Spring vetch is used as a forage crop. It is a common annual herb belonging to the legume family. It is considered a high quality pet food and contains 46 feed units per 100 kg of dry grass. The mass of the green part of the grass can reach 70%. Vetch is grown together with peas, oats, cabbage and other crops.
Description of the plant
Spring vetch belongs to the legume family, which includes 85 species. According to the description, the plant is quite remarkable; it can be seen in fields, meadows and public gardens.
The root system of the spring crop is branched.The stalk is erect, ascending, and can reach 1 meter in height. The leaves are oblong, eight-paired, and have a small notch. The plant has branched tendrils. The plant is drought-resistant, light-loving and demanding on soil. But it grows poorly on heavy and acidic soils. It is resistant to cold, diseases and pests. The only exception is aphids, which often infect the crop.
The flowers are small, solitary, reach 2 cm in length, and have a lilac or pinkish color. The fruit is a bean, which reaches a length of up to 6 cm. Each bean contains 9 seeds. The seeds are spherical, slightly flattened.
The grass pollinates on its own. The plant blooms at the end of June, beginning of July. Harvest occurs at the beginning of August. You can harvest twice a summer.
Common vetch is a good honey plant. You can collect up to 20 kg of aromatic and tasty honey per hectare. The seeds can be used as fertilizer. To do this, the plant is sown and then buried in the ground. This fertilizer is not inferior in characteristics to manure and retains its qualities for 5 years. Spring vetch has several wild species that are very similar to the crop in all characteristics.
Spreading
The culture is widespread throughout the European part of Russia, in central Asia and the Caucasus. The plant grows in the forest-steppe zone of Moldova and Ukraine. Spring vetch is grown in western Siberia, in the foothills and mountains of Crimea.
Often found as a weed in wheat fields, the plant can be found in garbage areas. Lilac flowers of common vetch are often found in parks and squares. You can buy legume seeds in specialty stores.
Methods of use
The common vetch belongs to the spring species. It does not require special care and is resistant to light frosts. Many gardeners call this crop seed peas. This culture was known in ancient times. Even then, the grass was used as animal feed. Today, vetch is grown as feed raw material, the plant is used as fertilizer, and also as a rich source of silage and hay.
Quite often, spring vetch is sown on fields that are fallow. The plant is a good nitrogenous fertilizer; it loosens the soil and also significantly improves its qualitative composition, which is important before planting other crops.
It is good to plant vetch at the same time as other crops. The grass prevents weeds from growing and also attracts insects that pollinate the flowers. This is a good forage grass with a high content of vegetable proteins. It is eaten by animals both directly on pastures and in the form of hay. It is possible to sow several times during the summer.
Landing Features
Legumes are planted for fertilizer and as animal feed. Depending on this, the planting dates change.
- The plant is planted for fertilizer at the same time as other herbs. The spring crop prevents the growth of weeds. Mow it after the grass has grown sufficiently.
- The grass can be planted for fertilizer at the end of August. In this case, it is mowed in early spring, until tomatoes, peppers and cabbage are planted.
- Grass is planted for animal feed in early spring and mowed at the stage when the beans appear. Vetch is planted together with other forage grasses, which helps to overcome the bitter taste of the forage grass.
The grass contains vitamins and many minerals.Most of them occur during the flowering of legumes. Currently, spring vetch is considered one of the more valuable forage crops.
Medicinal properties
The herb is actively used in folk medicine. All parts of the plant are used to treat diseases. The herb has the following medicinal properties:
- Diuretic and laxative.
- Hemostatic and healing.
- Calming.
Compresses with herbs are used to speed up the ripening of abscesses and to quickly cleanse ulcers and wounds. An alcohol tincture is prepared from spring grass, which helps with a number of diseases. Healers recommend using a decoction of the roots of the herb to treat hepatitis.
Vetch is planted as a forage plant in many countries around the world. This grass contains a lot of protein, minerals and vitamins. To muffle the bitter taste, legumes are planted together with other forage grasses.
