It's near impossible to determine what the public will find popular. Who would have thought rubber garden clogs -- the same ones I made fun of my mother wearing 25 years ago -- would become the rage among teens in the 21st century.

But it's hard not to predict a surge in popularity for baptisias. These herbaceous plants have everything going for them -- they're beautiful, they're adaptable, they're natives and they thrive on drought and neglect.

And Baptisia species cross-pollinate freely, which gives plant breeders ample opportunities to develop varieties in myriad sizes, forms and colors. It's not unlike the surge in Echinacea hybrids we've seen in the past 10 years.

There are about 30 Baptisia species native to North American prairies. These legumes produce mounds of attractive, pealike foliage that are typically upright in form. Spring flower spikes are attractive and come in hues of yellows, whites, blues and purples.

Variety abounds

Until recently, the most commonly grown baptisia in U.S. gardens was B. australis, a species that grows from North Carolina and Tennessee to Pennsylvania. It reaches 3 feet tall and has silvery-green foliage and blue flowers.

Now many introductions and hybrids include B. minor blood. This species is native to the Great Plains and is similar to B. australis in appearance, but is smaller in stature.

B. minor 'Blue Pearls' was selected by Tony Avent, owner of Plant Delights Nursery in Raleigh, N.C., from seed collected in Dallas County, Texas. It is a highly floriferous selection, producing as many as 50 flower spikes per plant when mature.

'Purple Smoke' and 'Carolina Moonlight,' both developed by North Carolina Botanic Garden, are popular new varieties whose parentage might include B. minor, B. alba and B. sphaerocarpa. These plants reach 4 feet tall and produce purple and butter-yellow flowers, respectively.

Chicagoland Grows has produced a series of B. australis x B. bracteata hybrids with bicolor flowers. These are Starlite Prairieblues (violet/periwinkle), Twilight Prairieblues (violet purple/yellow), Solar Flare Prairieblues (yellow/orange) and Midnight Prairieblues (blue/violet).

Shady Oaks Nursery in Waseca, Minn., introduced 'Chocolate Chip,' a 2-foot hybrid that produces chocolate/maroon flowers that top compact foliage clumps.

New name

Avent wrote an article titled "Baptisia: Revenge of the redneck lupine," in Horticulture magazine in 2002. This common name has since caught on and now you'll hear it used fairly commonly.

While the name does reflect this plant's ease of culture, Avent has some warnings for those wanting to propagate this plant. Fresh seed germinates readily, but cuttings are needed to reproduce the cultivars.

Softwood cuttings are necessary (hardened stems won't root) and should be dipped in hormone and rooted under mist, which takes eight weeks. Summer-rooted liners must also develop new growth buds prior to dormancy or they will not re-emerge the next spring. Place liners in a greenhouse if they have not developed these buds before frost comes.

—Todd Davis

SPECIFICS:
Name: Baptisia spp.
Common names: Wild indigo, false indigo and, recently, redneck lupines.
Family: Leguminosae.
Description: Herbaceous plants produce clumps of pealike foliage 2-5 feet tall, depending on species. Spring flowers (yellows, blues, purples, white and maroon) are produced on tall flower spikes. Many selections have dark seed pods after flowering.
Hardiness: Differs, but some species can withstand Zone 3.
Advantages: These are North American prairie species that are highly drought tolerant. They also thrive with little care in the landscape.
Propagation: Seed, softwood cuttings and tissue culture.
For more: Plant Delights Nursery, (919) 772-4794; www.plantdelights.com. North Carolina Botanic Garden, (919) 772-4794; www.ncbg.unc.edu. Chicagoland Grows, (847) 835-8301; www.chicagolandgrows.org. Shady Oaks Nursery, (888) 855-8750; www.shadyoaks.com.

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© 2007 Branch-Smith Publishing