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American Vetch
Vicia americana
  
About American Vetch (Vicia americana) 4 Nurseries Carry This Plant Vicia americana is a species of legume in the vetch genus known by the common names American vetch and purple vetch. It includes a subspecies known as mat vetch. It is a climbing perennial forb that grows from both taproot and rhizome. The leaves are each made up of oblong leaflets and have tendrils for climbing. It bears showy pea-like flowers in shades of lavender and fuchsia. The fruit is a hairless pod about 3 centimeters long that contains usually two light brown peas. American vetch is widespread across North America. It is a common understory plant in many types of forest and other habitats such as chaparral and it provides forage for wild and domesticated animals. This vetch is used to reclaim burned or disturbed land, such as that which has been cleared by wildfire or altered by human activities such as mining or construction. It is drought-tolerant and thrives in both dry and moist habitats.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Vine, Perennial herb

Size
Size
1.3 ft tall

Form
Form
Mounding

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Flower Color
Flower Color
Purple, Pink, Lavender

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Spring

Wildlife Supported
 


 

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun, Part Shade

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Soil Description
Soil Description
Prefers sandy or loamy soils. Does not grow well in clay soils.

Common uses
Common uses
Butterfly Gardens

Natural Setting
Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.2" - 158.0", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 5.80", Coldest Month: 27.0" - 57.1", Hottest Month: 49.2" - 80.8", Humidity: 0.09" - 33.76", Elevation: 1" - 8772"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Purple Vetch


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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