Here in Alaska we have two Lupinus, L. nootkatensis found from British Columbia, Canada, to the Aleutian Islands and L. arcticus found from Upper Cook Inlet to the Arctic Coast. Where they overlap they hybridize. I took the picture of this plant on the Colville River very near the Arctic Coast. If it is a Lupinus it should be L. arcticus. In Interior Alaska, (Fairbanks area), I have seen white Lupinus in the wild. This is the first time I have seen both the blue and white on the same plant.
Thanks chimera. Since it was north of the Arctic Circle I just about has to be Lupinus arcticus because of it's location. Your reply brought a chuckle to me. We have a little joke up here about Sunflowers. You can't grow them in Fairbanks. The heads follow the sun and since the sun doesn't set in the summer it will just twist their heads off. (GRIN) Course, that isn't true. We can and do grow sunflowers and if you live in the right location you can even harvest sunflower seeds when we have an early spring and delayed fall.
Probably just some kind of genetic variation causing some of the flowers to be deeper blue - they are all blue-and-white.
You are right Ron, they are all blue and white. But I just felt I had to give it that "patriotic" file name because the unopened buds look sort of redish. (grin) Thank you for your input, it is always appreciated.
Maybe it's even something like a virus. If part of it was all-white, with pure green foliage then it might be an albino sport.
