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June 1, 2010
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Southeastern, New Hampshire
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Desert False Indigo is a 4 to 18 foot shrub with alternate leaves that are about
6 to 18 inches long and odd-pinnate with 11-35 leaflets. The leaves have
relatively short petioles up to 2 inches long. The leaflets are not quite opposite
each other. (See picture below and on the left.) The leaflets are oblong and
untoothed (entire). As you can see from the pictures, the flower which
appears in late May to June is dark purple or blue with bright yellow or orange anthers
(the male part of the stamen). After flowering for 2 to 3 weeks, the flowers are replaced
by 1/4 inch seedpods that contain 1-2 seeds. The lower stems of the Desert False Indigo
are woody with lenticels (pores). The upper stems are dull light green.
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