Securigera varia (L.) Lassen

Purple Crown Vetch

Herb

Perennial

Vascular

Purple Crown Vetch is an introduced herbaceous perennial in the Bean family (Fabaceae). It is native to Europe, Africa, and Asia. In Alabama in can be found primarily in the northern half of the state. Purple Crown Vetch occurs on roadsides, in old fields, and in other disturbed habitats. It is a perennial from a complex root system that spreads by rhizomes. Stems are 1-6 feet in length, sprawling or ascending, green in color, and glabrous or sparsely pubescent. Leaves are alternate, petiolate to sub-sessile, and odd pinnate with 11-19 leaflets. The leaflets are obovate to oblong in outline, glabrous, and entire. Flowers are produced in axillary umbels of 10-15 flowers on a long peduncle. Individual flowers are papilionaceous, with the standard petal pink and the other petals white. The fruit is a linear indehiscent segmented legume with one seed per segment. Purple Crown Vetch was widely planted on roadsides for erosion control. It has been identified as an invasive species by the Southeast Exotic Pest Plant Council, and is very hard to eradicate once established. Crownvetch is toxic to horses and other non-ruminants because of the presence of nitroglycosides.—A. Diamond

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Not Native

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