It’s a wonderful time to be a gardener. Perhaps this is one of those times, after the great Columbian exchange and the era that saw the fervor of the Victorian plant collectors, where we’re seeing the introduction of so many new plants previously unheard of to the West. Although the Victorian plant explorers went all over the world, their precious Wardian cases in hand, collecting new specimens to satiate their patron’s hunger for anything exotic, those plants they brought home from distant lands came at a premium. In most cases, only the rich could afford them. However, these days, thanks to the advances in technology and shipping and not to mention better phytosanitary measures, anybody can source quality plant materials from any corner of the world. One such plant, still relatively new to the temperate gardens of the west, is the Butterfly Pea plant – Clitoria ternatea.
Belonging to the pea (Fabaceae) family, the plant is native to equatorial Asia. As a legume, its roots form a symbiotic association with soil bacteria known as rhizobia, which transform atmospheric nitrogen into a plant-usable form – a process called nitrogen fixing. Therefore, this plant makes for a great companion plant and is also used to improve soil quality through the decomposition of the nitrogen-rich plant material.
It’s a remarkable…
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