Vetches are members of the pea family. They have flowers arranged in groups, and seeds in pea-like pods. They scramble up other plants, climbing with the aid of branched tendrils at the tip of the leaves, which consist of a series of pairs of leaflets.
Common Vetch (Vicia sativa) has only one or two purple-red flowers in each group spaced along the stem and each leaf has up to eight pairs of leaflets. An annual, it is occasional and locally frequent in the Wildflower Meadow at Downlee Lodge. We usually see the first of these flowers in May and the last in August
Tufted Vetch (Vicia cracca) has more pairs of leaflets (usually about twelve) than the other vetches here and spikes of up to 40 bright bluish-purple flowers. It is frequent in the Wildflower Meadow and occasional in the Hay Meadows, particularly near at the top of Fields1,2 where it may be seen from the public footpath from June to August.
Bush Vetch (Vicia sepium) has flower heads of up to six pink-purple blooms. Its leaves have up to nine pairs of leaflets. It is rare here, seen in the hayfields and by hedgerows h2 and h3, May to October.
Meadow Vetchling (Lathyrus pratensis) has groups of bright yellow flowers that are similar to those of Birdsfoot Trefoil (another member of the pea family) but the Meadow Vetchling has slender stems, single pairs of narrow leaflets with tendrils and a scrambling habit. It is a perennial, occasional here in Fields 1, 2 and 6 and near to the public footpath, May to August.
Hairy Tare (Vicia hirsute) is an annual, a bit like the perennial Tufted Vetch but much smaller, with up to nine tiny pale lilac flowers on each spike. It is occasional in the Wildflower Meadow at Downlee Lodge from May to August.
Photographs of Vetches
Click on the photograph for larger images and captions.
Further Information
For further information on the species in this group, please click the links below:
Common Vetch Tufted Vetch Bush Vetch Meadow Vetchling Hairy tare
