Vicia gigantea

Giant vetch

Family: Fabaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Giant vetch is a California native perennial found in coastal regions including northern Coast Ranges, central Coast, San Francisco Bay Area, and southern California coastal areas in coastal shrub, coastal forest, and chaparral habitats at elevations below 305 meters. Flowering from March to August, this plant produces red-purple or variegated pale yellow flowers in clusters of 6 to 15 along one side of its floral axis. Growing as a robust, sprawling or climbing herb 1 to 2 meters long with glabrous or slightly hairy stems, it develops a distinctive climbing habit. Its leaves feature 16 to 24 elliptic or oblong leaflets 1.5 to 4 centimeters long with rounded to acute tips, supported by toothed or untoothed stipules. The fruit is a distinctive black, slightly upcurved pod 2 to 4.5 centimeters long that matures from its delicate flowering state.

Habitat: Coastal shrub, coastal forest, chaparral

Bloom period: Mar-Aug

Elevation: < 305 m

Bioregions: NCo, w NCoRO, CCo, SnFrB, w SCoRO, SCo (Santa Barbara Co.)

California counties: Humboldt, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Mendocino, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, San Mateo, Alameda, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Marin, Del Norte, Contra Costa, Yolo, Solano, Placer, Alpine

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.