''Vicia sylvatica'' ( syn. ''Ervilia sylvatica''),

C. A. Stace Clive Anthony Stace (born 1938) is a British botanist and botanical author. He studied at King's College London, graduated from University of London in 1959 and then studied at the Natural History Museum, London. He was awarded a PhD in 1963. ...

, ''New Flora of the British Isles'', 4th edition 2019, p 171: ''Ervilia sylvatica''. . known as wood vetch, is a species of flowering plant in the bean family

Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...

. It was described by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

Description

This species is a

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial 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 ...

with climbing stems. The leaves have 4 to 12 pairs of leaflets and end in branched tendrils. The flowers are 15 to 20 mm long arranged in racemes of up to 18 flowers. The petals are white with purple veins and the fruit is a pod or

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 ...

with 4 to 5 seeds.

Habitat

Found in woods, rocky ground and scree.

Distribution

This species has been recorded from much of Ireland.Scannell, M.J.P. and Synnott, D.M. 1972 ''Census Catalogue of the Flora of Ireland''. Dublin. The Stationery Office

References

sylvat Flora of Europe Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{fabeae-stub