Eastern Forest Threat Center - Crown Vetch

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Crown vetch flower clusters

Crown vetch flower clusters

Dave Powell, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org

Crown Vetch
Coronilla varia

Crown vetch is native to Europe, southwest Asia, and northern Africa. It has been grown extensively in the northern U.S. for temporary ground cover, erosion control, and bank stabilization along roads and waterways, and as a green fertilizer crop.

Keywords: Fabaceae, perennial, legume, creeping stems, pinkish flowers, flattened seed pods, rhizomes, covering, shading; Common names: purple vetch

Distribution Map Distribution Source Image

Threat Description

Crown vetch is a perennial legume with creeping stems up to 6 ft. long. Its compound leaves consist of 15-25 pairs of oblong leaflets. Pinkish flowers that bloom from May through August are clustered in umbels on long stalks and develop into narrow, flattened pods. Crown vetch spreads through the dispersal of seeds (reported to be poisonous) and through rhizomes that can grow up to 10 ft. long. It can survive in a variety of environmental conditions, but has the highest yields in areas with 18 in. or more of annual precipitation. It prefers sunny, open areas and can withstand long periods of drought, but it cannot tolerate flooded or anaerobic soil conditions. Mature plants can withstand minimum temperatures of –28° F. Crown vetch occurs along roadsides and other rights-of-way, in open fields, and on gravel bars along streams. It becomes problematic when it invades natural areas, such as grassland prairies and dunes, where it works to exclude native vegetation by fully covering and shading native plants.