Baptisia alba

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Baptisia alba
Baptisia alba var. macrophylla.jpg
Baptisia alba var. macrophylla
Baptisia alba var alba white wild indigo.JPG
Baptisia alba var. alba
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
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
Baptisia leucanthaTorr. & Gray
Baptisia pendula var. macrophyllaLarisey

Contents

Baptisia alba Seed Pod Weevil larvae inside of plant legume.
Baptisia Seed Pod Weevil (Trichapion rostrum) Baptisia alba-Trichapion rostrum.jpg
Baptisia alba Seed Pod Weevil larvae inside of plant legume. Baptisia alba-Trichapion rostrum-larvae.jpg
Baptisia alba Seed Pod Weevil larvae inside of plant legume.
Baptisia Seed Pod Weevil (Trichapion rostrum)

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.

Description

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]

Ecology

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]

Predation

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]

Toxicity

The species can be fatal to cows that ingest the plant. It can cause irritation to humans and is possibly poisonous. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabaceae</span> Family of legume flowering plants

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.

<i>Vigna</i> Genus of plants

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.

<i>Styphnolobium</i> Genus of legumes

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.

<i>Lablab</i> Species of plant

Lablab purpureus is a species of bean in the family Fabaceae. It is native to sub-Saharan Africa and India and it is cultivated throughout the tropics for food. English language common names include hyacinth bean, lablab-beanbonavist bean/pea, dolichos bean, seim or sem bean, lablab bean, Egyptian kidney bean, Indian bean, bataw and Australian pea. Lablab is a monotypic genus.

<i>Indigofera</i> Genus of plants

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.

<i>Baptisia australis</i> Species of flowering plant in the pea family

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.

<i>Baptisia</i> Genus of legumes

Baptisia, commonly referred to as wild indigo or false indigo, represents a diverse genus within the legume family, Fabaceae. These flowering herbaceous perennials exhibit an array of characteristics, including pea-like flowers, blooming in the spring that eventually mature into pods, occasionally displaying an inflated form. Renowned for their enduring presence and a spectrum of colours ranging from yellow, blue and white, Baptisia's captivate gardeners with their colourful stems, unique foliage, and exquisite flowers.

<i>Pongamia</i> Species of tree in the family Fabaceae

Pongamia pinnata is a species of tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, native to eastern and tropical Asia, Australia, and the Pacific islands. It is the sole species in genus Pongamia. It is often known by the synonym Millettia pinnata. Its common names include Indian beech, Karanja, and Pongame oiltree.

<i>Neltuma glandulosa</i> Species of tree

Neltuma glandulosa, formerly Prosopis glandulosa, commonly known as honey mesquite, is a species of small to medium-sized, thorny shrub or tree in the legume family (Fabaceae).

<i>Amorpha californica</i> Species of flowering plant

Amorpha californica is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name California false indigo.

<i>Baptisia tinctoria</i> Species of flowering plant

Baptisia tinctoria is a herbaceous perennial plant in the family Fabaceae. It is native to eastern North America.

<i>Amorpha fruticosa</i> Species of flowering plant in the pea family

Amorpha fruticosa is a species of flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae, known by several common names, including desert false indigo, false indigo-bush, and bastard indigobush. It is native to North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sophoreae</span> Tribe of legumes

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.

<i>Sesbania punicea</i> Species of legume

Sesbania punicea is an ornamental shrub with reddish-orange flowers native to South America. 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.

<i>Canavalia cathartica</i> Species of legume

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.

<i>Baptisia bracteata</i> Species of legume

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.

<i>Phaseolus polystachios</i> Species of legume

Phaseolus polystachios, also known as the thicket bean or wild kidney bean, is a perennial, herbaceous vine that is native to North America. It is unique among the Phaseolus in that its native range extends across the eastern temperate United States to southeast Canada, while most Phaseolus are tropical or subtropical. It is the namesake for the Polystachios group clade, which is the most species-rich within Phaseolus. In spite of its common name, it is more closely related to the lima bean, and it holds potential as a crop wild relative due to its resistance to white mold.

<i>Mucuna gigantea</i> Species of plant in the family Fabaceae

Mucuna gigantea, commonly known as burny bean, burney bean, velvet bean or sea bean is a species of liana from the legume family Fabaceae. Its natural range roughly follows the perimeter of the Indian Ocean and includes Africa, India, Malesia, New Guinea and northern Australia. Many parts of the plant - in particular the new growth, flowers and fruit - are covered in fine irritant hairs.

<i>Trichapion</i> Genus of weevil

Trichapion is a genus of weevil in the family Brentidae.

<i>Trichapion rostrum</i> Species of weevil in the family of Brentidae

Trichapion rostrum, the baptisia seed pod weevil or wild indigo weevil, is a species of weevil in the family Brentidae.

References

  1. 1 2 "Plants Profile for Baptisia alba (white wild indigo)". plants.usda.gov.
  2. 1 2 Petersen, Chris E., Renee E. Petersen, and Rachel Meek. "Comparison of common factors affecting seed yield in the congeners, Baptisia alba and Baptisia bracteata." Transactions of the Illinois State Academy of Science 99.1 (2006): 31-36.
  3. 1 2 Denison, Edgar (2017). Missouri Wildflowers (Sixth ed.). Conservation Commission of the State of Missouri. p. 32. ISBN   978-1-887247-59-7.
  4. Wang, H. C.; Sun, H.; Compton, J. A.; Yang, J. B. (2006). "A phylogeny of Thermopsideae (Leguminosae: Papilionoideae) inferred from nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 151 (3): 365–373. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.2006.00512.x . ISSN   1095-8339.
  5. Prenner, G. (2013). "Flower development in Abrus precatorius (Leguminosae: Papilionoideae: Abreae) and a review of androecial characters in Papilionoideae". South African Journal of Botany. 89: 210–218. doi: 10.1016/j.sajb.2013.06.008 .
  6. 1 2 "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  7. "Baptisia (False or Wild Indigo)". ClemsoHome & Garden Information Center. Clemson Cooperative Extension. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  8. "Plants Profile for Baptisia alba (white wild indigo)". plants.usda.gov. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  9. Robinson, Gaden S.; Ackery, Phillip R.; Kitching, Ian; Beccaloni, George W.; Hernández, Luis M. (2023). "HOSTS - The Hostplants and Caterpillars Database at the Natural History Museum". www.nhm.ac.uk. doi:10.5519/havt50xw.
  10. "White Wild Indigo (Baptisia alba macrophylla)". www.illinoiswildflowers.info.
  11. Hembrough, Ashley M.; Borowicz, Victoria A. (2017). "Pre-dispersal seed predation by the weevils Trichapion rostrum and Tychius sordidus limits reproductive output of Baptisia alba (Fabaceae)". Botany. 95 (8): 809–817. doi:10.1139/cjb-2016-0329. ISSN   1916-2790.
  12. 1 2 Hembrough, Ashley Morgan (2015). Factors Constraining the Reproductive Output of Baptisia alba macrophylla (Thesis). Illinois State University. doi:10.30707/etd2015.hembrough.a.