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Friday, March 9, 2012

What’s Blooming at Brooker?

Lara Miller  
Natural Resource Agent  

If you haven’t visited Brooker Creek Preserve, what are you waiting for? There is so much to see and it’s a great way to escape. Spring is right around the corner, and many plants at the Preserve are already blooming! Here is just one of the many beautiful plants flowering at Brooker Creek Preserve.

Sky-blue lupine (Lupinus diffusus) sends out these beautiful violet flowers starting in mid-winter through early spring. This plant is native to Florida and is commonly found in sandy habitats, although this plant grows all throughout the southeastern United States. One of the reasons they do so well in sandy areas is because they actually prefer nutrient poor soils. Lupines are unique because they are able to take nitrogen from the atmosphere and bring it into the soil. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria live on the roots of sky-blue lupine and absorb nitrogen out of the air. This nitrogen then becomes available for the plant to use. Sky-blue lupine can be found along the trails at the preserve, have you seen it yet?

Source: http://www.wildflorida.com/wildlife/plants/Sky-blue_Lupine.php

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