VICIA. 



the wings, lialf-orbicular, compreiTed, with a divided oblong 

 claw. SUim. Filaments in two fets, one ample, the other 

 in nine divifions ; anthers ered, roundifh, with four fur- 

 rows, A neftariferous gland, fhort and pointed, arifes from 

 the receptacle, between the compound filament and the ger- 

 men. PiJ. Germen hnear, compreffed, long ; flylefhorter, 

 thread-fhaped, bent upwards at a right angle ; ftigma obtufe, 

 tranfverfely bearded underneath. Perk. Legume long, 

 coriaceous, of one cell and two valves, terminating in a 

 point. Seeds feveral, roundifh. 



Obf. Faia of Tournefort has oval comprefTed feeds. 

 Ficia of that author and Rivinus has roundifh feeds. 



Eff. Ch. Stigma tranfverfely bearded on the under fide. 



An extenfive genus of herbaceous, perennial or annual 

 plants, climbing by means of tendrils, which terminate the 

 common footftalk of their abruptly pinnated leaves. It is 

 nearly akin to Lathvrus, (fee that article,) differing elFcn- 

 tially in the Jligma, and in a generally more flender habit, 

 with fmaller, more oblong, ^owerj. The fpecies are moftly 

 natives of Europe, a few of Barbary, and North America, 

 fcarcely any occurring in tropical climates. The Jioiuers 

 are a.xillary : either racemofe on a longifh common ftalk ; 

 or nearly feflile, folitary or two or three together ; their 

 colour crimfoQ, purplifh, or pale yellowilh, rarely white 

 or blue. 



Seft. I. Floiver-flalis elongated. 



1. V. pififormis. Pea Vetch. Linn. Sp. PI. IO34. 

 Willd. n. I. Ait. n. I. Jacq. Auftr. t. 364. (Pifum fyl- 

 veflre ; Cluf. Hift. v. 2. 229. P. perenne fylveftre ; Ger. 

 Era. 1220. Cracca flore ochroleuco ; Rivin. Tetrap. Irr. 

 t. 52.) — Stalks many-flowered. Leaflets ovate ; the lower 

 pair clofe to the ftem. — Native of woods in Hungary-, Au- 

 ftria, Germany, Switzerland, and near Conftantinople ; a 

 hardy perennial, flowering in July and Augull in our bo- 

 tanic gardL'ns. The Jhm is angular and ftriated, branched, 

 climbing to tlie height of feveral feet. Leaves of three or 

 four pair of not quite oppofite, broad, blunt, fmooth leaf- 

 lets, about an inch long, all on very fliort partial llalks, at- 

 tached to a ftraight footjlalk from three to five inches in 

 length, which ends in a branched tendril ; the loweft pair 

 largeft, and clofe to the Jlipiilas, which are ovate, acute, with 

 an awl-fhaped dcfceiiding lobe. Floiver-Jlalks half as long 

 38 the leaves, each bearing a denfe clufter of numerous, ob- 

 long, pale-yellowifh_/7o'zyfrj, all drooping one way. Legume 

 an incli and half long, near half an inch broad,, fmooth, 

 veiny, of a rufty brown. 



2. V. caraiiniana. Carohna Vetch. Walt. Carol. 182. 

 Willd. n. 2. Purfli n. J. ( V. pai-vifiora ; Michaux Boreal.- 

 Amer. v. 2. 69. ) — Stalks with many diftant flowers. Leaf- 

 lets numerous, elliptic-lanceolate, nearly fmooth. Stipulas 

 ovato-lanceolate, entire. Stem fmooth. — Native of moun- 

 tians in North America, from Pennfvlvania to Carolina, 

 flowering in July and Auguft. Refembles V. Cracca, but 

 the jioiuers are white, with a black-tipped Jlandard, and a 

 great deal fmaller. Purjh. The _^cm is angular, furrowed. 

 Leaflets eight or ten, not quite oppofite. Stipulas fmall. 

 Clufters three inclies or more in length, of above twenty 

 flowers, hanging all one way. Walter, Wilhlenoiu. 



3. v. pontica. Euxine Vetch. Willd. n. 3. (V. mul- 

 tiflora fpicata, floribus albidis, calyce purpureo ; Tourn . Cor. 

 27.) — Stalks with many crowded flowers. Leaflets nume- 

 rous, lanceolate. Stipulas lanceolate-fwordfhaped, entire. 

 Stem downy. — Native of the country near the Euxine fea. 

 Stem angular and furrowed. Tendrils of the leaves three- 

 cleft. Leaflets from twenty to twenty-feven, elliptic-lanceo- 

 late, >an inch or m.ore in length, bearing, on the under fide 

 efpecially, many fc altered clofe-prefled hairs. Stipulas almoil 



9 



half an inch long, hairy, ribbed. Cluftets fix inches, the 

 lower ones a foot, in lengtli. Floiucrs drooping, crowded, 

 the fize of f^. Cracca. Willdenow. 



