Wildflowers UK, bringing the British Countryside to you.

Perfect for pollinators

Tufted Vetch- Vicia cracca is one of the most showy of all wild meadow plants. The curled flowers appear relatively late in the season and form eye catching patches of purple-blue in hedgerows and meadow grass from the end of June. In the wild, Tufted Vetch is usually found rambling through meadow grass or climbing up a hedgerow. The climbing nature of this plant can be exploited in the wildflower garden to cover unsightly walls or fences and it is particularly well suited to cottage gardens. Tufted Vetch grows well on moist soils and will tolerate full sun or semi- shade. Its seeds are contained in pods that turn black and curl open after ripening, in late summer. Plants host a wide range of insect life such as Bees, Butterflies and Ladybirds. In the wild, Tufted Vetch is also an important food plant for breeding butterflies such as the Wood White and Short-tailed blue all of which, will lay their eggs on the plant. Tufted Vetch plants look best grown alongside other summer flowering wildflowers such as Oxeye daisy, Black Knapweed, Greater Knapweed, Small Scabious, and Field Scabious and Birdsfoot trefoil.


How to grow Tufted Vetch from seeds:

Tufted Vetch seeds can either be sown directly outside or in trays of compost in the spring or autumn. Germination can be improved by lightly rubbing the seeds between 2 sheets of sandpaper. This is known as scarification and helps break down the tough outer shell of Tufted Vetch seeds. After this process germination is normally fairly easy. The seedlings can then be pricked out and grown on, for planting out later in the year.

RHS Perfect for Pollinators.
The RHS Perfect for Pollinators mark is only given to plants that support pollinating insects in gardens. Bees, butterflies, moths, hoverflies and many others visit flowers to feed on nectar and pollen; while doing so they transfer pollen and increase seed set and fruit development. Find out more at: rhs.org.uk/plants

To discover further wildflowers for Bees and other insects, simply enter the word "pollinators" into the search box above.

To buy Tufted Vetch seeds
To purchase Tufted Vetch seeds please select a quantity above and click add to cart. To ensure the best chance of success, we sell all of our wildflower seeds by weight, which ensures each wildflower seed packet contains a good quantity of seeds. The recommended sowing rate is 1 gram per square metre, and the number of Tufted Vetch seeds per gram is approx. 30. All of our Wildflower seed packets contain seeds of Native British provenance.

Summary:
type - perennial,
colour - Purple,
height - 175 to 200cms,
flowering months - June, July, August, habitat - Semi-Shade (Orchards, Hedgerow, Banks, Open Woodland), Very Acidic Soil (Peats, Heaths),
Caterpillar Food Plant,
Attracts Bees, Butterflies