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Photograph of Hairy vetch
No machine-readable author provided. Fabelfroh assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0

Hairy vetch

Plant·Vicia villosa
Annual
Full sun
Sun
Medium
Water
Well-drained soil
Drainage
Zones 3–9
Hardiness

Hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) is a plant. It grows best in full sun and has moderate water needs. It grows well with corn maize and wheat.

Through the year

Out of seasonLeafing outFloweringFruitingDying back

Works well with

from wiki data
Corn MaizeWheat

WHAT IT NEEDS

Wants full sun
Needs moderate water
Needs well-drained soil
Prefers soil pH 6–7.5
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Prefers loam, sandy loam, clay loam soil
Tolerates some soil compaction
Fixes nitrogen in the soil
Draws up nitrogen from deep in the soil
Adds a lot of organic matter to the soil
Partners with mycorrhizal fungi to boost nutrient uptake

WHAT IT GIVES

Gives mulch biomass (high)
Provides nitrogen
Provides nitrogen
Attracts pollinators
Attracts beneficial insects

HOW IT GROWS

SIZE & SPACING

Ground cover
Height30–180 cm
Spacing15 cm (min 10 cm)
Root depthMedium
Width30–90 cm

Width figures are rough estimates, the most variable measurement in our data.

AI estimate · accuracy improves as growers contribute corrections.

HOW TO PROPAGATE

Propagate by seed
Difficulty
Establishes in about 1 yr
Self-seeds freely and can spread on its own

Where this comes from

Parsed11 Sept 2026
ConfidenceNot recorded
Photograph No machine-readable author provided. Fabelfroh assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0