiago, Chile (Usach) ( es, Universidad de Santiago de Chile) is one of the oldest public universities in Chile. The institution was born as ''Escuela de Artes y Oficios'' (Spanish: ''School of Arts and Crafts'') in 1849 by I ...

) studying

phytoremediation Phytoremediation technologies use living plants to clean up soil, air and water contaminated with hazardous contaminants. It is defined as "the use of green plants and the associated microorganisms, along with proper soil amendments and agronom ...

waste management in the city of

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. After the Spanish American wars ...

, discovered that plants are capable of absorbing

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, ...

from the soil.

References

*Mojave Desert Wildflowers, Jon Mark Stewart, 1998, pg. 137
Chilean Scientists use the plant for wastes' Phytoremediation clean-up management of soils.

External links

Jepson Manual treatment for ''Lupinus microcarpus''U.C. Photo gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q6704779 microcarpus Flora of British Columbia Flora of the West Coast of the United States Flora of Washington (state) Flora of Oregon Flora of California Flora of Baja California Flora of Argentina Flora of Chile Flora of the California desert regions Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Garden plants of North America Garden plants of South America Phytoremediation plants Flora without expected TNC conservation status