Trifolium lappaceum L.

Lappa Clover; Burdock Clover

Herb

Annual

Vascular

Burdock Clover is an introduced herbaceous annual in the Bean family (Fabaceae). It is native to southern Europe, north Africa, and western Asia. Burdock Clover can be found primarily in the Black Belt region of central Alabama. It occurs on roadsides, in fields, in pastures, in lawns, and in prairies. It is an annual with a tap root. Stems are erect to decumbent, 3-6 inches in height, green in color, branched, and glabrous to slightly pubescent. Leaves are alternate, petiolate, and palmately trifoliate. The leaflets are obovate to oblanceolate in outline, finely toothed in the upper third, and villous on both surfaces. Flowers are produced in nearly sessile, globose to ovoid heads from the axils of the upper leaves. The peduncles elongate in fruit. The calyx is tubular, glabrous, and 5 lobed. The lobes are nearly equal and longer than the tube. The lobes have long, stiff, bristle-like hairs. The calyx tube has 20 nerves and a ring of stiff white hairs at its throat. The corolla is white becoming pinkish in color. The corolla is shorter to slightly longer than the calyx. The fruit is an ovoid 1-seeded legume. Burdock Clover is unique among Alabama clovers in its 20 nerved glabrous calyx tube and bristle-like lobes.—A. Diamond

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Not Native

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