Trifolium eriocephalum |
Trifolium macilentum |
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woolly-head clover |
lean clover |
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Habit | Herbs perennial, 12–46 cm, sparsely hairy to densely villous, appressed-pubescent, or glabrate. | Herbs perennial, 12–38 cm, glabrous. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Stems | erect or decumbent, branched. |
erect, ascending, or decumbent, unbranched or branched distally. |
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Leaves | palmate; stipules lanceolate or ovate, 1–5 cm, margins entire or denticulate, apex acuminate or acute; petiole 1–15 cm; petiolules 1 mm; leaflets 3, blades linear, linear-elliptic, elliptic, lanceolate, lanceolate-oblong, or obovate, 1–5 × 0.4–1.2 cm, base cuneate, veins fine or ± thickened, margins denticulate or serrulate, apex acuminate or acute, surfaces appressed-pubescent abaxially, glabrous, densely villous, or sparsely or densely pilose adaxially. |
palmate; stipules lanceolate-elliptic on basal leaves, triangular-ovate on distal leaves, 0.8–3 cm, margins entire, apex acute or acuminate; petiole 1–15 cm; petiolules 1 mm; leaflets 3, blades ovate, rhombic, or lanceolate, 1–4.5 × 0.3–2.5 cm, thin, base cuneate, veins prominent, margins serrate, those of basal leaves setose and/or dentate, apex rounded or acute, surfaces glabrous. |
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Inflorescences | terminal or axillary, 25–70-flowered, inverted or horizontal, ellipsoid or globose to subglobose, 2–3 × 1–3 cm, rachis prolonged beyond flowers; involucres absent. |
terminal or axillary, 20–40-flowered, ovoid or obovoid, 2–4 × 1.4–3.5 cm, rachis internodes between floral whorls elongated; involucres absent. |
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Peduncles | bent distally, proximal to flowers, 3–18 cm. |
4–15 cm. |
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Pedicels | reflexed, to 0.3 mm; bracteoles absent. |
reflexed, to 1 mm; bracteoles minute, blunt. |
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Flowers | 9–18 mm; calyx campanulate, curved in fruit, 4–11 mm, villous, veins 10, tube 1.5–2.5 mm, lobes unequal, 2–3 times tube, subulate, often strongly curved and twisted, plumose, orifice open; corolla white, cream, or purple, 8–16 mm, banner oblanceolate, 8–16 × 3–5 mm, apex rounded or retuse, recurved; ovaries pubescent distally. |
14–17 mm; calyx campanulate, 4–5.7 mm, sparsely hairy, veins 10, tube 2–3.5 mm, lobes unequal, shorter than tube, narrowly triangular, orifice open; corolla violet or deep purple, 14–17 mm, banner ovate-oblong, 14–16 × 8–10 mm, apex rounded or slightly emarginate. |
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Legumes | ovoid, 2–3.5 mm. |
oblong or clavate, 4–5 mm. |
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Seeds | (1 or)2–4, yellow-brown to brown, mitten-shaped or subglobose, 1.2–2 mm, smooth. |
1–3, brown, flattened ovoid, 2 mm, smooth or slightly roughened, dull. |
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Trifolium eriocephalum |
Trifolium macilentum |
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Phenology | Flowering May–Jun. | |||||||||||||||||||||
Habitat | Dry hillsides. | |||||||||||||||||||||
Elevation | 1200–2800 m. [3900–9200 ft.] | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distribution |
w United States
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NV; UT |
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Discussion | Subspecies 6 (6 in the flora). Trifolium eriocephalum was revised by J. M. Gillett (1971). The subspecies exhibit unusually complex distributional patterns, and overlapping morphological features sometimes make identifications problematic (M. Zohary and D. Heller 1984). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Trifolium macilentum and morphologically similar species (T. dedeckerae, T. kingii, T. productum, and T. rollinsii) have been treated in diverse ways. J. M. Gillett (1972) recognized the latter four as distinct and considered T. macilentum a subspecies of T. kingii. D. Isely (1998) recognized T. kingii, T. macilentum, and T. productum, and considered T. dedeckerae and T. rollinsii to be varieties of T. macilentum. R. C. Barneby (1989) treated these as two species, T. kingii (with T. productum in synonymy) and T. macilentum (with T. dedeckerae and T. rollinsii as varieties). M. Zohary and D. Heller (1984) recognized T. kingii, with the other four taxa considered subspecies. As treated here, T. macilentum is known from extreme southwestern Utah and adjacent Nevada. (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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Name authority | Nuttall in J. Torrey and A. Gray: Fl. N. Amer. 1: 313. (1838) | Greene: Pittonia 3: 223. (1897) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Web links |