Baptisia tinctoria
Baptisia tinctoria
Safety & Hazards
Most, if not all, of the various species of Baptisia contain the toxic compounds baptisin and cytisine. The toxicity is fairly low, but eating the plants can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea[ 293 Title Poisonous Plants of North Carolina Publication Author Website http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/poison.htm Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent concise but comprehensive guide to toxic plants that grow in N. Carolina. It lists even those plants that are of very low toxicity, including several well-known food plants such as carrots and potatoes. ].
Botanical Description
Baptisia tinctoria is an erect, perennial plant producing groups of 1 - 3 much-branched stems that can become more or less woody, especially near the base; it can grow up to 100cm tall[ 200 Title The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. Publication Author Huxley. A. Publisher MacMillan Press Year 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5 Description Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed. , 352 Title KemperCentreForHomeGardeningPlantFinder Publication Author Website http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/ Publisher Missouri Botanical Garden Year 0 ISBN Description Basic cultivation details, plant uses, habitat etc for several thousand species of plants, mainly from the temperate zone. ]. A favourite medicinal herb of the native N. Americans, the plant is still often used in modern herbalism, being havested from the wild for this, as well as being the source of a dye, an insect repellent and occasionally also as a food, The plant is often grown as an ornamental, valued for its floral display and attractive black seedpods which can be used in dried flower arrangements.