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Tall Blue Wild Indigo

Baptisia australis

Blue pea-shaped flowers rise above a broad clump of blue-green foliage. Found in riverbank scour areas, gravel bars, and disturbed areas (where persisting from cultivation). Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

76
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
3–4 feet
Spread
2–4 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 3 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 11 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Herbaceous perennial
Bloom
April to June
Fruiting season
June to August

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 17 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 127 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Care

  • Choose a lasting spot; established plants are difficult to move.
Care sources
Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

22CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Baptisia

  • Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
  • Automeris ioIo Moth
  • Callophrys irusThe Hoary Elfin, Bog Elfin?, Frosted Elfin
  • Catocala consorsThe Consort
  • Cecropterus lyciadesHoary Edge
  • Colias eurythemeOrange Sulphur, Alfalfa Butterfly
  • Colias philodiceClouded Sulphur, Clover Butterfly
  • Cupido comyntasEastern Tailed-Blue
  • Dasylophia anguinaBlack-Spotted Prominent
  • Gesta baptisiaeWild Indigo Duskywing, Baptisia Duskywing
Show all 22
  • Gesta zaruccoZarucco Duskywing
  • Grapholita tristriganaThree-Lined Grapholita
  • Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
  • Palthis asopialisFaint-Spotted Palthis
  • Papaipema baptisiaeWild Indigo Borer, Indigo Stem Borer
  • Papaipema cataphractaBurdock Border, Potato-Stalk Borer
  • Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
  • Schinia jaguarinaJaguar Flower Moth
  • Uresiphita reversalisGenista Caterpillar, Genista Cbroom Moth
  • Anacampsis lupinella
  • Pococera baptisiella
  • Sitochroa dasconalis
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
22BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Baptisia

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Baptisia

  • Megachile melanophaea
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Baptisia

  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Fabaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Blue, yellow, purple or white
Fruit begins
June
Fruit ends
August

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Choose its permanent location carefully: the deep root makes transplanting difficult. Full sun encourages flowering. NC State Extension

Growing sources and scope

Recognizing it

Leaves divide into three leaflets. Upright flower spikes are followed by inflated seed pods. Identification source

Also known as

Streamside Blue Wild Indigo

Conservation status

Virginia rankS3
Global rankG3G4
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

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How to check your spot

Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources