Rose Clover
Trifolium hirtum
Summary 7
Trifolium hirtum is a species of clover known by the common name rose clover. It is native to Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa. It is present elsewhere as an introduced species and it is cultivated as a cover crop and animal fodder. It was introduced to California from Turkey in the 1940s as a forage crop, and today it is a widespread roadside weed there.
Description 8
Rose Family (Rosaceae). Rose clover, a freely-branching, introduced, winter growing annual legume is three to twenty-four inches tall. The branches are covered with short, stiff hairs and the rest of the plant is less hairy. The wedge-shaped leaflets are alternate, about ½ to ¾ inches long. Petioles are 1 to 4 times as long as the leaflet. Stipules are membraneous, ovate to lanceolate and terminate in a fine hair-like point. The globular, ¾ inch diameter flowers are stalkless and sheathed at the base by the two utmost leaves. There are 20-30 flowers in each head. Seeds are ovoid, yellow and weigh about 3.0 grams per one thousand. Rose clover was introduced from Turkey in 1944.
Sources and Credits
- (c) Dawn Endico, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/51035743246@N01/11925348
- (c) licensed media from TrekNature DwCA without owner, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://www.treknature.com/viewphotos.php?l=3&p=287230
- (c) 1998 John Game, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=107738&one=T
- (c) 2008 Zoya Akulova, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=234820&one=T
- (c) 2008 Zoya Akulova, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=249772&one=T
- (c) 2009 Barry Breckling, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=301467&one=T
- (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trifolium_hirtum
- Public Domain, http://eol.org/data_objects/1396218
More Info
- iNat taxon page
- African Plants - a photo guide
- Atlas of Living Australia
- Biodiversity Heritage Library
- BOLD Systems BIN search
- Calflora
- CalPhotos
- eFloras.org
- Flora Digital de Portugal
- Flora of North America (beta)
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
- HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
- IPNI (with links to POWO, WFO, and BHL)
- Jepson eFlora
- NatureServe Explorer 2.0
- NBN Atlas
- New Zealand Plant Conservation Network
- OregonFlora.org
- SEINet Symbiota portals
- Tropicos
- USDA PLANTS database
- World Flora Online
