Ononis arvensis

Ononis arvensis, the field restharrow, is a widespread species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to Eurasia from central Europe through to western Siberia and the western Himalayas.^[1] It is a perennial hemicryptophyte usually 50–100 cm (20–39 in) tall, typically found in meadows, but also in old fields and dry grasslands.^[2]

Ononis arvensis
Inflorescence
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Genus:	Ononis
Species:	O. arvensis
Binomial name
Ononis arvensis L.
Synonyms[1]
List Anonis arvensis (L.) Lam. Bonaga arvensis (L.) Medik. Bonaga hircina (Jacq.) Medik. Bonaga mitis (Mill.) Medik. Ononis alopecuroides Coss. Ononis altissima Colmeiro Ononis altissima Lam. Ononis arvensis var. spinescens (Ledeb.) Diklić Ononis arvensis subsp. spinescens (Ledeb.) Luzhanin Ononis arvensis f. subrepens (Schmalh.) Luzhanin Ononis hircina Jacq. Ononis hircina var. spinescens Ledeb. Ononis hircina var. subrepens Schmalh. Ononis inermis Huds. Ononis inermis Pall. Ononis laevis Pall. Ononis mitis Mill. Ononis mitis Pall. Ononis occidentalis Lange Ononis procurrens Benth. Ononis purpurea Gilib. Ononis repens subsp. arvensis (L.) Greuter Ononis repens subsp. spinosiformis (Simonk.) Greuter Ononis spinescens (Ledeb.) Grecescu Ononis spinosa subsp. arvensis (L.) Greuter & Burdet Ononis spinosa subsp. hircina (Jacq.) Gams Ononis spinosa subsp. spinosiformis (Simonk.) Greuter & Burdet Ononis spinosiformis var. nyirsegensis (Soó) Soó Ononis spinosiformis subsp. semihircina (Simonk.) Soó Ononis spinosiformis Simonk. Ononis vulgaris Gueldenst.

It is closely related to Ononis spinosa and Ononis repens, being treated (together with O. repens) by some authors as a subspecies of O. spinosa.^[3] It shares pink flower colour with these two; from O. spinosa it differs in having its flowers in pairs at each node rather than singly, and (like O. repens) in lacking stiff spines; the wing petal size is small as in O. spinosa, rather than equalling the keel petal as in O. repens.^[4] It has a more easterly distribution than either O. spinosa or O. repens, not being found west of southern Scandinavia and Germany, and extending further into central Asia.^[4][1]