| Indigofera | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Indigofera tinctoria | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Faboideae |
| Tribe: | Indigofereae |
| Genus: | Indigofera L. (1753) |
| Type species | |
| Indigofera tinctoria L. | |
| Species | |
See text. | |
| Synonyms[1][2] | |
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Indigofera is a large genus of over 750 species[3] offlowering plants belonging to the pea familyFabaceae. They are widely distributed throughout thetropical andsubtropical regions of the world.[3][2]
Indigofera is a varied genus that has shown unique characteristics making it an interesting candidate as a potential perennial crop.[clarification needed] Specifically, there is diverse variation among species with a number of unique characteristics. Some examples of this diversity include differences inpericarp thickness, fruit type, and flowering morphology. The unique characteristics it has displayed include potential for mixedsmallholder systems with at least one other species and a resilience that allows for constant nitrogen uptake despite varying conditions.
Species ofIndigofera are mostlyshrubs, though some are small trees orherbaceousperennials orannuals. The branches are covered with silky hairs. Most of them havepinnate leaves made of three foliolates with short petioles.[3][4]: 341
Small flowers grow in the leaf axils from long peduncles or spikes, their petals come in hues of red or purple, but there are a few greenish-white and yellow-flowered species.[4]: 341 Indigofera flowers have opencarpels, their organ primordial[clarification needed] is often formed at deeper layers than othereudicots.[5] This variety could have significant implications on its role in an actual perennial polyculture. For example, different flowering morphologies could be artificially selected for in varying directions in order to better fit in different environmental conditions and with different populations of other plants.
The fruit is a long, cylindricallegume pod of varying size and shape.[3][4]: 341
The types of fruit produced by different species ofIndigofera can also be divided into broad categories that again show great variation. The three basic types of fruit categories can be separated by their curvature including straight, slightly curved, and falcate (sickle-shaped). In addition, several of the species includingIndigofera microcarpa,Indigofera suffruticosa, andIndigofera enneaphylla have shown delayed dehiscence (maturing) of fruits[6] This variation could again allow for artificial selection of the most abundant and nutritious fruit types and shapes.
Another way to categorizeIndigofera is by itspericarp thickness. The pericarp (the tissue from the ovary that surrounds the seeds) can be categorized as type I, type II, and type III with type I having the thinnest pericarp and fewest layers of schlerenchymatous (stiff) tissue and type III having the thickest pericarp and most schlerenchymatous layers. Despite the previous examples of delayed dehiscence, most fruits of this genus show normal explosive dehiscence to disperse seeds.[7] Similar to fruit shape, the variation in fruit sizes allows for the thickest and most bountiful fruits to be selected.
Several species, especiallyIndigofera tinctoria andIndigofera suffruticosa, are used to produce thedyeindigo. Scraps of Indigo-dyed fabric likely dyed with plants from the genusIndigofera discovered atHuaca Prieta predate Egyptian indigo-dyed fabrics by more than 1,500 years.[8] Colonial planters in theCaribbean grew indigo and transplanted its cultivation when they settled in the colony ofSouth Carolina andNorth Carolina where people of theTuscarora confederacy adopted the dyeing process for head wraps and clothing. Exports of the crop did not expand until the mid-to late 18th century. WhenEliza Lucas Pinckney andenslaved Africans successfully cultivated new strains nearCharleston it became the second most importantcash crop in the colony (afterrice) before theAmerican Revolution. It comprised more than one-third of all exports in value.
The chemicalaniline, from which many important dyes are derived, was first synthesized fromIndigofera suffruticosa (syn.Indigofera anil, whence the name aniline).
In Indonesia, theSundanese useIndigofera tinctoria (known locally astarum ornila) as dye forbatik.Marco Polo was the first to report on the preparation of indigo in India. Indigo was quite often used in European easel painting[clarification needed] during the Middle Ages.[9][10]
Indigofera comprises the following species:[11][3][12][13][14]
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The status of the following species is unresolved:[13][14]
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Indigofera species are used as food plants by thelarvae of someLepidoptera species, including theturnip moth (Agrotis segetum).
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