Weed Information: Lathyrus latifolius (peavine, everlasting)
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Lathyrus latifolius (peavine, everlasting)

Family: Fabaceae

Description

Also known as `flatpea,` this perennial is an escaped ornamental grown for its brilliant pink flowers. Its most distinctive characteristics are its strongly winged stems and 2 leaflets per leaf.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Red (or pink)
  • Purple
  • Red-purple
  • White
  • Multi-colored
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Axillary racemes
Number of Petals
  • 5 petals
Petal Separation
  • Completely free to base
  • United > 75% of length
Petal Tip
  • Bilobed
  • Rounded
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers strongly irregular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • 1.5 cm (.6 inch)
  • 2.0 cm (.8 inch)
  • 2.5 cm (1.0 inch)
  • 3.0 cm (1.2 inches)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • 1.5 cm (.60 inch)
  • 2.0 cm (.80 inch)
  • 2.5 cm (1.0 inch)
Number of Sepals
  • 5 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • United from 25% - 75% length
  • United > 75% of length
Sepal Tip
  • Pointed
Flower Sex
  • Bisexual (perfect)
Number of Styles
  • 1 style
Number of Stamens
  • 10 stamens
Stamens Attached to the Petals
  • Stamens NOT attached to the petals
Stamens Connate (united)
  • Filaments united, diadelphous

Carpel Separation
  • Carpels united (or one)
Number of Carpels
  • 1 carpel
Ovary Position
  • Superior (hypogynous)
Fruit Type
  • Capsule, 1-celled
  • Legume
Fruit Length at Maturity
  • 6.0 cm (2.4 inches)
  • 7.0 cm (2.8 inches)
  • 8.0 cm (3.2 inches)
  • 9.0 cm (3.6 inches)
  • 1.0 dm (4.0 inches)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 7 mm (.28 inch)
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Bifoliolate (2 leaflets)
Stipules
  • Foliaceous > 1 cm (> .40 inch) long
Tendrils
  • Tendrils present
Venation
  • Arcuate
  • Parallel
  • Pinnate
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole 25% - 75% total length
Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.60 - 4.0 inches)
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
Leaf Width
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.6 - 4.0 inches)
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
Succulence
  • Succulent
  • Not succulent
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Entire
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Acute (cuneate)
  • Rounded
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Acute
  • Rounded (obtuse)
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Glabrous (NO hairs)
  • Glaucous

Milky Juice
  • Juice NOT milky (watery)
Woodiness
  • Herbaceous
Spines or Thorns
  • Spines or Thorns ABSENT
Aromatic (vegetative structures)
  • Not aromatic
Life Cycle
  • Perennial
Growth Habit (while flowering)
  • Prostrate
  • Climbing vine
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
  • 4 - 6 dm (1.3 - 2.0 feet)
  • 6 - 8 dm (2.0 - 2.6 feet)
  • 8 - 10 dm (2.6 - 3.3 feet)
  • 1 - 1.5 meters (3.3 - 5.0 feet)
Wind Dissemination
  • Not wind disseminated
Moisture Regime
  • Seasonally saturated
  • Mesic
Chlorophyll
  • Present

Stem Cross Section
  • Round
  • Winged
Flowering Stem Leaves
  • Stem uniformly leafy
Main Stem Branches
  • Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule
  • Rhizomatous
  • Tap Root

US State
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Massachusetts
  • Maine
  • Michigan
  • Missouri
  • Mississippi
  • North Carolina
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • South Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • West Virginia
  • Hawaii
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Iowa
  • Idaho
  • Minnesota
  • Montana
  • New Mexico
  • Nevada
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • South Dakota
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • Wyoming
  • Nebraska
Canadian Province or Territory
  • British Columbia
  • New Brunswick
  • Nova Scotia
  • Ontario
  • Prince Edward Island
  • Quebec
Other
  • District of Columbia

  • Gilkey`s Weeds of the Pacific Northwest, 1980 (ISBN 0-88246-039-0) See page: 165
  • More Turfgrass and Related Weeds: Beyond the Color Atlas, 2011 Clemson University Publishing ISBN# 978-0-9798777-5-9 See Page: 257
  • Northwest Weeds, 1990 (ISBN 0-87842-249-8) See page: 61
  • Ontario Weeds, 1992 Agdex 640, Publication #505 See page: 126
  • Weeds of California and other Western States, 2007 (ISBN 13: 978-1-879906-69-3) See Page: 766
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1956, Univ. of Delaware Field Manual #1 See species #: 81
  • Weeds of the South, University of Georgia 2009, ISBN#0-8203-3046-9 See page: 202
  • Weeds of the West, 1992 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 332
  • Weeds of the West, 2000 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 330
  • Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 x
  • Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X
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