''Lathyrus vernus'', the spring vetchling, spring pea, or spring vetch, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of flowering herbaceous

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

in the genus ''

Lathyrus ''Lathyrus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae, and contains approximately 160 species. Commonly known as peavines or vetchlings, they are native to temperate areas, with a breakdown of 52 species in Europe, 30 spec ...

'',

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to forests of Europe and Siberia. It forms a dense clump of pointed leaves with purple flowers in spring, shading to a greenish-blue with age. This species, and the

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

'Alboroseus', have gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...

's Award of Garden Merit.

Description

''Lathyrus vernus'' is a perennial plant with an upright stem without wings. The stem grows to and is erect and nearly hairless. The leaves are alternate with short stalks and large, wide

stipule In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole). Stipules are considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many speci ...

s. The leaf blades are pinnate with two to four pairs of ovate tapering leaflets with blunt tips, entire margins and no tendrils. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

has a long stem and three to ten purplish-red flowers, each long, turning bluer as they age. These have five sepals and five petals and are irregular. The uppermost petal is known as the "standard", the lateral two as the "wings" and the lowest two are joined to form the "keel". There are ten stamens and a single carpel. The fruit is a long brown pod up to in length containing eight to fourteen seeds which are poisonous. This plant flowers early in the year, in May and June. It can be distinguished from

bitter vetch Bitter vetch is a common name for several plants and may refer to: * ''Vicia ervilia'', called bitter vetch or ervil, an ancient grain legume crop of the Mediterranean region. *'' Vicia orobus'', called wood-bitter vetch, a legume found in Atlantic ...

(''L. linifolius'') and black pea (''L. niger'') by the breadth of its ovate leaflets. It does not wither after flowering but continues to grow until autumn.

Distribution and habitat

''Lathyrus vernus'' is native to Europe and parts of northern Asia. Its typical habitat is broad-leaved woodland, forest margins, plantations and clearings.

References

Gallery

File:Pink-flowered cultivar, Lathyrus vernus 'Alboroseus'.jpg, Pink-flowered cultivar, ''Lathyrus vernus'' 'Alboroseus' File:Lathyrus vernus 'Alboroseus' flower.JPG, Detail of the flower of the pink-flowered cultivar, ''Lathyrus vernus'' 'Alboroseus' File:The Soviet Union 1988 CPA 5966 stamp (Deciduous forest flowers. Spring pea).jpg, ''Lathyrus vernus'' on stamp of USSR Bombus pascuorum - Lathyrus vernus - Keila.jpg, Pollination

External links

USDA PLANTS Profile
vernus Flora of Europe Flora of Serbia Flora of Russia Flora of Siberia Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{fabeae-stub