Eastern milkpea is a native wildflower and herbaceous perennial vine found in the central and eastern United States and Cuba. Its native habitat includes dry pine or oak forests and woodlands. The plant has delicate, weakly erect or trailing, twining, hairy stems and palmately compound leaves having three elliptical leaflets. The vine gently twines around other vegetation or trails along the ground and can grow 3 to 4 feet long. The small, pea-shaped flowers appear in sets of 1 to 10 blooms per stalk and may be pink or white. Blooms occur from July through September, and the legume fruits appear from August to October. It is a member of the bean family (Fabaceae). Prefers full sun and sandy, well-drained, nutrient-poor soils with a slightly acidic to neutral pH. It is drought-tolerant and moderately salt-tolerant. It also easily resprouts after forest fires. Bees and other pollinators are attracted to the eastern milkpea, and it is the larval host plant for the Long-tailed Skipper and Gray Hairstreak Butterfly. Cattle and quail enjoy eating the foliage. In North Carolina, this wildflower is commonly found in the Central Piedmont, most of the Coastal Plain, and the southern mountains. Consider using it as an ornamental and pollinator plant for a butterfly garden, native garden, or woodland setting. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No significant insect or disease problems, but may be visited by aphids and caterpillars. Monitor for leaf spots, powdery mildew, and root rot.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Loam (Silt); Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist | Occasionally Dry
Available space
Less than 12 inches
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
6 - Vine (vertical)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Climbing; Erect; Prostrate
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Elliptical; Oblong; Ovate
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf feel
Velvety
Leaf size
3-6 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
The dark green, velvety leaves are alternate and palmately compound with three leaflets (trifolate). Each leaflet measures 0.75 to 1.5 inches long and 0.25 to 1 inch wide, and is elliptic to oblong or oblong-ovate. They are rounded at the base of the leaflet, and are rounded at the tip, or may be slightly notched. The margins are entire. The upper surface is hairy to smooth, and the underside has moderate to dense fine hairs and is a paler green. The texture may be smooth or hairy. The petiole measures 0.25 to 0.75 inches long.
Flower color
Pink; White
Flower form
Raceme
Flower shape
Bell; Lipped
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
The flowers appear at the leaf axils and are arranged on a short raceme of 1 to 10 blooms, sometimes paired. Each bloom measures about 0.5 inches long and is 5-lobed with fusion of the two upper lobes, and narrowly bell-shaped and hairy. Its color ranges from dark pink, pink or white. Blooms from July through September.
Bloom time
Summer
Fruit color
Cream/Tan; Green
Fruit type
Legume
Fruit size
1-3 inches long, < 1 inch wide
Fruit detail
The fruit is a slender, hairy, oblong pod, tapered at the tip. The legume is flat, measuring 1 to 2 inches long and is only 0.25 inches wide. They are initially green, become tan when mature, papery, and have sparse hairs. Three to eight tiny, yellowish or dark brown seeds are dispersed as the pod dehisces. Fruits appear from August to October.
Stem color
Brown/Copper; Green
Stem detail
The hairy stems are mostly trailing, prostrate, or weakly climbing.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Central and Eastern United States and Cuba
Distribution
Native: Cuba and the United States--Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia
Wildlife value
The flowers attract common little leaf-cutter bees, golden sweat bees, and white-footed leaf-cutter bees. Quail enjoy eating the plants. Larval host plant for the Long-tailed Skipper, Gray Hairstreak, and Zarucco Duskywing Butterflies.
Attracts
Bees; Butterflies
Host plant for
Long-tailed Skipper, Gray Hairstreak, and Zarucco Duskywing Butterflies