''Vicia americana'' is a species of

legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...

in the vetch genus known by the common names American vetch and purple vetch. It includes a subspecies known as mat vetch.

Description

It is a climbing perennial

forb A forb or phorb is an herbaceous flowering plant that is not a graminoid (grass, sedge, or rush). The term is used in biology and in vegetation ecology, especially in relation to grasslands and understory. Typically these are dicots without woo ...

that grows from both

taproot A taproot is a large, central, and dominant root from which other roots sprout laterally. Typically a taproot is somewhat straight and very thick, is tapering in shape, and grows directly downward. In some plants, such as the carrot, the taproo ...

and

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

. The leaves are each made up of oblong leaflets and have tendrils for climbing. It bears showy pea like flowers in shades of

lavender ''Lavandula'' (common name lavender) is a genus of 47 known species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to the Old World and is found in Cape Verde and the Canary Islands, and from Europe across to northern and easte ...

and

fuchsia ''Fuchsia'' () is a genus of flowering plants that consists mostly of shrubs or small trees. The first to be scientifically described, '' Fuchsia triphylla'', was discovered on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republi ...

. The fruit is a hairless flat pod about 3 centimeters long that contains usually two light brown peas. American vetch is widespread across North America. It is a common understory plant in many types of forest and other habitats such as

chaparral Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant community and geographical feature found primarily in the U.S. state of California, in southern Oregon, and in the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. It is shaped by a Mediterranean c ...

and it provides forage for wild and domesticated animals. This vetch is used to reclaim burned or disturbed land, such as that which has been cleared by

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

or altered by human activities such as mining or construction. It is drought-tolerant and thrives in both dry and moist, and sandy or coarse loamy soil habitats.

References

Ecology of ''V. americana''

External links

Calflora: ''Vicia americana'' (American vetch)

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

Flora of California Flora of Canada Flora of the United States Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Plants described in 1802 Taxa named by Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{fabeae-stub