Trifolium bifidum |
Trifolium macraei |
|
---|---|---|
notch-leaf clover, Pinole clover, piñole clover |
Chilean clover, Macrae's clover |
|
Habit | Herbs annual, 5–55 cm, sparsely pubescent or glabrous. | Herbs annual, 3–30 cm, pubescent. |
Stems | erect, branched. |
erect, ascending, or prostrate, branched. |
Leaves | palmate; stipules ovate to lanceolate, 0.8–1.5 cm, margins entire or slightly serrate, apex acicular; petiole 1–7 cm; petiolules to 0.5 mm; leaflets 3, blades narrowly obcordate, obovate, oblanceolate, or linear, 1–2.5 × 0.3–0.7 cm, base cuneate, veins moderately thickened, margins serrate distally or entire, apex rounded, truncate, shallowly to deeply retuse, or deeply 2-fid, surfaces glabrous or hairy abaxially along midvein. |
palmate; stipules ovate to oblong, 0.6–1 cm, margins entire, apex acuminate to cuspidate; petiole 0.5–6 cm; petiolules to 0.5 mm; leaflets 3, blades obovate, oblanceolate, or elliptic, 0.6–1.6 × 0.3–1.2 cm, base cuneate, veins obscure or slightly thickened, margins subentire to serrate, apex rounded, retuse, surfaces pubescent. |
Inflorescences | axillary or terminal, 5–30-flowered, globose to subglobose, 0.8–1.5 × 0.8–1.5 cm, rachis prolonged beyond flowers; involucres a very narrow rim, to 0.5 mm. |
terminal or subterminal, usually paired, sometimes one head slightly stalked, partially hidden by terminal leaves and stipules, 10–40-flowered, ovoid or subglobose, 0.8–2.5 × 0.5–2 cm; involucres absent, involucrelike structure formed from terminal leaves and stipules. |
Peduncles | 3–8 cm. |
0–0.2 cm. |
Pedicels | reflexed in fruit, 1–3 mm; bracteoles broadly triangular, membranous, to 0.5 mm. |
absent; bracteoles broadly ovate to linear, 1–2 mm. |
Flowers | 6–8 mm; calyx campanulate, 3–3.6 mm, slightly hairy or glabrous, veins 10, tube 1–1.5 mm, lobes unequal, subulate, margins green or purple, orifice open; corolla pink or purple, 5–7 mm, banner elliptic to oblong, 5–7 × 3–4 mm, apex rounded, apiculate. |
5.5–7.5 mm; calyx tubular, 4–5 mm, pubescent, veins 5–10, tube 1.5–2 mm, lobes subequal, subulate, orifice open; corolla usually purple or pink, rarely white, 5–7 mm, banner obovate-oblong, 6–7 × 2–3 mm, apex rounded, slightly denticulate. |
Legumes | stipitate, obovoid, 3–4 mm. |
oblong, 2.5–3 mm. |
Seeds | 1 or 2, brown, mottled, oblong, 2–3 mm, smooth. |
1, yellow, mottled, ellipsoid, 1.6–2 mm, smooth. |
2n | = 16. |
= 16. |
Trifolium bifidum |
Trifolium macraei |
|
Phenology | Flowering Apr–Jun. | Flowering May–Jun. |
Habitat | Open woodlands, fields, roadsides, slopes, stream margins, meadows. | Grassy fields, sandy ocean bluffs. |
Elevation | 0–1200 m. (0–3900 ft.) | 0–800 m. (0–2600 ft.) |
Distribution |
CA; OR; WA; BC; Mexico (Baja California)
|
CA; OR; South America (Chile)
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Discussion | Trifolium bifidum ranges from Baja California, Mexico, northward through California to scattered sites in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Recent re-evaluation of Trifolium bifidum and related species showed complete overlap in characters for the two varieties that have been recognized previously, with no clear distinctions between them (L. Rogers, pers. comm.). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Trifolium macraei was described from specimens collected in Chile; the South American plants have broader banners, smaller auricles on the wing petals, and styles that are barely curved upwards distally (D. Isely 1998). Further examination of the disjunct populations may reveal other differences and prompt reconsideration of the identity of North American specimens. The record from Massachusetts is a waif. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Trifolium | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Trifolium |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | T. bifidum var. decipiens, T. greenei, T. hallii | T. bicephalum, T. catalinae, T. mercedense, T. traskiae |
Name authority | A. Gray: Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. 3: 102. (1864) | Hooker & Arnott: Bot. Misc. 3: 179. (1833) |
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