Hello!

Lupines require stratification (exposure to a cool, moist period) in order to break their dormancy or seed scarification for more instant germination. All of those methods are scarification methods that can be used to help break seed dormancy. Simply planting the seed in the fall should break its dormancy as long as the seed gets the moisture along with the cold. I recommend planting some of the seed without any treatment and some of the seed with treatment. The treatment I would use is the scratching the seed with sandpaper. If you have enough seed, you could also try the boiling method on some of them. For this treatment you drop the seed into boiling/almost boiling water (70-100 degrees Celsius), remove from the heat and allow it to soak for 24 hours. Getting seeds of some plants to germinate can be finicky so trying a couple different methods should help ensure you have success. 

You can mix the seed with 4-6 parts dry sand to 1 part seed to help get a more even distribution but it is not absolutely necessary. Lupines should be planted about 1/4 of an inch deep so you can lightly rake the soil prior to planting and then lightly rake in the seed to get it covered. If you are planting a native variety of lupine, the soil does not need to be amended or can be lightly amended if it is in very poor condition. The native varieties are adapted to Colorado's lean mineral soils. If it is a garden variety of lupine that is being planted into soil that has not been previously amended then I would add an inch of compost prior to planting. 

Best,
Denyse

Thank you for that amazing and thorough answer! Very much appreciated. I do have enough seed to experiment… great idea!

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Dear Adrienne,

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YOUR QUESTION #0121359:

Hot to plant lupine seeds

Hello- I have collected lupine seeds from friends' gardens and have read conflicting things about how to prepare them to plant: 1)scratch with sandpaper 2) soak in boiling water for 24 hours 3) place between wet paper towels in a baggie and alternate one day in freezer, one day in fridge for a week. Which do you recommend? Also, how do you recommend planting them? Mixing with sand and sprinkling into amended soil? Thanks. PS I live at 9800 feet and was planning on planting next week

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