Bitter-vetch - Lathyrus linifolius

Short to medium erect, hairless plant with winged stems It has two to four pairs of leaflets. The leaves are linear to elliptical and ending in a point, not a tendril. The flowers are rich crimson-pink, turning bluish and then pale, 10 to 16 mm in long racemes. Pods reddish brown.

Found around woodland edge and in damp grassland.

May to October.

Perennial.

Widespread but not really common in Britain - it is quite rare in East Anglia.

Local in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 49 of the 617 tetrads.