4. V. dumetorum. Great Wood Vetch. Linn. Sp. PI. 

 1035. Willd. n. 4. Ait. n. 2. (V. n. 427 ; Hall. Hift. 

 V. I. 185. Cracca fylvatica ; Rivin. Tetrap. Irr. t. 5 1 . ) — 

 Stalks many-flowered. Leaflets reflexed, ovate, pointed. 

 Stipulas fomewhat toothed. — Native of France, Switzer- 

 land, Germany, and the neighbourhood of Conftantinople ; 

 a hardy perennial, flowering in May or June, but feldom 

 cultivated here, except for curiotity. The lea/lets are 

 fmaller, more numerous, and more alternate than in the 

 firft fpecies, the lower one only fituated near the bafe of 

 their common footjlalk. Floivers fewer, and much larger, 

 purple, not yellow. Legumes lanceolate, tapering at each 

 end. 



5. V . fyhatica. Common Wood Vetch. Linn. Sp. PI. 

 1035. Willd. n. 5. Fl. Brit. n. I. Engl. Bot. t. 79. Fl. 

 Dan. t. 277. (V. n.426; Hall. Hift. V. I. 185. t. 12. f. 2. 

 V. multifora maxima perennis, tetro odore, floribus alben- 

 tibus, lineis cseruleis ftriatis ; Pluk. Phyt. t. 71. f. i.) — 

 Stalks many-flowered, longer than the leaves. Leaflets nu- 

 merous, elliptical. Stipulas lunate, with capillary teeth. — 

 Native of rather mountainous woods and thickets, in Swe- 

 den, Germany, France, and England, flowering in July and 

 Auguft. An elegant plant, with a brandling perennial root. 

 Thejlems are much branched, climbing over bufhes, which 

 they decorate with long-ftalked clujlers of \s\i\X.t Jioiuers, de- 

 licately ftriated with purplifh-blue. The leaflets are fcat- 

 tored, fmooth, blunt, or emarguiate, with a fmall point ; 

 their length from a quarter to half an inch. Legume lanceo- 

 late, pointed, fmooth, with about four feeds. This fpecies 

 is well worthy of a place in gardens and fhrubberies. In 

 the north of England it often makes a beautiful appearance 

 in hedges and mountain thickets, flowering copioufly for 

 feveral weeks. _ 



6. V. americana. American Wood Vetch. Muhlenb. 

 Cat. 65. Willd. n. 6. Purfli n. 3. — Stalks with feveral 

 flowers, fhorter than the leaves. Leaflets elliptic -lanceo- 

 late, obtufe, fmooth. Stjpulas halfarrowfhaped, deeply 

 toothed. — Difcovered in Pennfylvania, by the late Rev. Dr. 

 Muhlenberg, from whom we have a fpecimen. It flowers 

 in May, and is perennial. Purfh compares tliis fpecies with 

 V. fyl-oatica, as to the fize of its fioiuers and general re- 

 femblance. But the leaflets are rather larger, fomewhat 

 toothed. Stipulas with deep, but not capillary fegments. 

 Flowers much fewer, their common ftalks never longer than 

 the leaves. 



7. V. grand'flora. Large-flowered Vetch. — Stalks with 

 feveral flowers, fhorter than tlie leaves. Leaflets ovate, 

 fmooth. Stipulas lunate, with (harp teeth. Calyx-teeth 

 taper-pointed. — Gathered by Mr. Menzics, at the upper 

 edge of the foreft, on the mountain called Motvna-rooa, in 

 O wliyhee, which is 6000 feet high. This magnificent fpecies 

 :s much larger than any of tlie preceding. Its leaflets, near 

 an inch and half long, are the fhape of V. dumetorum, but 

 twice as large. Fioiuers pale purple, full thrice the fize of 

 dumetorum ; their Jlandard and other petals all ftrongly re- 

 curved. Calyx half as long as the corolla, with long, very 

 finely pointed, teeth. The clujlers are lax, with flender, 

 fomewhat downy, partial _/?a/;fj', three-quarters of an inch in 

 length. We have not feen the legume. 



8. V. variegata. Parti-coloured Oriental Vetch. Willd. 

 n. 7. Prodr. Fl. Grxc. n. 1700. ( V. orientahs multiflora 

 argentea, flore variegato ; Tourn. Cor. 27.) — Stalks with 

 many imbricated flowers. Leaflets elliptical, villous. Sti- 

 pulas deeply divided at the bafe, ovato -lanceolate Native 



of 



