Blue Wild Indigo (Baptisia australis)

Blue Wild Indigo (or Blue False Indigo) flowers were used to make a blue dye by indigenous people and early settlers. Its name includes 'False' because it was a substitute for true indigo (Indigofera tinctoria) in making these dyes. The plant is an upright, hardy perennial that grows to 3’-5’ tall. The pea-like flowers appear April through June. The fruit, striking-black seed pods, provide winter interest. Blue False Indigo makes an excellent pollinator-friendly backdrop for shorter native plants. It is a host to a number of butterflies. The same compounds that give the plant its signature color also make the plant taste unpleasant to deer. Companion plants are Butterfly Weed, Coneflower, Black-eyed Susan, Showy Goldenrod and Indian Grass.

Attracts: 🐝
Light: full sun to part shade
Soil: medium to wet