Baptisia alba

White is the predominant flower color of the prairie now. The penstemons have been blooming for awhile, fleabane daisies are blooming and now the white baptisia is starting to flower. What a majestic plant this is. It shoots straight up from the surrounding grasses and then starts to branch out. This plant will be of interest for the rest of the season due to the curious black seed heads that will eventually form from the flowers. These plants take about five years to reach maturity but when they do they make a fasinating scene. Baptisia alba is both an important caterpillar host and nectar source for many of the sulfur and blue butterflies.