Amorpha fruticosa
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False Indigo-bush, Bastard-indigo
Fabaceae (Leguminosae)
Plant Specifics
| Form: | Shrub | |
| Size: | 6-12 ft tall by 6-10 ft wide | |
| Life Span: | Long-lived perennial | |
| Flower Color: | Blue, purple | |
| Fruit Color: | Brown (legume) | |
| Phenology: | Deciduous. Blooms spring-summer. | |
| Noted for: | Fall color, Showy flowers |
Landscaping
| Recommended Uses: | Multistemmed shrub that can form small thickets. Plant as a screen, hedge, or background plant. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Considerations: | Can become aggressive in some habitats. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Propagation: | Easily grown from seed and will likely self-seed, cuttings, air layers and suckers. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Availability: | Native nurseries | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Light: | Full Sun, Part Shade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: |
always floodedextremely dry |
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| (Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Short very dry periods) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: | Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Short very dry periods | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Water Flooding Tolerance: | Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance: | Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil or other substrate: | Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil pH: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ecology
| Wildlife: |
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| Insects: | Larval host for southern dogface (Zerene cesonia), gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), and silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus). Said to attract bees, beetles, and other insect pollinators. | |
| Native Habitats: | Moist hammocks, dry hammocks, dry hardwood forests |
Distribution and Planting Zones
Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones
Suitable to grow in:
10A 8A 8B 9A 9B
USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures