Creeping indigo is a prostrate plant branches lie low to the ground with a shallow crown. As twigs reach about 2yearsold, larger mature leaves. Salvia sonomensis x salvia clevelandii gracias is all the information we can find as to the history of the plant. Creeping indigo is a nonnative plant that is typically found in hightraffic areas of.
Weed identification uf ifas range cattle research and. It seemed to hurt the leaves but nothing happened to the plant. These extra features go beyond the basic function of the product and can result in software bloat and overcomplication, rather than simple design. Creeping indigo poisoning is an emerging problem among horses in florida and border southeastern states. Creeping indigo indigofera spicata creeping indigo is a broadleaf nonnative legume that came from africa 90 years ago. It is a native legume, fixes nitrogen in the soil, and can be. Creeping indigo indigofera spicata and indigofera hendecaphylla. While some species are desirable in many natural areas and native rangeland, they are becoming problematic in improved bahiagrass pastures throughout central and south florida.
The expert at the fertilizer place said to use weedair64. Creeping indigo indigofera spicata is also similar to birdsville indigo indigofera linnaei and narrowleaved indigo indigofera linifolia. The plant is definitely a salvia sonomensis, the hybridization with s. I bought a house 9 months ago in south miami, florida and it is infested with creeping indigo. Broomsedge andropogon species are native, warmseason, shortlived perennial bunchgrasses with an average life span of 3 to 5 years. University of florida, ifas extension encompasses faculty, scientists, educators, staff, and volunteers that work to give florida residents the. A recent rise in suspected horse poisonings has brought new attention to creeping indigo indigofera spicata, a toxic plant which has reportedly been in florida for as long as 90 years. Hairy indigo is an nfixing legume that can provide up to 126 kg nhayear to companion grasses, and 100 kg nha to an undersown maize crop. Creeping indigo in pastures volusia county, florida. The plant likely entered florida before 1940 as a result of separate accidental introductions in gainesville and dade county.
Creeping indigo is toxic to horses, but they love it. Indigofera is the largest genus of the tribe indigofereae, in the fabaceae leguminosae family, containing over 700 species found in the tropics and subtropics puy et al, 2002. Consumption of 10 pounds of a different but similar species of indigofera, i. Creeping indigo was once studied for its potential as a livestock feed, but can be deadly to horses. It has since escaped cultivation where it can be a troublesome weed in some crop settings. Bob petersonwikimedia commons a weed once studied for its potential as a livestock feed is sickening florida horses and threatening to invade pastures along that states border with georgia. Creeping indigo proves deadly for florida horses horse. Indigo, genus indigofera, large genus of more than 750 species of shrubs, trees, and herbs in the pea family.
Broomsedge management in bahiagrass pastures uf ifas range. The university of floridas institute of food and agricultural sciences uf ifas is a federalstatecounty partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences, and enhancing and sustaining the quality of human life by making that information accessible. Literature suggests that there are two closely related species of creeping indigo, indigo spicata and indigo hendecaphylla. The plants wandering stems and small leaves create an interesting lacy pattern as the vine grows across the wall. Toxic components all parts of the plant contain high concentrations of the nonprotein amino acid indospicine, in its free state, which is a specific. Creeping indigo creeping indigo is a nonnative plant that is typically found in hightraffic areas of pastures, roadsides, lawns, and grass parking areas.
A poisonous plant of concern in florida pastures at. The perennial root of the plant is difficult to pull up by hand because of its 2 foot. They are said to be deliciously edible, and as one of the only blue foods, fun to eat. The university of florida imported a deadly, delicious weed called creeping indigo indigo spicata into the united states to host experiments in gainesville, fl circa 1925. University of florida, ifas extension encompasses faculty, scientists, educators, staff, and volunteers that work to give florida residents the knowledge they need in their daily lives. Toxic indigo creeping into the panhandle panhandle agriculture. Gilman2 introduction the dense, rapid growth of small, dark green, overlapping leaves on slender stems makes creeping fig a favorite vine to grow on walls where it lends a lacy pattern in its early stages of growth fig.
Creeping indigo is far more dangerous than these herbicides howeverif you are concerned, remove the horses for 37 days after the application. Stems can grow up to six feet long with 5 to 7 alternate leaflets. Feb 20, 2015 hairy indigo indigofera hirsuta is an annual legume that was introduced to florida as a forage crop. Indigofera hirsuta is an annual erect or spreading shrub, 0. Written by robert mackay, ed jennings, brent sellers, jason ferrell, and amanda house, and published by the uf department of agronomy, august 2015. Creeping indigo indigofera spicata is a member of the legume family that is native to africa.
