Also known as dark indigo-bush, this deciduous perennial shrub is very similar to common indigo-bush. They are both loose, airy shrubs with purple flowers. Shining false indigo prefers full to part sun and moist to average, well-drained soils.
 
Common Indigo-bush (Amorpha fruticosa), a close relative, is pollinated by bees seeking both pollen and nectar from the flowers, including Andrena quintilis, a specialist pollinator of Amorpha species. The caterpillars of gray hairstreak, silver-spotted skipper, and southern dogface butterflies, as well as those of black-spotted prominent moths, use common indigo-bush leaves as food; it is possible they also use other species of Amorpha as host plants. Like many members of the legume family, this plant forms nodules that house nitrogen-fixing bacteria
 
Its native range, which includes 9 states, extends west from Georgia to Louisiana and Oklahoma, and north to Illinois and Kentucky. It is rare throughout most of its range. 
 
Native habitats include dry to mesic thickets and woods, ravines, bluffs, stream banks, glade margins, sandy woodlands, rocky slopes, and bottomland forests, especially on calcareous or mafic rocks.
 
Habitat destruction through agricultural conversion, grazing, hydrologic perturbations, etc., has led to a decline in the species since settlement. Rangewide, however, these trends may have stabilized in recent years.
 
Plant Characteristics:
Grows up to 10' tall. 
 
Grows in full or part sun.
 
Prefers moist to average, well-drained soils.
 
Blooms April-June with dense spikes of small, deep violet flowers with showy golden-orange stamens.
 
Light brown fruit pods mature July-August.
 
Wildlife Value:
Nectar and pollen attract native bees, butterflies, and other pollinators. The dense branching provides valuable cover for birds and small wildlife. While not a major food source, seeds may be eaten by some ground-foraging birds. As a legume, it also improves soil health by fixing nitrogen.
 
Resources:
Flora of North America
https://floranorthamerica.org/Amorpha_nitens
 
Georgia Biodiversity
https://georgiabiodiversity.org/portal/profile?group=all&es_id=19342
 
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=AMNI
 
NatureServe Explorer
https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.155799/Amorpha_nitens