Lupins at Lake Tekapo: New Zealand’s Famous View and Its Downside

A turquoise lake, snowy peaks and slopes covered in purple, pink and yellow lupin spires make one of New Zealand’s most recognisable views. But this postcard beauty has a complicated story. Here is when to visit Tekapo for the flowers and why local ecologists are wary of lupins.

Bright flowers, no flight needed: spray roses and flower baskets.

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Where and when they bloom

Lake Tekapo lies in the Mackenzie Basin on the South Island. Its milky turquoise colour comes from fine rock particles carried in by glacial water. In the southern hemisphere lupins flower in late spring and early summer, usually from late November to late December. Nearby stands the little stone Church of the Good Shepherd, built in 1935, and the sky above the basin is part of an international dark sky reserve, so the night sky is spectacular.

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Beauty with a downside

Lupins are not native to New Zealand. Garden hybrids bred in Europe were introduced as ornamental and fodder plants and then spread along roads and rivers. On the braided gravel riverbeds of the Mackenzie Basin, dense lupin stands change the habitat where rare native birds such as the black stilt nest. Conservation authorities therefore treat lupin as an invasive species, control it in places and ask visitors not to spread the seeds.

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Lupins in a Ukrainian garden

• Position. Sun or light shade, in loose soil that does not stay waterlogged.
• Sowing. Soak the seeds or nick the coat before sowing in spring or before winter.
• Good for soil. Like all legumes, lupins partner with root-nodule bacteria that fix nitrogen, so annual lupins are used as a green manure.
• Take care. Seeds of ornamental lupins contain bitter alkaloids and are not edible.

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Discover other places where flowers carpet whole valleys in the most beautiful flower fields, and a flower island in Germany in Mainau island.

FAQ

When is the best time to see the Tekapo lupins?

Usually from late November to late December; exact timing depends on the weather each year.

Can I pick lupins at Tekapo?

Picking a flower for a photo is generally not forbidden, but do not take or scatter seeds, as that helps the invasive plant spread.

Author: Maria Svitlovir

Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.

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