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The genus '''Lathyrus''' consists of the 'sweet peas' and 'vetchlings', flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae. There are approximately 160 species of ''Lathyrus''; they are native to temperate areas, with a breakdown of 52 species in Europe, 30 species in North America, 78 in Asia, 24 in tropical East Africa, and 24 in temperate South America.^[1] There are annual and perennial species which may be climbing or bushy. This genus has numerous sections, including ''Orobus'', which was once a separate genus.^[2]
The genus includes the garden sweet pea (''Lathyrus odoratus'') and the perennial everlasting pea (''Lathyrus latifolius''). Flowers on these cultivated species may be rose, red, maroon, pink, white, yellow, purple or blue and some are bicolored; they are also fragrant, which makes them a very popular garden plant. Cultivated species are susceptible to fungal infections including downy and powdery mildew. ''Lathyrus'' species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Grey Chi, Latticed Heath (both recorded on Meadow Vetchling) and ''Chionodes braunella''.
Other species are grown for food, including ''L. sativus'' and ''L. cicera'', and less commonly ''L. ochrus'' and ''L. clymenum''. ''L. tuberosus'' is grown as a root vegetable for its starchy edible tuber.
The seeds of some ''Lathyrus'' species contain a toxic amino acid and if eaten in large quantities can cause lathyrism, a serious disease.^[3]

Contents

Species

Notes

Species

★ ''Lathyrus aureus'' (Golden Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus annuus'' (Red Fodder Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus chloranthus''

★ ''Lathyrus hirsutus'' (Hairy Vetchling)

★ ''Lathyrus japonicus'' (Sea Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus lanszwertii'' (Nevada Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus latifolius'' (Everlasting Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus linifolius'' (Bitter Vetch)

★ ''Lathyrus nervosus'' (Lord Anson's Blue Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus nissolia'' (Grass Vetchling)

★ ''Lathyrus odoratus'' (Sweet Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus pratensis'' (Meadow Vetchling)

★ ''Lathyrus sativus'' (Indian Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus sphaericus'', Spring vetchling

★ ''Lathyrus sylvestris'' (Flat Pea-vine)

★ ''Lathyrus tingitanus'' (Tangier Pea)

★ ''Lathyrus tuberosus'' (Tuberous Pea)

Notes

1. Chloroplast DNA Characters, Phylogeny, and Classification of Lathyrus (Fabaceae), Asmussen, Conny B; Liston, Aaron, , , American Journal of Botany, March 1998
2. Root Nodule Bacteria and Leguminous Plants, Fred, Edwin Broun; Baldwin, Ira Lawrence; McCoy, Elizabeth, , , UW-Madison Libraries Parallel Press, , ISBN 1-893311-28-7
3. Lathyrism: A Review, Mark V. Barrow; Charles F. Simpson; Edward J. Miller, , , The Quarterly Review of Biology, 1974