Indigo, Blue (Baptisia australis), packet of 20 seeds

Family:  Legume (Fabaceae)

Hardy to Zones 3 to 9

(Blue Wild Indigo, False Indigo) Herbaceous perennial flowering blue-purple to a height of 4 feet.  Native to Central and Eastern USA.  The multiple spikes create gobs of long-lasting, pea-like flowers that give way to obovoid, swollen follicles.  A nitrogen-fixing legume, this is a showy, drought and deer resistant plant that goes well in the diverse medicinal herb garden or as a companion to fruit trees.  The leaves contains a palpable amount of the indole glycoside indican, which is the precursor to indigo dye.  The gallery image shows the indigo color showing through the dried leaves.  The dried roots of the plant were used in Native American and eclectic medicine (TNAM, TWM): Antiseptic, immunotonic.  Used for treating upper respiratory infection, especially when accompanied by swollen and reddened oral mucosa.  The plant prefers full sun and a dryish site.  It is not picky about soil, and will grow well in sandy or rocky soils.  Fertilization is not required, as the plant produces its own nitrogen.  Scarify seed on sandpaper, soak overnight and give 10 days refrigeration in moist medium before planting warm.  Germination is very reliable.  Space plants 2 to 3 feet apart.

20  seeds/pkt, open-pollinated, untreated, NO GMOs