Large Hop Trefoil
Encyclopedia
Trifolium aureum, the Large Hop Trefoil, also sometimes known as Golden clover or Hop clover, is a species of clover
native to much of central and southern Europe
.
Large Hop Trefoil is a small erect herbaceous
biennial plant
growing to 10-30 cm tall. Like all clovers, it has leaves divided into three sessile leaflet
s, each leaflet 15-25 mm long and 6-9 mm broad. Its yellow flower
s are arranged into small, elongated round inflorescence
s 12-20 mm diameter, located at the end of the stem
. Each individual flower is decumbent. As they age, the flowers become brown and paper-like. The fruit
is a pod usually containing two seed
s.
The closely related Hop Trefoil
(T. campestre) is a similar, but shorter, spreading, species with smaller leaves and flowers. The middle leaflet of its leaves also has a short rachis.
species are favored as forage.
It was introduced
to North America
(Pennsylvania
) in 1800, where it is now found in the eastern and western regions, but not in the middle or southern states. In Canada
, it is found in the south of all provinces.
Clover
Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...
native to much of central and southern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Large Hop Trefoil is a small erect herbaceous
Herbaceous
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
biennial plant
Biennial plant
A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots , then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months. Usually the stem remains very short and the leaves are low to the ground, forming...
growing to 10-30 cm tall. Like all clovers, it has leaves divided into three sessile leaflet
Leaflet
A leaflet in botany is a part of a compound leaf. A leaflet may resemble an entire leaf, but it is not borne on a stem as a leaf is, but rather on a vein of the whole leaf. Compound leaves are common in many plant families...
s, each leaflet 15-25 mm long and 6-9 mm broad. Its yellow flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are arranged into small, elongated round inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s 12-20 mm diameter, located at the end of the stem
Plant stem
A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...
. Each individual flower is decumbent. As they age, the flowers become brown and paper-like. The fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
is a pod usually containing two seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s.
The closely related Hop Trefoil
Hop Trefoil
Trifolium campestre, commonly known as Hop Trefoil and Low Hop Clover, is a species of clover native to Europe and western Asia, growing in most areas, but specifically thriving on dry, sandy grassland habitats, as well as in fields, woodland margins, roadsides, wastelands and cultivated land...
(T. campestre) is a similar, but shorter, spreading, species with smaller leaves and flowers. The middle leaflet of its leaves also has a short rachis.
Cultivation and uses
The plant is very common, and grows well on poor, undisturbed grounds. While it probably has good nutritive values, perennialPerennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter lived annuals and biennials. The term is sometimes misused by commercial gardeners or horticulturalists to describe only herbaceous perennials...
species are favored as forage.
It was introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
(Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
) in 1800, where it is now found in the eastern and western regions, but not in the middle or southern states. In Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, it is found in the south of all provinces.