Thermopsis
Thermopsis spp.
Special Features
Resembles a lupine with its spikes of yellow flowers, adds height and color to sunny borders. Ideal for creating a meadow or prairie look.
Plant Specifications
Our team will help you integrate this plant into your landscape design
Growing Thermopsis on Martha's Vineyard
Thermopsis villosa, the Carolina lupine or bush pea, is a robust, long-lived native perennial that thrives in the full-sun, well-drained sandy soils of Martha's Vineyard, producing showy yellow lupine-like flower spikes in May and June that are among the most vibrant early-summer contributions in the open border garden. Its deep taproot makes it extremely drought-tolerant and wind-stable once established, an important quality in the exposed coastal borders of Edgartown and the open meadow gardens of up-island properties. The nitrogen-fixing root system gradually improves the island's naturally lean sandy soils, making it a practical long-term investment in border fertility.
Deer resistance is reliable. Estate Care professionals value Thermopsis as a low-maintenance, long-lived perennial anchor in sun border programs where late-spring color, self-reliance in lean soils, and structural presence through the growing season are all required.
