Interesting Information About Plant:
The red clover is the state flower of Vermont and is widely abundant across the state. The dried flower heads may be mixed with other plants to make delicate teas. If you mixed 1 oz. Liquid extract from the flower with 1 pint of boiling water, the mixture could be used to treat bronchitis and whooping cough. Red clover has about two-thirds more digestible protein than alfalfa which is why it is widely used as a pasture and hay grass. Red clover grows best in full sun, which is why it is planted in large meadows and fields for hay and grazing. The plant is a perennial but only lives a short time (two to three years) because it easily succumbs to disease and harsh winters.
Red clover is a good rotation crop, returning 120 pounds of useful nitrogen to the soil each year. The seed capsule is also good for reducing grass and broadleaf weed pressure that would normally try to take over the surrounding area. The leaflets have pale triangular markings across the middle of the plant that makes it easy to identify. While almost always the leaves have three leaflets on the petiole, it is considered good luck to find a cloverleaf with four leaflets.
Scientific Name: Trifolium pratense
Family Name (Scientific and Common): Fabaceae
Continent of Origin: Europe
Plant Growth Habit: Ground Cover
Height at Maturity: Less than 1 foot
Life Span: Perennial
Seasonal Habit: Herbaceous That Stays Green Through Winter
Growth Habitat: Full Sun
Manner of Culture: Weed
Thorns on Younger Stem: No
Cross Section of Younger Stem: Roundish
Stem (or Trunk) Diameter: Less Than The Diameter of a Pencil
Produces Brownish Bark: No
Bark Peeling in Many Areas: No
Characteristics of Mature (Brownish) Bark: No Mature Bark (all green)
Type of Leaf: Flat, Thin Leaf
Length of Leaf (or Leaflet): Less than Length of a Credit Card
Leaf Complexity: Palmately Compound
Edge of Leaf: Smooth
Leaf Arrangement: Alternate
Leaf has Petiole: Yes
Patterns of Main-Veins on Leaf (or Leaflet): Pinnate
Leaf Hairiness: Somewhat Hairy
Color of Foliage in Summer: Green
Change in Color of Foliage in October: No Change
Flowering Season: Spring / Summer / Autumn
Flowers: Tightly Clustered
Type of Flower: Colorful Flower
Color of Flower: White / Pink / Purple
Shape of Individual Flower: Bilaterally Symmetrical
Size of Individual Flower: Smaller than a Quarter
Sexuality: Male and Female on Same Plant
Size of Fruit: Smaller than a Quarter
Fruit Fleshiness:Fleshy
Shape of Fruit: Long Pod
Color of Fruit at Maturity: Green
Fruit Desirable to Birds or Squirrels: No
Common Name(s): Red Clover, Clover
Louisville Plants That Are Most Easily Confused With This One: Any other type of clover
Unique Morphological Features of Plant: Has a hard water permeable seed coat, slight hairiness on stem and underside of leaf, the first true leaf the plant grows is solitary, oval in shape, and squarely cut off at the base,
Poisonous: None of Plant
Pestiness (weedy, hard to control): Yes
Page prepared by:
Cynthia Toth
November 2004
