Trifolium andersonii |
Trifolium incarnatum |
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Anderson's clover, fiveleaf clover |
crimson clover, Italian clover |
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Habit | Herbs perennial, 5–12 cm, canescent. | Herbs usually annual, rarely biennial, 20–60 cm, short-villous. | ||||||||
Stems | erect-ascending, cespitose, mat-forming, branched; from deep taproot-like crown. |
erect, unbranched or sparsely branched. |
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Leaves | palmate; stipules ovate or lanceolate, 0.5–1.5 cm, margins entire, apex long-acuminate; petiole 1–5 cm; petiolules to 0.5 mm; leaflets (3–)5, blades obovate, 0.5–2.2 × 0.2–1.2 cm, base cuneate, veins obscured by pubescence, margins entire, apex rounded or acute, apiculate, surfaces canescent. |
palmate; stipules ovate, 1–2 cm, margins wavy or toothed, apex blunt or ± tapering distally; petiole 1–8 cm; petiolules 1 mm; leaflets 3, blades broadly ovate, 1–3 × 1–1.5 cm, base cuneate, veins fine, margins denticulate, apex emarginate or retuse, surfaces with spreading, pustulate-based hairs. |
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Inflorescences | axillary, 10–20-flowered, depressed-globose, 1–2 × 1–2.3 cm; involucres formed of connate, narrow, membranous bracts, to 0.5 mm. |
terminal, 25–100-flowered, oblong, 2–7 × 1–2.5 cm; involucres absent. |
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Peduncles | 1–14 cm. |
2–10 cm. |
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Pedicels | absent; bracteoles absent. |
straight, 0.5 mm; bracteoles absent. |
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Flowers | 10–17 mm; calyx campanulate, 9–11 mm, pilose, veins 10, tube 4–5 mm, lobes equal, subulate, plumose, orifice open; corolla white or pink, 10–17 mm, banner ovate-oblong, 12–19 × 3–5 mm, apex rounded, retuse. |
10–15 mm; calyx tubular-campanulate, 10 mm, villous, veins 10, tube 3–4 mm, lobes equal, longer than tube, spreading in fruit, orifice narrowly opening; corolla usually scarlet to red, rarely pink or white, 11–17 mm, banner oblong-elliptic, much longer than wing and keel petals, 10–16 × 2 mm, apex acute. |
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Legumes | ellipsoid, 4–5 mm. |
ovoid, leathery distally, transversely dehiscent, 2.5–3 mm. |
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Seeds | 1 (or 2), tan or brown, irregularly ovoid, 1.6–2 mm, smooth, glossy. |
1, reddish, ellipsoid, 2–2.5 mm, smooth, glossy. |
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2n | = 14. |
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Trifolium andersonii |
Trifolium incarnatum |
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Phenology | Flowering May–Aug. | |||||||||
Habitat | Meadows, roadsides, especially in sandy soils. | |||||||||
Elevation | 0–1000 m. (0–3300 ft.) | |||||||||
Distribution |
w United States
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AL; AR; CA; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; BC; Europe [Introduced in North America; introduced also in s South America (Chile), e Asia (e China), s Africa, Pacific Islands (Hawaii, New Zealand), Australia]
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Discussion | Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora). Trifolium andersonii encompasses three moderately well separable subspecies, with subsp. andersonii the more northern form in the range of the species, subsp. monoense in the southwestern portion of the range, and subsp. beatleyae in the eastern portion of the range (J. M. Gillett 1972). Intermediates between the latter two (and overlap in their ranges) make differentiation between them somewhat problematic, which prompted R. C. Barneby (1989) to combine them as var. beatleyae. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Trifolium incarnatum was introduced to the United States in 1818 as a forage crop and green manure crop; it is used commonly as a winter grazing crop and in roadside grass plantings as a nitrogen source, especially in the southeastern states (W. E. Knight 1985). Reports of T. incarnatum in Manitoba, Ontario, and Montana appear to have been based on cultivated specimens. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. | ||||||||
Parent taxa | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Trifolium | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Trifolium | ||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||
Name authority | A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 6: 522. (1865) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 769. (1753) | ||||||||
Web links |
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