Audubon Native Blue Wild Indigo and native birds
Native Blue Wild Indigo
Native Blue Wild Indigo
Native Blue Wild Indigo
Native Regions map for Blue Wild Indigo
Ruby Throated Hummingbird
Ruby Throated Hummingbird
Audubon Native Blue Wild Indigo and native birds
Native Blue Wild Indigo
Native Blue Wild Indigo
Native Blue Wild Indigo
Native Regions map for Blue Wild Indigo
Ruby Throated Hummingbird
Ruby Throated Hummingbird

Audubon® Native Blue Wild Indigo

Bower & Branch Trees and Plants

Audubon® Plants for Birds: Baptisia australis

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This plant is not available at this time through Bower & Branch. We provide this plant profile for reference only. 

See below for alternative selections for purchase and inspiration!

FEATURES:

  • May Benefit & Attract: Hummingbirds
  • The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow.
  • This bird-friendly native trees provides food and shelter for local and migrating birds and other wildlife
  • All Audubon® branded trees are grown 100% Neonic-free by Bower & Branch, making these plants safer for the birds and safer for the environment.
  • Hand Selected, Fresh from the Grower
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Growth Facts

  • Hardiness Zone: 3-9
  • Mature Height: 3-4' tall
  • Mature Width: 3-4' wide
  • Exposure: Full Sun
  • Spacing: 3-4' apart

Why plant Audubon® Native Blue Wild Indigo?

Blue Wild Indigo will put an end to the myth that hummingbirds only like red flowers. Its glorious, cobalt-blue spikes are a magnet for hummers in the sweet, mild days of late spring. You’ll enjoy watching their aeronautics from your patio. You’ll love the blossoms yourself, too—fragrant, tall columns of pea-like flowers that are perfect for cutting. They are produced in such abundance that you can snip a hearty bouquet and still have plenty left for the hummers. The charcoal-black seedpods that follow are also cool in arrangements. Equally at home in wildflower meadows and on formal estates, Blue Wild Indigo brings its natural charms to gardens of all types.

Grow a piece of American history! Blue Wild Indigo was the first subsidized agricultural crop grown on American soil. For a long time, the British obtained dark blue dye from the True Indigo plant, which is a tropical plant that probably originated in India. However, when supplies of True Indigo couldn’t keep up with demand in the 1700s, Colonists looked to the Blue Wild Indigo plant, which grows wild from Pennsylvania to Georgia and west to what is now Nebraska. Blue Wild Indigo produces an inferior, lighter blue dye, but it was good enough to make the plant one of the Colonies’ biggest exports in the mid-1700s. In its heyday, over a million pounds were shipped out per year!

How to use Audubon® Native Blue Wild Indigo in the landscape?

Blue Wild Indigo has begun to receive the respect it deserves as a garden superstar. Because this tough, easy-to-grow Spirit has hardly any pest or disease issues, can be grown in many parts of the country, and looks good in spring, summer, and fall, the Perennial Plant Association chose it as their Perennial Plant of the Year in 2010. Kudos!

Planting Zones

Hardiness Zone: 3-9

How To Plant Audubon® Native Blue Wild Indigo

Give Blue Wild Indigo a site in full sun. While it will tolerate part shade, growth may be floppy there. If your plant does get floppy, shearing it after the blooms have faded will keep it more compact, though doing so will sacrifice the fun seedpods. Any kind of soil is suitable, provided it drains well. Blue Wild Indigo develops thick, deep roots, which allow it to survive periods of drought. Because of its taproot, however, it’s extremely difficult to transplant, so leave it in place once it’s in the ground. This big, bold Spirit takes a few seasons to bulk up and really strut its stuff—be patient!

How To Fertilize

Incorporate Elements Starter Plant food granular form into the soil when planting. If planting in spring or summer, start fertilizing late fall using Elements Starter Plant food granular form on an annual basis each late fall. Continue this for the first three years to get your plant well established.


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