#Wild vine with purple flowers plus#

Large leaf lupine is native to the West Coast of North America, this one photographed as an introduced plant in Sweden.Ĭytisus scoparius. It has escaped cultivation to become naturalized in western Europe, New Zealand, Australia, parts of southern South America and the Falkland Islands. Tree lupine, also known as yellow bush lupine, is native to California. Near Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho. Elpel to report mistakes or to inquire about purchasing high resolution photos of these plants. Mimosa Subfamily | Caesalpinia (Bird-of-Paradise Tree) Subfamily

Pea-like pods, often with pinnate leaves. So it is possible to poison yourself with members of this family, but it takes some effort. Even the common garden pea can lead to depression and nervous disorders with excess consumption. It is now believed that McCandless was still eating, but starved to death because his body was unable to utilize the food. The seeds, however, contained the same toxic alkaloid found in locoweed, which inhibits an enzyme necessary for metabolism in mammals. He had been eating the roots of Hedysarum alpinum, and assumed the seeds were edible too, so he gathered and ate a large quantity of them over a two-week period. Many people are familiar with the story of Christopher McCandless who trekked into the Alaska wilderness in 1992 and was found dead four months later. Some species do contain toxic alkaloids, especially in the seed coats. Overall, the plants of the Pea family range from being barely edible to barely poisonous. Each subfamily is distinct enough to arguably qualify as a family in its own right, but they still share enough pattern of similarity between them to lump them together as subcategories of a single family.

#Wild vine with purple flowers plus#

Their flowers do not have the banner, wings, and keel, however most have pinnate leaves, much like the one in the illustration, plus the distinctive pea-like pods that open along two seams. These groups include mostly trees and shrubs, but also a few herbs. All Peas across the northern latitudes belong to this group.Īs you move south you will encounter more species of the Pea subfamily, plus other plants from the Mimosa and Bird-of-Paradise-Tree or Senna Subfamilies. Each of these tribes share the distinctive banner, wings and keel, so they are all lumped together as the Pea subfamily of the Pea family. Therefore the clover-like plants are lumped together as the Clover tribe while the bean-like plants are lumped together as the Bean tribe, and so forth, for a total of eight tribes. If you compare clovers to other members of the Pea family then you will see that they share more in common with alfalfa and sweet clover than with other plants like beans or caragana bushes. Each one is clearly unique, but each one is also a clover, so they are all lumped together as one genus, Trifolium (meaning 3-parted leaves) and given separate species names such as T. For example, there are about 300 species of clover in the world. The most closely related species are lumped together into a single group or 'genus'. Families this large often have subgroupings called subfamilies and tribes. Over time the Peas have adapted to fit many different niches, from lowly clovers on the ground to stately trees that today shade city sidewalks. The Pea family is very large, with 600 genera and 13,000 species worldwide, all descendents of the very first Pea flower of many millions of years ago. As the flowers mature each one forms a tiny pea-like pod. You will see that each head is a cluster of many small Pea flowers, each with its own banner, wings, and keel.

Pea-like pods are another distinctive trait of the family.įor practice, look at a head of clover in the lawn. The proportions of the parts may vary from one species to another, but as long as there is clearly a banner, wings and keel, then the plant is a member of the Pea family. The remaining two petals make up the keel and are usually fused together. The banner is a single petal with two lobes though it looks like two that are fused together. These are irregular flowers, with 5 petals forming a distinctive 'banner, wings, and keel', as shown in the illustration. If you have seen a pea or bean blossom in the garden, then you will be able to recognize members of the Pea family. (Previously known as the Legume Family: Leguminosae) Home | Plant Identification | Plant Families Gallery | Edible Plants | Mushrooms | Linksĭesertification & Weed Ecology | Weed Profiles | E-Mail | Search this Site Plant Identification, Edible Plants, Weed Ecology, Mushrooms, and more.