Fabaceae
Legume Family
Lathyrus palustris L.
- Stem: perennial; sprawling; to 2’ long; much branched; smooth.
- Leaves: alternate; pinnately compound, 5” by 3”; terminal three leaflets modified into tendrils; about five pairs of ordinary leaflets, oval, 1 1/2” by 5/8”, with rounded bases and pointed tips, veins prominent below; basal bracts (stipules) pointed at both ends; smooth above and below.
- Inflorescence: racemes on flower stalks from the upper leaf axils; flower stalks up to 6” long, smooth.
- Flowers: corolla purple to pink, about 5/8” long; calyx 3/8” long with pointed tips, smooth; flowering from late May to late June.
- Fruits: pods cylindrical, 1 1/4” long by 3/16” in diameter, brown; at maturity the pod splits into halves which twist and scatter the seeds; fruiting begins in mid-June.
- Habitat: infrequent on moist prairies and marshes.
- Bibliography from Biodiversity Heritage Library
- Vascular Plants of Iowa
