Bush Lupin

It was a pleasure to see gigantic lupins growing on the northern Scottish coast this week. Lupinus arboreous or tree lupin has smaller leaves than its more regular garden cousin, but it grows into a large bush full of yellow flowers, and enjoys a penchant for the coast. It is native to northern California, a habitat one might have thought rather different to the Scottish Black Isle, with its high latitude and Cromarty, Beauly and Moray Firths. Yet further south where the sun shines warmer and the winds blow less, I have never seen them.

Many gardeners and flower lovers will remark how things that they expect to grow fail, whereas some plants and flowers seem to thrive in the least hospitable of spots. I sometimes marvel at those people who have heard the gospel from a tender age, yet show no interest, their hearts providing only stony ground for the familiar words of life. Yet others, from atheistic or paganistic backgrounds, provide fertile soil for the Sower’s seed, and they prove to be the most enduring disciples. Good things may grow in surprising places.