BEACH PEA (Lathyrus maritimus), a characteristic beach plant of northern regions. It is a perennial herb of the family Leguminosae native to cool sandy shores throughout the Northern Hemisphere and extending northward to the Arctic sea. It is found on the coasts of the British Isles and on those of North America from New Jersey and Oregon northward and also in the interior along the Great Lakes. It is a smooth, stout, trailing or climbing pea-like plant, I ft. to 3 ft. high, with tendril-bearing leaves divided into from 6 to io oblong, thick leaflets, and with clustered, showy, purple flowers, about I in. long.