Israel wildflowers: Blue Lupine

Lupinus pilosus, Lupinus varius, Blue Lupine,
Hebrew: תורמוס ההרים, Arabic: ترمس برّي


Scientific name:		Lupinus pilosus L.
Synonym name:		Lupinus varius L.
Common name:		Blue Lupine
Hebrew name:		תורמוס ההרים
Arabic name:		ترمس برّي
Plant Family:		Papilionaceae, פרפרניים


Life form:		Annual
Stems:		30-70 cm tall, branching from above, densely covered by long soft hairs
Leaves:		Alternate, compound, digitate (shaped like a spread hand); leaflets oblong-obovate, mucronulate, sericeous to softly villous
Inflorescence:		Raceme up to 10 cm, flowers irregularly verticillate
Flowers:		Dark blue; peduncle 1-4 cm; corolla blue, the standard with a white or pale blue blotch
Fruits / pods:		Legume covered in velvety down; 3-8 cm long; seeds 3-4, orbicular
Flowering Period:		February, March, April, May
Habitat:		Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:		Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands
Chorotype:		Mediterranean
Summer shedding:		Ephemeral

Derivation of the botanical name:

Lupinus, Latin lupus, “wolf,” alluding to the belief that these plants destroyed the fertility of the soil, which is the oppposite of the truth; the seeds are eaten in eastern Mediterranean countries.

pilosus, hairy, shaggy; covered with long soft hairs.
varius, having variegated, mottled, various colors; varying.
The Hebrew name: תורמוס, turmos, from Greek: thermos (= Lupinus albus), which is probably identical with thermos (= warm, hot), which is related to therme (=heat).

The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.

See the list of Medicinal herbs in Israel, the parts used and their medical uses to treat various diseases.

The main stem was always shorter than the lateral branches in all populations. The longest main stem was observed in the Pilosus section (55-80 cm) and the shortest in the Atlanticus section (43-57 cm); L. palaestinus PI 491182 in the Pilosus section had the longest inflorescence (26 cm). The shortest was observed in L. pilosus PI 491182 (5.1 cm). The highest number of flowers (>50) and whorls (13) was observed in L. elegans and L. perennis; L. pilosus PI 491183/22 had the lowest number of the flowers (17) and whorls (4).

_{Location:Napoleon Hill, Ramat Gan}