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false indigo
Scientific Name: Amorpha
Family: Fabaceae
Category: Dicot
Growth:
Duration:
Other Names:
Baptisia australis: Blue False Indigo
Baptisia australis, commonly known as blue wild indigo or blue false indigo, is a captivating herbaceous perennial prized for its stunning blue flowers and ease of cultivation.
Considerations for Pets
- The plant is said to contain alkaloids.
Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Scientific Name: Baptisia australis
- Common Names: Blue Wild Indigo, Blue False Indigo, False Indigo, Wild Indigo, Plains Wild Indigo, Baptisia, Plains Baptisia, Rattlepod, Rattlebush, Rattlebush Wild Indigo, Indigo Weed, Rattleweed, Horse Fly Weed
- Family: Fabaceae (Legumes or Pea Family) or Leguminosae
Description and Growth Habits
- Herbaceous perennial with an upright habit.
- Typically grows to a height of 3 to 4 feet and a width of 3 feet.
- Features grey-green, three-parted compound leaves resembling clover.
- Showy, upright spikes of dark indigo-blue, pea-like flowers that may be flecked with white or cream. Flowers appear in late spring and early summer (June to August).
- Produces inflated seedpods.
- Rising 2-4 ft. high from a woody base, blue wild indigo is a bushy, robust perennial.
Distribution and Habitat
- Native to much of central and eastern United States.
- Thrives in sunny gardens and well-drained borders.
- Found in rocky hillsides.
- Suitable for zones 3 to 9.
Traditional Uses
- The flowers were once used by Native Americans and early European settlers to dye cloth before the advent of true indigo.
- Blue false indigo (Baptisia australis) and yellow wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria) were used to produce a blue dye.
Ecological Role
- Drought-tolerant native plant.
- Loved by bees and other pollinators.
Quirky Facts
- The Perennial Plant Association chose Baptisia australis as the Perennial Plant of the Year for 2010.
Additional Information
- Further information can be found at the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society).
- Monrovia provides details and information about their Baptisia australis plants.