Baptisia alba | |
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Baptisia alba var. macrophylla | |
Baptisia alba var. alba | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Faboideae |
Genus: | Baptisia |
Species: | B. alba |
Binomial name | |
Baptisia alba (L.) Vent. | |
Synonyms | |
Baptisia lactea(Raf.) Thieret Contents |
Baptisia alba, commonly called white wild indigo or white false indigo, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the bean family Fabaceae. It is native in central and eastern North America, [1] and is typically found in open woodland areas and prairies with tall grasslands. [2]
The plant is typically 2 to 3 feet (0.61 to 0.91 m) tall, but can be taller, with white, pealike flowers. [1]
There are two varieties, Baptisia alba var. alba and Baptisia alba var. macrophylla.
Leaves have alternate arrangement, and are trifoliate, narrow, and oblong. [3] The leaves are compound and share a common stalk. [4] White flowers occur from a long spike inflorescence. The white flowers that bloom from the spike inflorescence are Paplilonaceous flowers which are identifiable by their irregular shape and five flower petals that have bilateral symmetry. [5] Blooming occurs from April to July, earlier in the southern part of the range. [6] The species is native to grasslands, but is grown in some gardens. It favors moist soils. [3]
Baptisia alba var. alba (syn. B. pendula) can be differentiated from B. alba var. macrophylla (syn. B. lactea and B. leucantha) on the basis that the former occurs only in the southeastern US and has fruits that hang downward when ripe. [7]
Baptisia alba is described as a facultative upland plant in all parts of its range. [8]
B. alba is a host plant for caterpillars of the wild indigo duskywing butterfly and the indigo stem borer moth. [9] Bumblebees pollinate the flowers. [10]
One of the main predators and factors in the reproduction of B. alba are the Trichapion rostrum, commonly referred to as the Wild Indigo Weevil, or Baptisia Seed Pod Weevil which are a type of beetle with an elongated snout that predate on the pre-dispersed B. alba seeds. [11] The Weevils utilize the B. alba flowers and seeds by inserting their eggs into the fruit of the B. alba plant by creating an opening at the base and pushing their eggs into the fruit itself where they feed on the seeds of the plant until they develop and emerge from the fruit. [12] The weevils can be found on the pods of the B. alba, inserting their eggs, just before their pods open up and begin to bloom. The inserted weevil offspring uses the seeds of the B. alba pod while they grow inside the pod until they reach full development. [2] The seed production of B. alba is impacted by seed predation which can cause B. alba to abort damaged fruits that are frequented by predators in order to give more nutrients to healthier seed pods to increase their chance of survival. [12]
The species can be fatal to cows that ingest the plant. It can cause irritation to humans and is possibly poisonous. [6]
The Fabaceae or Leguminosae, commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, are a large and agriculturally important family of flowering plants. It includes trees, shrubs, and perennial or annual herbaceous plants, which are easily recognized by their fruit (legume) and their compound, stipulate leaves. The family is widely distributed, and is the third-largest land plant family in number of species, behind only the Orchidaceae and Asteraceae, with about 765 genera and nearly 20,000 known species.
Vigna is a genus of plants in the legume family, Fabaceae, with a pantropical distribution. It includes some well-known cultivated species, including many types of beans. Some are former members of the genus Phaseolus. According to Hortus Third, Vigna differs from Phaseolus in biochemistry and pollen structure, and in details of the style and stipules.
Styphnolobium is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It includes nine species of small trees and shrubs native to China and to the Americas, from the southern United States to Colombia. It belongs to subfamily Faboideae, and was formerly included within a broader interpretation of the genus Sophora. It was recently assigned to the unranked, monophyletic Cladrastis clade. They differ from the genus Calia (mescalbeans) in having deciduous leaves and flowers in axillary, not terminal, racemes. The leaves are pinnate, with 9–21 leaflets, and the flowers in pendulous racemes similar to those of the black locust. Necklacepod is a common name for plants in this genus.
