Towering Inferno Lupin Plants

'Towering Inferno' Lupin Plants, Westcountry Range. 2 Litre Pots

Flaming red-orange bells in a pleasing shade of terracotta. Peppery scent.
As the name suggests, the soaring spikes, which reach 90cm high, will light up your border with their fiery hue.

Browse our other lupin varieties or all our perennial plants.

Features

• Colour: Orange
• Flowering: June - July
• Mounds of mid-green foliage
• Cutting: Yes
• Height: 90cm
• Spread: 75cm
• Position: Full sun or partial shade
• Soil: Moist but well-drained, acid to neutral soil

Wild lupin seeds were eaten in the past, but this is no longer possible with modern varieties, so please do not eat any part of them.

Growing Towering Inferno Lupins

Being of the pea family, lupins are nitrogen fixers and will perform well enough in poor soil, but for a good display they like plenty of organic matter and consistent moisture during the growing season. The ideal soil pH is neutral to mildly acidic, but as long as you aren't growing on a thin topsoil over shallow chalk they should be fine anywhere with fairly decent drainage: damp is fine, but their crowns tend to rot if waterlogged in winter. They are shade-tolerant and suitable for north-facing sites, although the flowers will be a bit less impressive.

In Your Garden Design

Whether dotted singly around a nostalgic cottage garden, or in massed, formal ranks, modern lupins add plenty of oomph to the border, introducing height, bold colour, and earthy scents.

Make a bold statement in a "hot" colour scheme with a clump of these fiery flamers, or use them as a contrast with blues or yellows, such as Delphiniums, Alchemilla and Alliums. Lupins bring an air of the cottage garden to the border and the West Country range has given us some fabulous vigorous varieties in bold colours like the similarly heated Tequila Flame.

Lupins should be planted in a sunny or semi-shaded spot, preferably in moist but well-drained soil as they dislike anything that stays really wet in winter. Water regularly until well established, and water mature plants during dry periods to avoid mildew.  

Aphids love lupins, and slugs and snails can do a lot of damage to young plants and new spring growth, so be ready to sluggo them on sight. You can rub off aphids by hand or spray them off with a jet of water, or bug spray them. It is best to entirely remove a badly affected flower stem as soon as you see it, rather than try to save it. 

Aphids will dictate the best time to tidy your plants each year. If you have no problem with them, you can leave the leaves and stems for winter interest, and chop them back in early spring to make way for new growth. If aphids are causing problems, then chopping your plants down to the ground in September will also get rid of their eggs, depriving them of a running start next year. 

Feed with a general-purpose fertiliser in spring, or some bonemeal or seaweed. Feed them occasionally during the growing season.

Remove faded flower stems as soon as they fade to encourage a new flush of flowers in early autumn. Staking is only necessary in very windy locations: do this in spring, before the flower spikes appear.

Propagation works best from basal cuttings; the seeds will vary from the parent.