Baptisia australis
Baptisia australis
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 australis is a herbaceous, perennial plant forming a slowly expanding clump with erect stems; it can grow 90 - 120cm tall[ 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. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and a dye. The inflated seed pods are up to 6cm long. They turn charcoal black when ripe and have considerable ornamental interest. Stems with seed pods are valued additions to dried flower arrangements[ 272 Title Plants and People of Nepal Publication Author Manandhar. N. P. Publisher Timber Press. Oregon. Year 2002 ISBN 0-88192-527-6 Description Excellent book, covering over 1,500 species of useful plants from Nepal together with information on the geography and peoples of Nepal. Good descriptions of the plants with terse notes on their uses. ].