Vicia cracca

Vicia cracca
Vicia cracca
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Genus: Vicia
Species: V. cracca
Binomial name
Vicia cracca
L.

Vicia cracca (tufted vetch, cow vetch, bird vetch, boreal vetch), is a species of vetch native to Europe and Asia. It occurs on other continents as an introduced species, including North America, where it is a common weed. It often occurs in disturbed habitats, including old-fields and roadside ditches.

Cow Vetch is similar to a pea in growth habit, sending out noose-like tendrils from the tips of its leaves when it contacts another plant and securely fastens itself. This can cause "strangling" of smaller plants. An individual plant may reach a length (or height) of 2 m and its taproot may extend up to 1 m. The leaves are 3–8 cm long, pinnate, with 8–12 pairs of leaflets, each leaflet 5-10 mm long.

The plant is fast-growing and flowers prolifically, sending out one-sided racemes of cascading pea-flower shaped purple to violet flowers from the leaf axil during its late spring to late summer flowering period. The flowers drop off and tiny bright green seed pods start to form. Cow Vetch is very similar to Hairy Vetch (V. villosa), but is distinguished from the latter by its smooth stem.

The seed pods are 2 cm long, and like the flowers, resemble those of a very small pea. The tiny seeds within are ripe when the pods have turned black. Unripened seeds are swollen and have a green tint to them, but they unswell when they become ripe. The seed pods vary from light brown to dark brown with black spots.

Cultivation and uses

Cow Vetch is widely used as a forage crop for cattle, and is beneficial to other plants because, like other leguminous plants, it enriches the soil in which it grows by its nitrogen-fixing properties. Cow Vetch is also much appreciated by bees and butterflies as a source of nectar. The plant may also be used to curb erosion.

Owners of pet birds such as Budgerigars often use Cow Vetch as a nutritious food; the birds are especially fond of the seeds but may also eat the foliage.

Its utility as a cover crop and source of green manure has encouraged the introduction and naturalisation of Cow Vetch far beyond its native range. In North America the plant is naturalised from southern Canada to southern Virginia; it is considered an invasive weed in some areas and its sale may be regulated.

Cow Vetch is considered by some to be a potentially detrimental species in areas where it is not native. The vetch may crowd out native plants, especially in areas of disturbed soil where the vetch may dominate before other plants have a chance to take hold. This is especially a concern in prairie and other natural habitat restoration or land reclamation projects in North America.

External links


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Vicia cracca —   Arveja silvestre Vicia cracca …   Wikipedia Español

  • Vicia cracca — Vogel Wicke Vogel Wicke Systematik Ordnung: Schmetterlingsblütenartige (Fabales) Familie …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Vicia cracca — Vesce craque Vesce craque …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Vicia cracca — mėlynžiedis vikis statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Pupinių šeimos pašarinis augalas (Vicia cracca), paplitęs Europoje ir Azijoje. atitikmenys: lot. Vicia cracca angl. bird vetch; boreal vetch; tufted vetch vok. Vogelwicke pranc. vesque… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Vicia cracca — La arveja silvestre (Vicia cracca, que no debe confundirse con la arveja común o guisante, Pisum sativum) es una planta trepadora silvestre de la familia de las fabáceas. Sus tallos pubescentes alcanzan los 2 metros de altura. Tiene hojas… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • VICIA CRACCA L. - ВИКА ИЛИ Г. МЫШИНЫЙ — см. 468. Многолетнее растение. V. cracca L. В. или Г. мышиный Sp. pl. (1753) 735. Becker Dillingen III (1929) 124. Ларин II (1951) 815, рис. S y n. V. imbricata Gilib.; V. gerardi All.; V. incana Vill.; V. isalloprovincialis Poir.; V. candoleana… …   Справочник растений

  • Vicia cracca — ID 87879 Symbol Key VICR Common Name bird vetch Family Fabaceae Category Dicot Division Magnoliophyta US Nativity Introduced to U.S. US/NA Plant Yes State Distribution AK, AL, AR, CA, CT, DE, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT …   USDA Plant Characteristics

  • Vicia cracca L. — многол.; VI–VIII Сем. Fabaceae (Leguminosae) – Бобовые 155. Род Vicia L. – Горошек (Вика) 332. Горошек мышиный Сухие водораздельные и пойменные высокого уровня луга, лесные опушки, заросли кустарников. Часто, по всему заповеднику …   Флора Центрально-лесного государственного заповедника

  • Vicia cracca ssp. cracca — ID 87880 Symbol Key VICRC Common Name bird vetch Family Fabaceae Category Dicot Division Magnoliophyta US Nativity Introduced to U.S. US/NA Plant Yes State Distribution AK, AL, AR, CA, CT, DE, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO,… …   USDA Plant Characteristics

  • Vicia cracca ssp. incana — ID 87883 Symbol Key VICRI Common Name N/A Family Fabaceae Category Dicot Division Magnoliophyta US Nativity Cultivated, or not in the U.S. US/NA Plant Yes State Distribution N/A Growth Habit N/A …   USDA Plant Characteristics

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