Common Name: One-Flower Vetch

General Information

Vicia articulata is an annual plant with scrambling stems that cling to the surrounding vegetation; it can grow 20 - 90cm tall.
The plant is cultivated, mainly on the Iberian peninsula and in southern France, though nowadays only very sporadically, as a relic crop for its edible seeds, known as 'black lentils'[, ]. Even in Spain, where domestication took place, cultivation had been declining very strongly and has often been abandoned completely. Since the beginning of the 20th century the species had been grown in the USA, in southern states as green manure in orchards. Obviously a rather young domesticate[, , ].
Vicia articulata is widespread across Europe, also native to Egypt, Iraq and Turkey, with a stable population and no apparent major threats due to its occurrence in a stable climax habitat. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2016)[].

Known Hazards

The seeds contain the anti-nutritional compound L-canavanine, a competitive inhibitor of arginine decarboxylase. This is removed by soaking the seeds in water prior to cooking and discarding the soak water[].

Botanical References

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Range

S. Europe Portugal and Spain to Greece and Bulgaria; W. Asia - Turkey, Irag; N. Africa - Canary Islands, Egypt

Habitat

Pine woods, rocky limestone slopes, macchie and meadows; at elevations from 50 - 800 metres in Turkey[]. A weed of many crops and also found wild in dry uncultivated lands[].

Properties

Conservation Status	Least Concern
Edibility Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Insects, Self
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Species in this genus generally succeed in any well-drained soil in a sunny position if the soil is reliably moist throughout the growing season, otherwise they are best grown in semi-shade[]. Succeeds in poor and sandy soils[]. Established plants are drought resistant[].
Producing a seed somewhat similar to lentils, the plant is said to be more resistant to fungal diseases and bird attacks[].
The plant is mainly self-fertilizing, with insects as occasional pollinators[].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[]. When removing plant remains at the end of the growing season, it is best to only remove the aerial parts of the plant, leaving the roots in the ground to decay and release their nitrogen.

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked[, ]. They can be used like lentils[, ]. Opinions vary on the taste, with some people finding them superior to lentils and others inferior[].

Medicinal

None known

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant fixes atmospheric nitrogen and makes a good bulk of foliage. It can be grown as a green manure crop[, , , ].

Other Uses

This species is a tertiary wild relative of Winter Vetch Vicia villosa and more remotely a number of other cultivated vetches including Faba Bean V. faba, Narbon Bean V. narbonensis, Hungarian Vetch V. pannonica and Common Vetch V. sativa. It also belongs to Taxon Group 1B of cultivated Monantha Vetch V. articulata and to Taxon Group 2 of Bitter Vetch V. ervilia (Kupicha 1976). As a result, this species has the potential for use as a gene donor for crop improvement[].

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ in spring. An autumn sowing in situ might also succeed. The seed has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing in order to speed up and improve germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing.