July 7, 2017

Perennial Pea


In the early morning there are still some dewdrops on the pink flowers of Perennial Pea (Lathyrus latifolius). They will disappear quickly when it gets hot.







It goes on and on flowering, even in the hot summer weather. Perennial Pea is the largest wild Pea you can find here. It can grow two meters long and, yes, it is a perennial plant. It does not look that big: It could use its tendrils to climb surrounding plants but often it stays near ground level.






Normally with Peas each leaf consists of a pair of folioles with a tendril in between (but of course there are exceptions). Often the stems are winged, this means they have two flattened strips on each side.

Perennial Pea likes borders, of fielsd, roads and woods. Here below it grows between the ferns at the edge of a chestnut wood. You can see the long pods already developing.








Perennial Pea is a near relative of the cultivated Sweet Pea, but in cotrast to this one, the wild plant does not have a particular smell.