Amorpha fruticosa
bastard indigo, bastard indigobush, bastard or desert false indigo, desert false indigo, false indigo-bush, tall indigo bush, western false indigo
smooth, eglandular or, sometimes, sparsely gland-dotted, usually puberulent to glabrate, rarely glabrous.
10–25(–28) cm;
stipules linear, 2–4 mm, usually eglandular, pilosulous;
petiole (8–)10–40 mm, usually eglandular, sometimes sparsely gland-dotted, usually puberulent to glabrate, rarely glabrous;
rachis usually eglandular, sometimes sparsely gland-dotted, puberulent to glabrate;
leaflets [5–]9–21(–31), stipels setaceous, 2–4 mm, petiolule (1.5–)2–4 mm, often eglandular, sometimes sparsely gland-dotted, usually pilosulous to puberulent or glabrate, rarely glabrous, blade usually elliptic to oblong, rarely ovate, (10–)20–40(–50) × (5–)10–20(–25) mm, base acute to rounded, margins flat, entire or nearly so, apex acute to round or, rarely, emarginate, surfaces usually pilosulous to puberulent or glabrate, sometimes glabrous at least adaxially;
midvein terminated by a slender mucro, 0.5–1.5 mm.
(1 or)2–8(–12)-branched, (5–)10–20(–25) cm;
rachis usually eglandular, mostly puberulent to pilosulous, sometimes glabrate;
bracteoles linear to setaceous, 1.5–3 mm, pilosulous abaxially, glabrous adaxially.
1–2.2 mm, usually eglandular, puberulent to pilosulous.
calyx tube obconic to funnelform or campanulate, 2–3(–4) mm, distal 1/3 gland-dotted or, infrequently, eglandular, puberulent to pilosulous or glabrous;
lobes triangular-dentate, 0.2–1.2 mm, margins ciliate;
banner reddish purple, broadly obovate to obcordate, 5–6 × 3.5–4.2 mm, indistinctly clawed, margins entire, apex slightly emarginate or erose;
filaments 6–8 mm, connate basally 1–2(–3) mm;
anthers yellow;
ovary glabrous or, rarely, pubescent.
sessile, 5–9 × (2–)3–4.5 mm, margins curved outward abaxially, straight to curved adaxially, more often gland-dotted nearly throughout, sometimes eglandular, usually glabrous or pubescent.
reddish brown, 3.5–4.5 × 1.5–1.8 mm, smooth, lustrous.
= (38) 40.
Amorpha fruticosa
Amorpha fruticosa is frequently planted as an ornamental and is locally naturalized in Europe, Asia, Africa.
Following R. L. Wilbur (1975) and D. Isely (1998), we maintain Amorpha fruticosa here in a broad circumscription, as the numerous varieties, forms, and regional species delimited from the larger taxon appear to have little taxonomic value due to overlapping morphological variation and widespread plasticity. This species is commonly available in the horticultural trade and is cultivated worldwide. Plants in cultivation can be especially robust, rising to six meters tall with far fewer leaflets than usual. Amorpha fruticosa spreads easily in riparian habitats and is often weedy. Although the native range of A. fruticosa encompasses much of North America, it has only relatively recently become established in the Pacific Northwest, perhaps due to its use for erosion control, and has only been recorded from Idaho, Oregon, and Washington since the 1980s (J. B. Glad and R. R. Halse 1993). This species is considered to be introduced also in Ontario and Quebec.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
- Local floras:
CA, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos,
Flora NW, 
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IL Wildflowers, 
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MD Biodiversity, 
MN Wildflowers, 
MO Plants, 
PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. 
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