Common kidneyvetch
Anthyllis vulneraria, family Fabaceae
A low-growing herb with yellow or red flower heads, used historically to treat wounds
Common kidneyvetch is a small herb in the pea family, growing 5–40 cm tall with silky leaves and round flower heads. Native across Europe, North Africa and Western Asia, it blooms from June to September and grows on dry, chalky grasslands and rocky slopes up to 3,000 m.
- Flowers are usually yellow, but red in some subspecies
- Name means 'wound healer' in Latin
- Host plant for small blue butterfly larvae
- Grows on chalky soils up to 3,000 m elevation
- Found from Iceland to Iran and Ethiopia
What does Common kidneyvetch look like?
Common kidneyvetch is a small herb, 5 to 40 cm tall, with branched stems and pinnate leaves that are smooth above and silvery-hairy underneath. Its flowers form tight, spherical heads 1–2 cm long. Most forms have yellow petals, but some subspecies bear red ones. The plant produces pea-like legume fruits.
Where does Common kidneyvetch come from?
Anthyllis vulneraria grows wild from Iceland and western Europe through the Mediterranean to Iran, and south into North Africa and Ethiopia. It has also become naturalized in parts of North America. Its name comes from the Latin 'vulneraria', meaning 'wound healer', reflecting its traditional medicinal use.
When and how Common kidneyvetch blooms
It flowers between June and September, with fruits ripening from July to October. The plant thrives in dry, open places with lime-rich soil, such as grasslands, cliffs, and scree, and can be found as high as 3,000 metres in mountainous regions.
How Common kidneyvetch is used
Historically, kidneyvetch was used in folk medicine to treat wounds, giving rise to its name. Today it is valued as a wildflower in natural habitats and serves as the sole food plant for the larvae of the small blue butterfly and the moth Aproaerema anthyllidella.
Kinds of Common kidneyvetch
The species includes many regional subspecies, 47 are accepted by Plants of the World Online. These vary in leaf shape, hairiness, and flower colour. Some botanists treat certain subspecies as distinct species. Notable forms include red-flowered A. vulneraria var. coccinea and alpine or coastal variants.
What Common kidneyvetch means
Its common name 'woundwort' points to its old use in healing cuts and sores. Though not tied to major festivals or religious rites, it plays an ecological role as a host plant for rare insects. It appears in botanical records across a vast area from the Arctic fringe to North Africa.
Questions people ask about Common kidneyvetch
Where does common kidneyvetch come from?
It is native to Europe, northern Africa, and Western Asia, and has spread to parts of North America.
What does kidneyvetch look like?
It is a small plant with silvery-backed leaves and round flower heads, usually yellow but sometimes red, blooming in summer.
Why is it called woundwort?
Its Latin name 'vulneraria' means 'wound healer', referring to its historical use in treating injuries.
Is kidneyvetch important for wildlife?
Yes, it is the only food plant for the caterpillars of the small blue butterfly and a leaf-mining moth.
When does it flower?
It blooms from June to September in its native range, with fruits ripening through October.
Good reading and sources
- Encyclopaedia BritannicaArticle
- USDA Plants DatabaseUS Department of Agriculture, Article
- Anthyllis vulnerariaRoyal Horticultural Society, Article
- Plants of the World OnlineRoyal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Plant database
- Where it has been recordedGBIF, Plant database
- Sightings and photos by naturalistsiNaturalist, Plant database
- Anthyllis vulneraria on WikipediaEncyclopedia
- More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos
- Wikidata recordOpen data
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Anthyllis vulneraria", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryPhool rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. It is not medical or foraging advice: many flowers are poisonous, and traditional uses are reported, not recommended. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-04.
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