Its stems, arising from a central basal crown, can be 1 m long and grow to a height of 0. In these maizehairy indigo systems, it provides about 45 t dmha. Creeping indigo indigofera spicata and indigofera hendecaphylla is a perennial legume that was once thought to hold great promise as a fodder that could form wellbalanced mixtures with grasses. In southern dade county, a mysterious and often fatal condition of adult horses and livestock had begun to be recognized by the early 1980s. The university of floridas institute of food and agricultural sciences ufifas is a federalstatecounty partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences, and enhancing and sustaining the quality of human life by making that information accessible. Get to know this toxic deadly weed thats quickly invading florida and help spread the word. Creeping indigo has a creeping or weakly ascending habit. Indigo bush, false indigo, indigo bush, bastard indigo. Creeping indigo toxicity large animal hospital college. Uf ifas extension, creeping indigo identification youtube. The indigo software platform has been the primary product for the life of the company and has steadily become the most reliable and expandable product in the diy market on any platform. The horses returned to their spunky healthy selves and we now have a pasture treatment and management protocol in place to keep it that way.
Industryrenowned mass spec specialists, chromatographers, chemists, and engineers joined to produce ascent a scientifically and technologically advanced software that. Creeping indigo definition of creeping indigo by merriam. Flowers of creeping indigo arise from the base of the leaves and are pink to salmon in color. Creeping indigo indigofera spicata is a highly palatable, perennial legume grown in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. Adopting a diligent pasture management program with the proper herbicide can help you ward off this predator plant. Annual lespedeza lespedeza striata is more similar in appearance, but unrelated and nontoxic. Aug 14, 2015 hairy indigo can approach waist high, but creeping indigo will barely cover the toe of your brogans. Indigofera spicata ufifas assessment university of. Creeping indigos most deadly toxin, named indospicine, is cumulative and therefore, it remains in the tissues once consumed. Hairy indigo is particularly difficult to manage in peanut production since we are attempting to control a legume weed in a legume crop. Necropsy findings both gross and histologic examinations of horses poisoned by creeping indigo are most notable for the lack of diagnostic. Creeping indigo definition is a suberect or prostrate herb indigofera endecaphylla that is woody at the base and has red flowers in dense axillary racemes. Indigofera toxicity is a nervous system disease of horses resulting from chronic and cumulative exposure to the indospicine andor 3nitropropionic acid 3npa toxins present in certain indigofera species. Creeping indigo, a poisonous plant of concern in florida pastures.
It was brought to the state of florida in the united states in 1925 from africa and it was also imported as a potential pasture legume by australia. Agriculturalists should not confuse creeping indigo, rarely getting above 3 tall with hairy indigo which is planted as cattle feed and may grow up to 3 feet tall. Creeping fig ficus pumila is a fastgrowing vine that can be used to soften the look of concrete garden walls. Creeping indigo does not contain as much dye as other species in its genus, and was ignored as a valueless weed until the early 20th century. However, these native species have much smaller pods less than 7 mm long, and narrowleaved indigo indigofera linifolia. Its alternately arranged leaves are oncecompound with 511 leaflets these oblong leaflets have hairless or sparsely hairy upper surfaces and densely hairy undersides. Feature creep is the excessive ongoing expansion or addition of new features in a product, especially in computer software, videogames and consumer and business electronics. While legumes such as clovers and perennial peanut make excellent forage, there is an ongoing search for the next improved option. Matt has over 24 years of professional software development experience. Creeping indigo is still used for pasture in east africa.
The plant contains the toxins 3nitropropionic acid and indospicine that can potentially affect all livestock, but the most clinical cases have been documented in horses. Posted by plantladylin sebastian, florida zone 10a on feb 14, 20 3. Jun 25, 2015 university of florida, ifas extension encompasses faculty, scientists, educators, staff, and volunteers that work to give florida residents the knowledge they need in their daily lives. Its prostrate growth habit is similar to creeping indigo, but its leaves are somewhat smaller and it has only three leaflets. Leaves are alternate compound and contain 5 to 7 alternate leaflets.
