162 FIELD AND WOODLAND PLANTS 



generally solitary or in pairs, on peduncles which are about as long 

 as the leaves. The pods are smooth. 



The same genus includes the Tufted Vetch ( Vicia Cracca) — a very 

 common plant on hedgerows and bushy waysides, where it cUmbs 

 over the neighbouring plants and shrubs, covering them with 



The Eird's-foot Trefojl. 



its dense racemes of bluish-purple flowers from June to August. 

 Its climbing stem is very weak, but it often grows to a length of 

 six feet or more, supporting itself by means of the branched tendrils 

 at the tips of its leaves. The leaves are pinnate, with about ten 

 pairs of narrow, pointed, silky leaflets, usually from half an inch 

 to three-quarters in length ; and at the base of each leaf -stalk is a 

 pair of narrow, half arrow-shaped stipules. The racemes are 



