Tephrosia Species, Catgut, Devil's Shoestring, Goat's Rue

Growing healthy in colonies on nutrient poor sandy alkaline soils in Oklahoma..hard to transplant from taproot......reseeds easily..no p...Read Moreest, deer and rabbits avoid it

Goat's rue with it's cream colored standard and pink petals and keel is an unusual combination of colors. It is a legume with soil buildi...Read Moreng capabilities and is found in very acid soils. It is difficult to grow.

Goat's rue is a source of rotenone, a substance poisonous to cold blooded animals but not warm blooded. Indians pulverized the root, bark, stems and sometimes leaves and tossed this substance into a pool of water. Fish were poisoned or stunned by the rotenone and floated to the top allowing the Indians to gather the fish. The plant used to be fed to goats to increase their milk production.

Plant contains insecticide, needs more investigation as a home-grown insect killer.