Slender tare

Vicia parviflora, commonly known as slender tare, is a slender annual climbing legume native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia. It produces weak, branching stems 20-60 cm long, climbing by means of branched terminal tendrils. The pinnate leaves bear 2-5 pairs of narrow, linear leaflets up to 25 mm long, with small toothed stipules at the base. Pale lilac to pale blue pea-like flowers, only 4-8 mm long, are borne singly or in pairs on long peduncles arising from leaf axils, blooming from late spring into summer. The smooth, oblong pods are 8-15 mm long and contain 2-5 small, rounded seeds. The species inhabits arable land, dry grassland, hedgerows and sandy waste places, and is regarded as a rather inconspicuous member of the vetch group.