File:Vicia sativa flower Tocal legume trial 7.jpg

English: Introduced cool-season annual hairy to nearly hairless herbaceous C3 legume with slender, branched and climbing stems. Leaves are divided into 4-16 leaflets and end in tendrils; leaflets are 1-4 mm wide in subspecies nigra and 5-8 mm wide in subspecies sativa. Flowerheads are clusters of 1-4 pea-like flowers in the leaf axils. Flowers are nearly sessile; petals are white, pink or purple and 10-30 mm long. Fruits are bean-like pods 2-8 cm long. Flowers in winter and spring. A native of Europe, it is sown (sativa) and often naturalised (nigra) along roadsides. Suited to loam soils. Provides protein and energy in late winter-early spring and is a low bloat risk. Often sown where soil nitrogen is low to reduce nitrogen fertiliser requirements for following crops. Also sown as a high protein feed with winter grass forages. Best sown early to mid-autumn. Before sowing, graze pastures early to a residue of 8 cm and then direct drill or broadcast seed. Best if grazed hard using strip grazing from about 14 weeks after sowing as it recovers poorly after grazing. Can be seeded into hill country to improve utilisation of low protein forages. Only graze for short periods (e.g., 3-4 days each time) so as not to rapidly destroy growing points.