Photographs: Ballingeary, Co.Cork

Bitter Vetch Lathryrus linifolius Corra meille Family: Fabaceae Flowering time: April-July. Perennial. Native. Short racemes of 2-6 flowers, pinky-crimson, fading to blue-green. Leaves with 2-4 pairs leaflets, narrow-oblong, blunt or pointed. Grows from tuberous rhizome. Erect growth habit. Winged stems, usually unbranched. No tendrils. Height: 15-40 cm. Frequent except in central Ireland. Infertile neutral and acidic soils. Heathy or rocky grassland, woods, roadsides, river-banks.

    
Photographs above: Bitter Vetch. Ballingeary, Co.Cork. April 2007