seeeeeeedpodssssss!

Blue false indigo has gone to seed and I am seeing its unmistakable pea-family seedpods everywhere. Wiki has this native midwestern plant listed as “at risk” which surprises me considering how much I am seeing. The common name “blue false indigo” is derived from it being used as a substitute for the unrelated and superior dye-producing plant Indigofera tinctoria. The Cherokee, in particular, traditionally used it as a source of blue dye, a practice later copied by European settlers. And ripened seed pods have been used for children’s rattles.

blue false indigo seedpods (Baptisia australis)