Baptisia Plant Profile and Tips for Growing

Use baptisia in the garden landscape to hide the dying foliage of spring blooming bulbs and to add vertical accents to the flower bed, container or informal borders.

Cultivation Information and How to Grow Baptisia

Botanical and Common Name – Baptisia is known by a variety of common names including wild indigo, false indigo, or even buffalo pea because of the pea-shaped seed pods that appear.

Plant Category – False indigo is an herbaceous, flowering perennial.

Bloom Time and Color – Baptisia flowers in the late spring and is traditionally seen in a dark purple shade, however varieties exist in white, yellow and lavender.

Foliage – The foliage has a pleasant appearance in the garden, and can lose its rounded appearance after blooming, creating a more informal look.

Growth Habit – Baptisia tends to grow 3-4 feet tall and wide and has a rounded appearance early in the spring, with a looser, more open look towards the end of summer.

Maintenance – Baptisia requires little care although some gardeners prefer to cut back the foliage after blooming to maintain a more rounded appearance. If the plants are grown in shadier areas, some staking may be required.

Pests or Diseases – False indigo is not generally bothered by pests or disease.

Propagation Methods – Although baptisia produces highly attractive seed pods each year after flowering, they are not heavy self-seeders. Also, since most of the cultivars will not come true to seed, gardeners tend to prefer dividing plants to propagate.

Using False Indigo in the Garden

Preferred Conditions – Baptisia grows well in a variety of conditions and thrives in average, well-drained soil although it will tolerate semi-drought conditions once established. Flowering is best in full sun but the plants will tolerate part shade as well.

Companion Plants – False indigo has a beautiful, muted shade of flower that blends very easily in almost any color palette. Consider planting the purple varieties as part of a purple themed garden with lavender, geranium and creeping phlox. Or enhance the butterfly attractiveness of the plants with blanket flowers, echinacea and lantana.

Seasons of Interest – Baptisia is attractive with late spring blooms that can last into early summer, attractive green foliage through the entire growing season, and ornamental fruit pods that are purple or black in color and add interest to the fall and winter gardens.

Uses – Use baptisia in a butterfly garden, wildflower garden or butterfly garden. Many gardeners also grow baptisia for its use in dried flower arrangements.

Baptisia is such an easy-to-grow perennial with beautiful flowers, attractive seedpods and low-maintenance needs, the only question with this plant is why more garden landscapes don’t include it. With the growing popularity and increasing color varieties available, even this won’t be an issue for long.