About Lupinus croceus Eastw.
Lupinus croceus Eastw. is an erect perennial herb that grows 40 to 60 centimeters (16 to 24 inches) tall. It bears hairy palmate leaves made up of 5 to 9 leaflets, each up to 6 centimeters (2.4 inches) long, with petioles 1 to 3 inches long. Its inflorescence is a raceme of many flowers, which are sometimes arranged in whorls. Each flower is just over a centimeter long and colored bright yellow to orange. The fruit is a hairy legume pod up to 3.5 centimeters (1.4 inches) long, and the hairy seeds are just over 1 inch long. This species flowers from June through August.
This plant grows in dry woods within Siskiyou and Trinity counties, at elevations between 5000 and 8000 feet (900 to 2700 meters). It occurs in Yellow Pine Forest, Red Fir Forest, and Subalpine Forest plant communities. It is most commonly found in June and July. Records show that 51% of findings of this species are preserved specimens, 29% are occurrence records, and 20% are human observations.
