The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

broad-leaf peavine, everlasting or perennial sweet pea, everlasting pea, everlasting peavine, everlasting vetchling, perennial pea, perennial peavine, perennial sweet pea, sweet pea

singletary vetchling, tiny pea

Habit Herbs perennial, from rhizome, glabrous. Herbs annual, glabrate.
Stems

broadly winged, sprawling or climbing, basally branched 1–5 times, 8–20 dm.

narrowly winged, sprawling or climbing, basally branched 0–4 times, 3–6 dm.

Leaves

2–5 cm, rachises broadly winged;

tendrils well developed, branched;

stipules lanceolate, 30–40 × 7–15 mm, at least 1/2 width of stem, much smaller than leaflets;

leaflets 2, blades lanceolate-elliptic, 30–120 × 7–50 mm, surfaces glabrous.

1–3 cm;

tendrils well developed;

stipules linear, 10–20 × 2–5 mm, equal to smaller leaflets;

leaflets 2, blades linear, 15–60 × 2–8 mm, surfaces glabrous.

Inflorescences

5–15-flowered, 10–33 cm.

terminal, 1- or 2-flowered, 2–4 cm.

Flowers

15–20 mm;

calyx lobes unequal, lateral lobes linear-triangular, shorter than tube;

corolla purple, magenta, pink, or white, banner erect, blade longer than claw, wings equal to keel;

ovary densely glandular-pubescent, style rotated 90° from ovary axis.

7–10 mm;

calyx lobes subequal, linear-triangular, usually longer than tube;

corolla blue, banner erect, blade equal to claw, wings equal to keel;

ovary glabrous.

Legumes

50–110 × 5–10 mm.

30–50 × 2–4 mm.

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Lathyrus latifolius

Lathyrus pusillus

Phenology Flowering May–Sep. Flowering Mar–May.
Habitat Roadsides, disturbed areas. Roadsides, pastures, prairies, open habitats.
Elevation 50–2100 m. (200–6900 ft.) 0–800 m. (0–2600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; BC; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; Europe [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Mexico, South America (Argentina, Chile, Uruguay), Asia (China, Japan), n, e, s Africa, Pacific Islands (Hawaii, New Zealand), Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; KS; LA; MO; MS; NC; OK; TX; VA; South America (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Lathyrus latifolius is widely naturalized in North America and forms large thickets along roadsides, especially in the Pacific Coast states. M. J. W. Godt and J. L. Hamrick (1991) explored genetic variation within the species as it occurs in North America.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Lathyrus pusillus, the only North American member of section Notolathyrus, a section centered in South America, is also the only annual species of Lathyrus native to North America. It is native to the southeastern United States; it has been cultivated as a forage crop in Oregon and occasionally escapes, but it has not become naturalized there.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lathyrus Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Lathyrus
Sibling taxa
L. angulatus, L. aphaca, L. biflorus, L. brachycalyx, L. brownii, L. cicera, L. decaphyllus, L. delnorticus, L. eucosmus, L. glandulosus, L. graminifolius, L. grimesii, L. hirsutus, L. hitchcockianus, L. holochlorus, L. japonicus, L. jepsonii, L. laetivirens, L. lanszwertii, L. littoralis, L. nevadensis, L. nissolia, L. ochroleucus, L. odoratus, L. palustris, L. pauciflorus, L. polyphyllus, L. pratensis, L. pusillus, L. rigidus, L. sphaericus, L. splendens, L. sulphureus, L. sylvestris, L. tingitanus, L. torreyi, L. tracyi, L. tuberosus, L. venosus, L. vestitus
L. angulatus, L. aphaca, L. biflorus, L. brachycalyx, L. brownii, L. cicera, L. decaphyllus, L. delnorticus, L. eucosmus, L. glandulosus, L. graminifolius, L. grimesii, L. hirsutus, L. hitchcockianus, L. holochlorus, L. japonicus, L. jepsonii, L. laetivirens, L. lanszwertii, L. latifolius, L. littoralis, L. nevadensis, L. nissolia, L. ochroleucus, L. odoratus, L. palustris, L. pauciflorus, L. polyphyllus, L. pratensis, L. rigidus, L. sphaericus, L. splendens, L. sulphureus, L. sylvestris, L. tingitanus, L. torreyi, L. tracyi, L. tuberosus, L. venosus, L. vestitus
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 733. (1753) Elliott: Sketch Bot. S. Carolina 2: 223. (1823)
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