Why plant Audubon® Native Shrub Indigo?
To attract birds to your yard and get them to stick around, you need to offer them not only food but shelter as well. False Indigo Bush is an excellent way to create cover for birds in a hurry. When planted en masse, this fast-growing Accent quickly forms a thicket, where songbirds and even small gamebirds like quail can forage for food and feel safe from predators. Sparrows may dine on the seeds in fall, and all sorts of insectivorous birds will appreciate False Indigo Bush for the many caterpillars and other bugs that feed on its foliage.
Although most people have no idea what False Indigo Bush is, it’s actually a fairly common plant with an extensive natural range. This adaptable Accent is native throughout much of the U.S., with the exception of the Northwest and parts of the Northeast. It often grows along streams or swamps but tolerates dry soil, too. Look for it in early summer, when the interesting flowers appear. They form fingerlike spikes of tiny purple florets with yellow-orange pollen. A host of native bees and other insects readily visit the blossoms, making False Indigo Bush a fine pollinator plant as well.
How to use Audubon® Native Shrub Indigo in the landscape?
False Indigo Bush hosts several butterfly species, such as the friendly silver-spotted skipper, a frequent visitor to gardens. Other butterflies supported by this useful native include gray hairstreaks and dogface sulfurs.
Planting Zones
Hardiness Zone: 4-9
How To Plant Audubon® Native Shrub Indigo
No green thumb required! Even novice gardeners will have success with False Indigo Bush. Plant this easygoing native in full sun and in any kind of soil—even clay. Moist to wet soil is ideal, but dry soil is just fine, too. False Indigo Bush will need regular water during the establishment phase, but it will be more tolerant of drought after that. This is a nitrogen-fixing legume, which means that it can obtain nitrogen from the air. As a result, it requires little fertilizer and can survive on low-nutrient, sandy sites, where other plants struggle.
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.