White Wild Indigo

Baptisia alba

Size: 1 & 3 Gallon Availability

Shrub
Max size: 5 tall x 4’ wide
Average size:4′ tall x 3′ wide

Usually Moist, Moist to Dry, Very Dry
Clay, Loam, Sand
Sun, Part Shade
No Salt Tolerance

AKA: Thin-Pod White Wild Indigo, False Indigo

This winter-dormant shrub blooms in the late spring with long, white spikes. It is a specimen for these showy flowers, and also has soft round foliage, and a deep taproot that makes transplanting difficult. It gets its berries in summer, they are green or black and are toxic. It is a legume, and thus a nitrogen fixer in the soil. Deer and rabbits browse its protein-rich foliage; however, it is toxic to humans and livestock. It is pollinated by bumble bees and is a larval host for wild indigo duskywing (Erynnis baptisiae) and Zarucco duskywing (Erynnis zarucco) butterflies.

The roots can be used to treat swelling, wounds, sores, and snakebites.