Medicago sativa |
Medicago polymorpha |
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alfalfa, lucerne |
bur medic, California burclover, toothed medic |
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Habit | Plants perennial, 20–80 cm, glabrous to puberulent. | Plants annual, commonly mat-forming, 10–80(100) cm. |
Stems | decumbent to erect, glabrous to puberulent. |
prostrate to ascending, generally glabrous. |
Leaves | sub-palmate; leaflets narrowly lanceolate to obovate; length > width, 8–29 mm, bases cuneate; margins distally serrate; veins prominent; tips truncate to rounded; surfaces pubescent; petioles 3–15 mm; petiolules 1–6 mm; stipules 6–14 mm; margins entire to sharply toothed. |
pinnate; leaflets wedge-shaped to obovate, rarely obcordate; length > width, 8–22 mm, bases cuneate; margins distally serrate; veins prominent; tips obtuse to rounded or emarginate; surfaces glabrate, rarely puberulent; petioles 5–40(60) mm; petiolules 0.5–6 mm; stipules 4–12 mm; margins deeply laciniate. |
Inflorescences | 8–30-flowered; ovoid to oblong; peduncles 8–40 mm; pedicels 1–3 mm. |
2–6-flowered; peduncles 4–30 mm; pedicels straight, 0.5–1 mm. |
Flowers | calyces 4–5.5 mm; corollas 8–10 mm, violet or variegated yellow-violet. |
4–6(8) mm; calyces 2.5–3 mm; corollas 3.5–6 mm, yellow. |
Fruits | spirally coiled 2–3 turns, rarely sickle-shaped, with doughnut-like hole visible in center of coils, 3–5 mm, villous, unarmed. |
spirally coiled 2–6 turns; ovoid to shortly cylindric, 5–10 mm, glabrous; dorsal sutures spiny or unarmed; spines hooked, 1–2 mm. |
Seeds | several, reniform, 1–2.5 × 1–1.5 mm, yellow; brownish; greenish yellow or violet-brown. |
2–12, reniform, 2–4 × 1.5–2.2 mm, light yellow to brownish. |
2n | =16, 32. |
=14,16. |
Medicago sativa |
Medicago polymorpha |
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Distribution | ||
Discussion | Sandy or rocky areas, riparian areas, fields, roadsides, disturbed areas. Flowering Jun–Aug. 0–1500 m. BR, Casc, Col, CR, ECas, Lava, Sisk, WV. CA, ID, NV, WA; worldwide. Exotic. Medicago sativa is the only Oregon species with purple or variegated flowers and with coiled, non-spiny fruits containing several seeds. It also has the largest flowers (approaching 1 cm in length) and more flowers per inflorescence than most of our other species. Medicago sativa is commonly used as a cover crop or green manure. |
Open grassy areas, fields, disturbed areas, roadsides. Flowering Mar–Jun. 0–1000 m. CR, Est, Sisk, WV. CA, ID, NV, WA; worldwide. Exotic. Medicago polymorpha can be distinguished from most other Medicago species by its combination of deeply laciniate stipules and lack of pubescence. |
Source | Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 709 Nurul Khalib, Melanie Link-Perez |
Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 708 Nurul Khalib, Melanie Link-Perez |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Medicago sativa ssp. sativa | Medicago hispida, Medicago hispida var. apiculata, Medicago hispida var. hispida |
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