Lupins a year on

CJ1

I am a clueless gardener.
I planted a variety of flowers last summer (from plants not seeds) and they are still untouched in the same patch, well the weeds/remains are. Lupins were one type I planted, should i dig them out, or pull them to have a nice patch of colour again this year??

Northumbria

CJ1 wrote: »

I am a clueless gardener.
I planted a variety of flowers last summer (from plants not seeds) and they are still untouched in the same patch, well the weeds/remains are. Lupins were one type I planted, should i dig them out, or pull them to have a nice patch of colour again this year??

Lupins don't like being moved around, they should come back from the roots that will still be in the ground if you leave them alone.
I've killed them by moving them before. You could move the roots if you want them somewhere else now whilst they're dormant, but once they begin to emerge you should leave them.

They're pretty hardy though, they come back year after year and often they self seed meaning you can end up with a massive patch of them. My neighbour's lupins self seed and always look lovely, I've got some roots and want to grow them this year too.

CJhaughey

They are also nitrogen fixing so are very good for the soil.
Leave them alone and they'll be fine.

Northumbria

CJhaughey wrote: »

They are also nitrogen fixing so are very good for the soil.
Leave them alone and they'll be fine.

Yes, all fabaceae plants are very good for fixing nitrogen. Peas, beans, gorse, laburnum, broom and lupins are all distantly related and fix nitrogen in the soil.