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Western False Indigo
Amorpha fruticosa
  
13 Nurseries Carry This Plant

About Western False Indigo (Amorpha fruticosa) 13 Nurseries Carry This Plant Amorpha fruticosa is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by several common names, including desert false indigo and bastard indigobush. It is found throughout eastern Canada, northern Mexico, and most of the continental United States. In California it is native to the southwestern part of the state with scattered occurrences in the central valley. A. fruticosa grows as a hairy, thornless shrub which can reach 3 to 4 meters in height and spread to twice that in width. It is somewhat variable in morphology. The leaves are made up of many hairy, oval-shaped, spine-tipped leaflets. The flower cluster is a spike-shaped raceme of many flowers, each with a single purple petal and ten protruding stamens with yellow anthers. The fruit is a legume pod containing one or two seeds.

This plant likes moist (but not saturated) areas, and will spread wherever it finds suitable moisture. It is loosely branched and can become leggy with age; it needs plenty of room to spread out. Its spreading tendency and fibrous root system make it useful for bank stabilization. It is winter deciduous so will be less attractive for several months out of the year. It is the host plant for the Southern Dogface butterfly.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub

Size
Size
6 - 15 ft tall

Form
Form
Rounded, Fountain, Spreading

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Winter Deciduous

Flower Color
Flower Color
Purple, Yellow

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Spring, Winter

Wildlife Supported
 
Butterlies, especially the Southern Dogface which will lay its eggs on this plant

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 4 confirmed , 9 likely * ) SHOW ALL
Zerene cesonia Image
Southern Dogface Zerene cesoniaZerene cesonia
Uresiphita reversalis Image
Genista Caterpillar Uresiphita reversalisUresiphita reversalis
Pandemis limitata Image
Three-Lined Leafroller Moth Pandemis limitataPandemis limitata
Agonopterix argillacea Image
Clay-colored Agonopterix Moth Agonopterix argillaceaAgonopterix argillacea
*
Strymon melinus Image
Gray Hairstreak Strymon melinusStrymon melinus
*
Epargyreus clarus Image
Silver-Spotted Skipper Epargyreus clarusEpargyreus clarus
*
Leptotes marina Image
Marine Blue Leptotes marinaLeptotes marina

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Part Shade, Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Low, Moderate - High

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries
Carried by 13

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 30° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Slow

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerates a variety of soils. Tolerates Sodic Soil. Soil PH: 7.0 - 8.5

Common uses
Common uses
Hedges, Butterfly Gardens

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
It inhabits similar areas to California Wild Rose (Rosa californica). Other companions could include Meadow Rue (Thalictrum fendleri), Snowdrop Bush (Styrax officinalis), Common Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus), Yellow Monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus), Western Azalea (Rhododendron occidentale), Brown Dogwood (Cornus glabrata) and Huckleberry (Vaccinum ovatum).

Maintenance
Maintenance
Overly leggy growth can be pruned out in the winter when the plant is dormant

Propagation
Propagation?
Root divisions or layering..  For propagating by seed: No treatment; scarification may improve germination.

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
1, 2*, 3*, 6*, 7*, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Stream edges, canyons, north facing slopes of southern California and scattered locations in the central valley

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 4.9" - 47.6", Summer Precipitation: 0.18" - 2.85", Coldest Month: 33.5" - 59.0", Hottest Month: 60.6" - 87.5", Humidity: 1.41" - 38.32", Elevation: -180" - 8177"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Bastard Indigobush, Desert False Indigo, Desert Indigobush, Dullleaf Indigo, False Indigo Bush, False Indigo-bush


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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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