hairy vetch
- noun
- /ˈhɛri vɛtʃ/
- UK
:
vicia villosa
- Using hairy vetch as a green manure helps control weeds while enhancing soil health.
- hairy vetch mulch
- plant hairy vetch
- crop of hairy vetch
Examples
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It contains snow peas, hairy vetch, winter rye, and white, white Dutch Clover.
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The alternative method uses hairy vetch residue as an organic mulch.
Academic text (1999) -
The organisms were less affected by runoff from plots mulched with hairy vetch.
Academic text (1999) -
Farmers often plant hairy vetch as a cover crop to enrich the soil with nitrogen.
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In spring, you can till hairy vetch into the soil to improve its fertility for future crops.
Synonyms
1
9.7
A climbing plant like a pea with small flowers used to feed animals and improve soil
A small pea-like plant farmers grow to feed animals and protect the soil
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase is a simple adjective + noun combination: 'hairy' (covered in hair) modifies 'vetch' (a climbing legume), so the meaning is literally a vetch plant that is hairy. This is a non-idiomatic, descriptive botanical name following common cross-linguistic noun-modifier patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily understand it.
Etymology
Hairy vetch gets its name from how the plant looks and its plant group: the stems and leaves are soft and a little fuzzy, so hairy, and vetch is a common name for pea-like plants grown for animal feed. That's why the name describes a plant people grow to feed animals and help the soil.