Research on its utilization as green manure was discontinued in the 1990s djarwaningsih, 1997. Some species, particularly true indigo indigofera tinctoria and natal indigo i. Creeping fig university of florida, institute of food. Leaves contain seven to nine leaflets and are hairy. It is low growing with its stems lying flat on the soil underneath the grass canopy. Oct 19, 2015 this new 5page fact sheet covers plant description, signs of creeping indigo toxicity, and roles of creeping indigos toxins, as well as treatment and management. Creeping fig university of florida, institute of food and. It has subsequently naturalized and spread throughout florida and into neighboring states. Highly palatable and nutrientrich, it was once considered as a potentially valuable fodder but the toxicity of certain varieties for all livestock species led to its abandonment. It makes good ground cover in sunny locations because of its bushy habit, extensive root systems and perennial life form. The cultivation of indigo plants and the extraction of the dyestuff were an important industry in india up to the beginning of the 20th. Creeping indigo is a prostrate plant figure 1 with a very shallow or submerged crown. Toxic weed invading florida horse pastures green idea.
It was introduced from ceylon into gainesville, fl around 1925 to investigate several properties including nitrogen fixation as well as for forage. Creeping indigo creeping indigo in pastures ufifas. Ascent is a powerful tool that can elevate your laboratorys production. Uf suggests the following guidelines for healthy pastures. However, these native species have much smaller pods less than 7 mm long, and narrowleaved indigo indigofera linifolia leaves have only a single leaflet. Flowers figure 2 arise from the base of the leaves and contain numerous pink blooms. Its stems are green, pubescent and somewhat flattened when young, and become brown in colour when they get older. It can be confused with its relative hairy indigo indigofera hirsuta but creeping indigo grows prostrate with stems trailing along the ground, taking root at each node where it touches the soil.
It is estimated that only 5% of ones body weight need be consumed in a lifetime to cause severe illnessdeath. Plants profile for amorpha fruticosa false indigo bush. Dense grass can slow the spread of creeping indigo down and keep it more manageable if it is spread back to your land between treatment intervals. Visual identification guide for creeping indigo uf ifas lake county extension megan brew, m. May 05, 2015 this video was created to assist people in their efforts to identify creeping indigo. Treating and reseeding your pastures every year, rotating your pastures and supplementing hay in the winter is common knowledge for the average horse owner. Hairy indigo can approach waist high, but creeping indigo will barely cover the toe of your brogans. As fall approaches, horse owners in florida are being cautioned to diligently look over fields for creeping indigo, a nonnative plant that can make horses gravely ill. Hairy indigo indigofera hirsuta is an annual legume that was introduced to florida as a forage crop. Creeping indigo is a prostrate plant, with a very shallow or submerged crown. Indigo mushrooms are uncommon but relatively widespread, found in eastern north america, eastern central america, to southern colombia and oddly, also in two places in china and japan.
The company was originally founded by matt bendiksen. Linnaeus 1753 described the genus based on the three species of i. Creeping indigo can be hard to find in pastures, and is easily overlooked even though it may be quite prevalent. Visual identification guide for creeping indigo ufifas lake county extension megan brew, m. Lactarius indigo ufifas center for aquatic and invasive plants. Ms office pro plus 2016, ms office 2016 for mac, ms project pro 2016, ms visio pro 2016, ms windows server 2016, ms sql server 2016 and ms exchange server 2016. Stems are hairy, grow to 6 feet long, and root at the nodes. The recent rise of awareness has concerned many florida horse owners. I used roundup, the ones that kills the plant, roots and all and it did not work.
A shortlived herbaceous plant with creeping or scrambling stems. This video was created to assist people in their efforts to identify creeping indigo. Flowers form at the base of the leaflets forming numerous pink to red blooms. It is found throughout central and north florida, becoming the dominant herb in some pastures. Creeping indigo, a poisonous plant of concern in florida. It has been shown in experimental animals that subacute and chronic toxicity by 3npa, the creeping indigo toxin that causes neurologic signs. Therefore, adopting a diligent pasture management program with the proper herbicide is very important in helping you ward off this predator plant. Unfortunately, they failed to containeradicate the weed. It was introduced from ceylon into gainesville, fl around. In southern dade county, a mysterious and often fatal condition of adult horses and livestock had. Indigofera spicata, creeping indigo, trailing indigo. Herbicides effective for creeping indigo control in pastures.