Solar Flare Baptisia

About the Baptisias: This is a group of treasured North American native wildflowers. The most common species is called Wild Indigo, but actually has yellow flowers. The stems yield a pale blue dye, thus the name. Others have indigo blue flowers, and some have reddish bloom, so the whole group has ended up with the common name False Indigo. None of the Baptisias have ever been very successful in coloring, the common name notwithstanding.

Today, this beautiful wildflower, though quite common in many areas, is rare in others. It is threatened which means quite rare, in Maryland and Indiana, and actually officially listed as endangered in Ohio. But in Texas, for example, its one of the most persistent flowering wild plants, even through severe droughts and endless, baking summers. Baptisias are great for xeriscaping, the practice of creating gardens that need very little watering. And they're great plants for the wildflower collector.