''Vicia tetrasperma'' (
syn. ''Ervum tetraspermum'') the smooth tare, smooth vetch, lentil vetch or sparrow vetch, is a species of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
in the bean family Fabaceae. It can be invasive.
Description
''Vicia tetrasperma'' is an
annual plant
An annual plant is a plant that completes its life cycle, from germination to the production of seeds, within one growing season, and then dies. The length of growing seasons and period in which they take place vary according to geographical ...
growing up to tall. The leaflets are and are in four to six pairs, the leaf ending with a simple tendril. The pale blue flowers are in racemes of one or two flowers, each about long. Four seeds are produced in a pod long.
[Clapham, A.R., Tutin, T.G. and Warburg, E.F. 1968. ''Excursion Flora of the British Isles''. Cambridge University Press. ] The pod is
dehiscent
Dehiscence is the splitting of a mature plant structure along a built-in line of weakness to release its contents. This is common among fruits, anthers and sporangia. Sometimes this involves the complete detachment of a part; structures that op ...
.
Distribution
This vetch is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and it can be found on other continents as an
introduced species
An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...
.
Habitat
Grassy places, local.
References
External links
Jepson Manual TreatmentUSDA Plants Profile
*
Washington Burke MuseumAgroAtlas Economic PlantsPhoto gallery
tetrasperm
Flora of Europe
Flora of North Africa
Flora of temperate Asia
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