''Lathyrus sylvestris'', the flat pea or narrow-leaved everlasting-pea, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the pea and bean family

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

. It is native to parts of Africa, Europe, and Asia. The narrow-leaved everlasting-pea forms a mat of herbage. The stems are winged. Each leaf is made up of two elongated leaflets. The flowers are pink. The fruit is a

legume Legumes are plants in the pea family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seeds of such plants. When used as a dry grain for human consumption, the seeds are also called pulses. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consum ...

pod about long.''Lathyrus sylvestris''.
USDA NRCS Plant Fact Sheet.

Description

Eucera longicornis - Lathyrus sylvestris - Keila

The narrow-leaved everlasting-pea is a perennial plant which can grow by climbing with its

tendril In botany, a tendril is a specialized Plant stem, stem, leaf or Petiole (botany), petiole with a thread-like shape used by climbing plants for support and attachment, as well as cellular invasion by parasitic plants such as ''Cuscuta''. There ar ...

s. Without any support it can reach about tall. The stem is floppy and flat with wide wings. The leaves are alternate with short winged stalks and stipules. The leaf blades are pinnate with a single pair of narrow lanceolate leaflets with entire margins and three tendrils. The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

has a long stem and three to ten pinkish-red flowers. 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 pod containing five to fifteen seeds.

Distribution and habitat

The narrow-leaved everlasting-pea is native to parts of Africa, Europe and Asia. Its natural habitat is forest edges, sparse broad-leaved hillside forests, dry hillside meadows, hedgerows, embankments and waste ground. It uses its tendrils to scramble over plants, shrubs and the lower branches of trees.

Uses

This plant is sometimes used to control

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as Surface runoff, water flow or wind) that removes soil, Rock (geology), rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust#Crust, Earth's crust and then sediment transport, tran ...

and for this purpose it is generally planted along with a grass species. It can do well in highly disturbed habitat. There is a

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

called 'Lathco'.

References

External links

* sylvestris Flora of Africa Flora of Asia Flora of Europe Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{fabeae-stub