Sonoran Indigo
Indigofera sphaerocarpa
Family: Fabaceae
Deciduous shrub growing to about 4x4’. Orange (sometimes white or pink) flowers occur in summer followed by small spherical seed pods containing one seed each.
Part to full sun, moderate water, hardy to about 0°F.
Very nectar-rich flowers, larval food plant for the gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), Reakirt’s blue (Echinargus isola), and the silver spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus).
The fresh leaves or fermented stems of this plant (and other species of Indigofera) are used to make indigo dye. The genus has been used for this purpose as long as 1500 years ago.
There are 755 species of Indigofera distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Indigofera comes from the Latin indicum for indigo and ferre to bear, while sphaerocarpa comes from Greek sphaira and karpos, fruit.
Found on rocky slopes from 4,000-6,000 ft. Ranges from southern Arizona and New Mexico south into Sonora.
Photo of the green fruits that will dry into single-seeded pods, by Sue Carnahan, SEINET
This plant is used to produce indigo dye, photo by pseudomyrmex on iNaturalist