Common name:
Kidney vetch
Family:
Scientific name:
Anthyllis vulneraria
Main flower color:
Range:
All of the UK
Height:
Up to 30 cm
Habitat:
Calcareous grassland, sand dunes, sea cliffs
Flowers:
Rounded clusters, up to 4 cm in diameter, often paired (the two sometimes developing at different rates), subtended by hairy, leaf-like bracts. Calyx tubes, coloured white to red, are inflated, and densely covered with silky hairs. The yellow petals (sometimes pink in coastal areas) are crossed by reddish veins at the base. Flowers wither to red and purple
Fruit:
Flatted pods, only around 3 mm long
Leaves:
Up to 6 cm long, pinnately divided into a terminal leaflet (the largest) and several pairs of side leaflets. Undersurfaces are covered by white, silky hairs
Season:
May to September
Rarity:
★★★★★
