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Baptisia 'Purple Smoke' |
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| Family |
fabaceae |
| Life cycle |
perennial |
| Flowers |
dusty purple (early summer) |
| Size |
3-4' |
| Light |
sun-part shade |
A natural hybrid of Baptisia australis and Baptisia alba, two US native species. I've raised both the parents from seed - getting those to a blooming size took literally years, and took several attempts. So when I found these at an end-of-season sale, I jumped on them. They still took more than a year to bloom, but finally, we can say we have blue-flowered baptisia in our garden. Worth waiting for, too - subtly two-toned violet-blue flowers offset by charcoal-gray stems, with loose foliage typical of most baptisias we've grown. Since that first bloom they have grown progressively larger, to where they are show-stopping specimens in May.
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| | These plants are among the first perennials to turn their top growth to a lifeless state in fall. Although that might be viewed as a negative, the mass of grayish leaves has its own charm. |
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We left this plant behind in our Pennsylvania garden (and wish it well); we don't grow it in Houston. One or more images of this plant are included in my stock photo catalog About my plant portraits
PlantLinks to other web pages about Baptisia 'Purple Smoke'
Visitors to this page have left the following comments| Mandy Taylor | Jun 19, 2008 | I just bought two of these after seeing them at the RBG, they are so vibrant and I will wait patiently for them as they are very small, not even a foot yet, so it might be quit a wait... |
| Christa Stengel | Aug 23, 2009 | Genus name is Baptista, rather than Baptisia.
That's an interesting assertion - but runs contrary to just about all the information out there, printed and online. |
| Jennette | Apr 08, 2011 | I hear mixed information about transplanting this species. Have you had any experience moving Baptisia around? I had to move a plant from one bed to another last week. Wow, were the roots long! They went in all directions so I basically had to cut it out with a spade shovel. Now I'm afraid the plant won't recover.
I've had a poor success rate transplanting larger baptisia specimens, but this is certainly the time of year you're most likely to be successful. |
| Olga | Jul 08, 2011 | Does the long tap root become a problem when planted close to the house?
Not at all – the taproot holds the plant in place, but it does not cause any damage. |
| Carol Mack | May 19, 2013 | I have one of these which is about 6yrs old (it has blue flowers)...how and when do I divide it?? I usually just cut it to the ground and it pops right back up in the spring time!!! I love it in flower arrangements. I found one recently on the 50% table at our local garden center...love those deals!!! |
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