|
Plant
Portrait
Baptisia australis By John Proctor Baptisia australis,
(blue
wild indigo, plains false indigo), is a North American wildflower with an
endemic range covering much of the eastern US from Georgia to Texas and
Vermont to Nebraska. What I didn’t know when I planted my B. australis
seedling in 2001 was that it would take several years to flower. My
sweet wife kept asking why I was growing “that scruffy thing” in our
front yard, until in its fourth growing season it produced a splendid show
of deep blue flowers and earned its position as one of our favourite plants. Typical of plants of the plains it
is very drought tolerant. It never needs watering in Dartmouth; ours has
never received any irrigation. Good drainage is probably more important for
surviving winter, which it does without extra protection. It has thick roots
and is said to resent disturbance. The entire plant is completely pest free.
When crocuses are passing their peak and snowdrops are nearly
finished flowering, its purple-black shoots emerge at odd angles, none
pointing vertically. Sturdy stems quickly become upright to hold the mass of
foliage well off the ground. Our plant receives full sun until 3:00 p.m. and
grows to 140cm. Though quite sturdy it does benefit from staking if exposed
to high winds. The leaves are bluish-green, smooth
and palmate with entire margins. The foliage does not develop fully until
after flowering, giving a vigorous, rounded shrubby appearance. The foliage
is topped by long spikes of deep blue pea-like flowers, opening here from
mid-June to mid-July. It can be used as a cut flower, providing a chance to
see the sap turn purple on exposure to air. When mature the inflated seed
pods turn black, of interest to flower arrangers, and the ripe seeds rattle
like a child’s toy. The foliage also turns black with hard frost and can
remain attractive for weeks after. Seeds
respond to treatment like other legumes, i.e., light sanding and
soaking before planting. They do not require cold treatment. Germination is
reliable but sporadic over up to two months. Dry stored seeds remain viable
for years. Apart from B. australis
need for staking, my only regret is not having more of it. This past spring
I started seed of B. minor (B. australis var. minor),
advertised as identical to australis but growing only to 60 cm, and I
am eager to see it flower in three years. Seeds of both are available from
The Fragrant Path, Box 328, fort Calhoun, Nebraska, 68023, www.fragrantpathseeds.com,
or by chance from various seed exchanges. |