false indigo...

... is what I thought that plant was I spotted several weeks ago, and now I am not sure what makes me think that? I cannot recall how I determined after seeing something really interesting in some one's landscaping that thing that was so striking, unusual looking was 'false indigo'. Somehow I got that particular idea in my brain, making me think I really wanted to have a plant, even though I had no idea where it get one, or where I would place it if I did have one.

Even worse is the fact that I did accidentally see one last weekend while volunteering at the daylily fest/plant sale: so naturally I jumped right in and bought it. Now I am pretty sure that the thing I saw growing in the landscape along Ponce de Leon Ave. in Atlanta was not false indigo. Mostly because the flowers on that really pretty plant in the anonymous yard were white, or maybe creamy/eggshell colored. You can imagine my surprise when I discovered false indigo is: indigo! What did I really expect?  When I finally got around to looking it up, the photos look nothing at all like the one I saw weeks ago: examples I found on the Internet all are purple or a deep dark royal shade of blue. Well, really?

I'm not even sure I want this 'thing' I accidentally bought: now that I find it can be invasive, and will reseed in places you don't really want it to be. Like that coreopsis I thought I wanted, it bloomed, reseeded and popped up everywhere, causing me to aggressively snatch up plants, as soon it as the leaves get big enough for identification. Or that English Ivy I thought I wanted after seeing how attractive it looked growing in someones' carefully tended yard. Only to find that it requires daily diligence to keep under control, otherwise it turns in to kudzu and creeps up trees, invades other plantings,  as well as creeping in the window and up the bed post at night, and is virtually impossible to eliminate.

I put my cash into it, and now I am committed. We have had abundant rains in recent weeks, making it a great time to plant things, so I guess I might as well proceed with getting this indigo thing in the ground. After researching (ie: googling) it appears the plant forms seed pods after blooming, making me hope that I can pay attention, get the seed pod before it matures, dries, opens and seeds fall, and keep it under control. Making me think of that movie/play about a carnivorous plant that ate unwary customers... I know this one is not a man-eater, but still - I do not want to plant something that will take on a life of it's own, and turn into a nuisance, blight on the landscape.