Blue Wild Indigo AKA Baptisia Seeds (Certified Organic)

Blue Wild Indigo, also called Baptisia or false blue indigo, is a native of North America and a great garden perennial. Being a native legume, it fixes nitrogen in the soil. The branching foliage and blossoms become showier and more developed with each subsequent growing season. It is a spectacular specimen in the flower garden. The blue-green foliage resembles a small rounded bush 3 feet in height. Tall spikes of deep blue flowers bloom above the foliage for about 6 weeks in May or June and turn into large charcoal black seed pods in late summer that are often used in flower arrangements. A fully mature plant can produce a hundred of these glorious spikes. Blue Wild Indigo has a deep taproot which permits it to withstand dry conditions and heat. It makes a nice backdrop in the perennial garden.

Blue Wild Indigo is a native host plant for the following butterflies: Wild Indigo Duskywing, Eastern Tailed-Blue, Orange Sulphur, Clouded Sulphur, Frosted Elfin, Hoary Edge.

The Cherokees used the plant as a source of blue dye for their clothes. Early pioneer settlers copied this practice. A common name, false indigo, indicates it is not the true indigo plant which was introduced from the India subcontinent and cultivated for blue dye by many landowners during the early settlement of America. Some Indian tribes used it for medicinal purposes. The Osage made eyewash from the plant. The Cherokees would make a tea from it. A hot tea was taken as a purgative and a cold tea to prevent vomiting. A pulverized root or hot tea was held over a sore tooth to relieve the pain. Indian children would use the dried pods with the loose seeds inside as rattles.

Michigan Seeds and Plants grown on our farm, Renegade Acres, in Howell, MI!

Certified Organic by Oregon Tilth.