| Description | A native perennial producing showy white flowers that contrast nicely against the dark stem. |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | (bap-TIS-ee-uh) |
| Plant Type | All Plants, Wild Flowers |
| Sunlight | Prefers full sun, in the shade it may fail to bloom. |
| Moisture | average |
| Soil & Site | Habitats for this plant: thickets, edges of marshes, and borders of lakes, moist and dry prairies. Preference is moist to slightly dry soils. Dislikes alkaline soils. |
| Flowers | The flowers are: about 1", occur in erect 1' racemes, no scent, bloom in late spring to mid summer lasting for over a month. Flowers pollinated by worker bumblebees. |
| Fruit | legume like seed pods, turn black, rattle in the wind |
| Leaves | The leaves are: alternate, compound, trifoliate, grayish green or blue green, hairless and concentrated around the middle of the plant. |
| Stems | stout, smooth, light green to reddish purple and glaucous |
| Roots | tap root |
| Dimensions | An erect sparsely branched bush reaching 3-6 feet tall. |
| Propagation | Seeds benefit from both scarification and stratification. Takes two years before they reach flowering size. |
| Misc Facts | Plant is poisonous to cattle and has been used as a dye. Baptisia from the Greek word "bapto" to dye. Alba refers to the white flowers. |
| Notes & Reference | #45-Prairie Propagation Handbook (Harold Rock), #56-Tall Grass Prairie Wildflowers (Doug Ladd) |
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