Indigofera is a large genus of over 750 species of flowering plants belonging to the pea family Fabaceae. They are widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world.
Myroxylon is a genus of Fabaceae native to Latin America.
Baptisia australis, commonly known as blue wild indigo or blue false indigo, is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae (legumes). It is a perennial herb native to much of central and eastern North America and is particularly common in the Midwest, but it has also been introduced well beyond its natural range. Naturally it can be found growing wild at the borders of woods, along streams or in open meadows. It often has difficulty seeding itself in its native areas due to parasitic weevils that enter the seed pods, making the number of viable seeds very low. The plant has low toxicity levels for humans.
Baptisia is a genus in the legume family, Fabaceae. They are flowering herbaceous perennial plants with pea-like flowers, followed by pods, which are sometimes inflated. They are native to woodland and grassland in eastern and southern North America. The species most commonly found in cultivation is B. australis.
Prosopis glandulosa, commonly known as honey mesquite, is a species of small to medium-sized, thorny shrub or tree in the legume family (Fabaceae).
Amorpha californica is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name California false indigo.
Baptisia tinctoria is a herbaceous perennial plant in the family Fabaceae. It is native to eastern North America.
Parochetus communis, known in English as shamrock pea or blue oxalis, is a species of legume, and the only species in the genus Parochetus and in the subtribe Parochetinae. It is a low-growing plant with blue papilionaceous flowers and clover-like leaves. It is found in the mountains of Asia and tropical Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand.
The tribe Sophoreae is one of the subdivisions of the plant family Fabaceae. Traditionally this tribe has been used as a wastebasket taxon to accommodate genera of Faboideae which exhibit actinomorphic, rather than zygomorphic floral symmetry and/or incompletely differentiated petals and free stamens. Various morphological and molecular analyses indicated that Sophoreae as traditionally circumscribed was polyphyletic. This led to a re-circumscription of Sophoreae, which resulted in the transfer of many genera to other tribes. This also necessitated the inclusion of two former tribes, Euchresteae and Thermopsideae, in the new definition of Sophoreae. Tribe Sophoreae, as currently circumscribed, consistently forms a monophyletic clade in molecular phylogenetic analyses. The Sophoreae arose 40.8 ± 2.4 million years ago.
Dalbergia obovata is a robust shrub or climber in the family Fabaceae, and is native to Southern Africa.
Sesbania punicea is an ornamental shrub with reddish-orange flowers. It has deciduous leaves and grows to a height of 15 feet. This plant has a high demand for water, and thrives in swamps or wet areas. It requires a mildly acidic soil, with a pH between 6.1 and 6.5.
Canavalia cathartica, commonly known as maunaloa in the Hawaiian language, is a species of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae. The Hawaiian name translates as long mountain. In English it may also be known as poisonous sea bean, ground jack bean, horse bean, silky sea bean or wild bean. It has a Paleotropical distribution, occurring throughout tropical regions in Asia, Africa, Australia, and many Pacific Islands, and extending just into subtropical areas. It is not native to Hawaii, and is an invasive species there.
Baptisia bracteata, otherwise known as longbract wild indigo, long-bract wild indigo, long-bracted wild indigo, plains wild indigo, cream false indigo, or cream wild indigo, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the Fabaceae (bean) family that is native to the central and eastern United States. It is one of the earliest blooming species of Baptisia, beginning to bloom in March in certain areas of the United States. The flower clusters (racemes) spread out sideways or sprawl across the ground, unlike most other Baptisia species, which have vertical racemes.
Adenodolichos punctatus is a plant in the legume family Fabaceae, native to tropical Africa.
Trichapion is a genus of weevil in the family Brentidae.
Trichapion rostrum, the baptisia seed pod weevil or wild indigo weevil, is a species of weevil in the family Brentidae.
Flemingia grahamiana is a species of flower plant in the family Fabaceae. Extracts of the plant is used in the dyeing of silk and cotton in parts of India, Africa and the MIddle East.