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Himalayan Indigo

Indigofera heterantha (in-dee-GO-fer-uh het-er-AN-thuh)

Family: Fabaceae Non-native Shrub (3-15 ft)

Another shrub of the pea family, this indigofera is often called Himalayan indigo, and is native to Himalaya as well as Afghanistan to Tibet. It is suited to a range of soil conditions including clay. well-drained neutral to slightly alkaline soil and medium moisture. It can be sun, but in a hot, humid atmosphere, it benefits from afternoon shade. As wide as it is tall, 4-6 feet, it's leaves are grey green to blue green of 4-6 inch pinnate leaflets, but the fall color is not distinguished. The flowering time is summer. The pea-shaped blooms of pink to rose to lilac are held in dense racemes of 3-5 inches and are followed by dark purple seed pods. Insects, Diseases and Other Plant Problems:

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 40 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 3 - Shrub (3-15 ft) Optimal soil pH Acid (<6.0)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Fills a similar niche Indigofera amblyantha Styrax grandifolius Vitex agnus-castus 'Shoal Creek'

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Shrub
Life cycle
Woody
USDA zones
5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage
Available space
3 feet-6 feet
Mature size
Height: 4 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in. | Width: 4 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in.
Maintenance
Medium
Canopy layer
3 - Shrub (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Open; Rounded
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Blue; Gray/Silver; Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf margin
Entire
Hairs present
No
Flower color
Purple/Lavender
Flower form
Raceme
Flower shape
Tubular
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
3-5 in erect racemes
Fruit type
Legume
Fruit detail
Dark purple seed pods.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
Afghanistan to Tibet and Himalaya
Food & Medicine
Harvest time
Fall; Summer
Fruit type
Legume

Uses (ethnobotany)

Hedge,

Landscape Use
Landscape theme
Drought Tolerant Garden
Design feature
Accent
Garden tags
#deciduous #heat tolerant #lavender flowers #drought tolerant #shrub #deciduous shrub #showy flowers #purple fruits #shrub border #blue leaves
Problems & Resistance
Resistant to
Drought; Heat

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.