Mojave Indigobush
Psorothamnus arborescens · Fabaceae
- Form
- Shrub
- Height
- 2–6 ft
- Sun
- Full Sun
- Water
- Very Low
- Blooms
- Apr, May, Jun
- Habitat
- Sagebrush Scrub · Desert
🌿 California native
Quick facts
- Habitat: Dry Sagebrush Scrub margins and desert slopes
- Form / size: Open shrub, 2–6 ft
- Sun: Full sun · Water: Very low
- Blooms: Spring to early summer blue-violet pea flowers · Pollinator value: High
Description
An airy desert legume with many slender twigs, tiny leaves, and clusters of blue-violet flowers that can make the whole shrub glow cool against the warm desert palette. It has a lighter, more open habit than many desert shrubs.
Wildlife & pollinators
Excellent for bees and other flower visitors; like other legumes, it also contributes to soil-building relationships.
Habitat & range
Dry eastern California scrub and desert transition country, especially in hotter, rockier sections of the Owens Valley and Mojave-facing east side.
In the garden
Best in a true dry desert planting with heat, drainage, and low competition. More elegant than bulky, and especially good when backlit.
Propagation
From seed, often helped by scarification or heat treatment typical of hard-coated legumes.
Where to see it near you
- iNaturalist — observed across California (map)
- Best in the drier southern stretches of the eastern Sierra corridor, especially around Bishop and toward Lone Pine.
Sources
Commonly confused with
Desert Peach 🌿 Prunus andersonii desert peach is a thornier pink-flowered rose-family shrub, not a legume. 
