Blue false indigo
StarBaptisia australis
Synonyms: Sophora australis, Podalyria australis
Safety at a glance
No rule in our tables for this herb: pregnancy, breastfeeding, incompatible pairs (十八反 / 十九畏), herb–drug, dose ceiling. This is not a safety clearance.
Not graded — No toxicity grade is recorded. Most herbs in the catalogue carry none.
Traditionally used for
- Nose & throat
- Teeth & mouth
- Digestion
- Bowel health
- Pain & joints
Western Herbalism Properties
Traditional Uses
The Cherokee used Baptisia australis medicinally and as a dye plant. Cold infusions of the root were used for vomiting, and the plant was also used as an emetic and as a purgative (cathartic) (Hamel and Chiltoskey, 1975). A poultice of the root was applied as a gynecological aid 'to allay inflammation and stop mortification,' and a hot infusion of the root, or beaten root, was held against an aching tooth as an analgesic toothache remedy (Hamel and Chiltoskey, 1975). The plant was also used to make a blue dye (Hamel and Chiltoskey, 1975). The closely related Baptisia tinctoria is the principal Baptisia of Western herbal medicine, used as an alterative and antimicrobial for sore throat, lymphatic congestion, and ulcerations; B. australis has been used as a substitute.
Gallery
Botanical Description
Baptisia australis (blue false indigo, blue wild indigo) is a robust herbaceous perennial in the Fabaceae native to the central and eastern United States, particularly the tallgrass prairie and adjacent open woodland from Pennsylvania and Ohio south to Georgia and west to Texas and Nebraska. Plants reach 0.9-1.5 m tall, with stout, smooth, glaucous, branching stems arising from a deep, woody taproot. The leaves are alternate, trifoliolate on short petioles, with obovate to oblanceolate leaflets 3-7 cm long, glaucous-blue-green and glabrous. The inflorescence is an erect terminal raceme 20-40 cm tall bearing many showy pea-like flowers; each flower is 2-3 cm long with a deep indigo-blue to violet-blue corolla. The fruit is an inflated, leathery legume 4-7 cm long that turns black at maturity and rattles with loose seeds. All parts contain quinolizidine alkaloids and are mildly toxic. It blooms in late spring to early summer.
Dosage Calculator
⚖ Dosage Calculator
A weight-based mathematical estimate for Blue false indigo. Not a prescription.
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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