Everlasting Pea or Wild Sweet Pea,
Lathyrus latifolius
Fabaceae or Pea Family
 |
Sprawling, climbing vine with winged stems.
Leaves divided into two leaflets and multiple tendrils that can
wind around other plants for support. Leaf stalk is also
winged, and has two leaf-like structures at the base (stipules).
Flowers all summer, pink, purple or white, showy and resembling
sweet pea flowers. Fruit a pea pod. An alien exotic, commonly cultivated in the past and now escaped to yards, roadsides and waste places. In Wildwood it is common along the Riverway bike path, Wildwood Drive, and the trailheads at the Park boundaries. Many plants in Wildwood have pretty pea-like flowers, but
this one is easily identified by its preference for roadsides,
the size of its flowers and, especially, its winged stems and
leafstalks. |
|
|
|
