Common Vetch – Vicia sativa
Element – Earth
There are many wild plants with the prefix Common. Sadly, many of them are anything but.
In my area, Common Vetch is one of these plants. As an annual, if the plants in the grassland are cut before it can set seed, populations decline.
When I first started surveying the local grasslands I found lots of Bush Vetch, some Tufted Vetch and clusters of Bitter Vetch and Meadow Vetchling. But not Common Vetch.
Two years ago, it turned up in a small area of old grassland. Last summer it showed more widely in grasslands where it hadn’t been recorded before and this year there is even more of it.
The management hasn’t changed, so why now?
Could the dry springs of the last couple of years have a role to play? Common Vetch does well in well-drained soils. Could it be fewer frosts, though it is pretty hardy and generally germinates in autumn to overwinter? Could it be a feedback loop of better springs for pollinators, leading to more seeds to germinate…
Traditionally, this plant symbolises success, tenacity and healing, and I would like to think that it is a sign of nature taking the reins to restore diversity.
I honestly don’t know; I hope it lasts because it is a joy to see these bright pink flowers in the grass.
I recorded this plant last summer. Everything was very dry, and the quality of the sounds reflects the slowing down within the grasslands due to the lack of rain.
I am always fascinated by the different qualities that move through the music. With this music, it is as though the plant is re-establishing itself within the medley of songs within the grassland. It is quiet without diffidence, gentle yet strong, determined but graceful.
I am curious, what does it say to you?
Common Vetch, Recorded May 2025
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