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Jepson Interchange (more information)
©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California
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  • Up-to-date information about California vascular plants is available from the Jepson eFlora.

FABACEAE

LEGUME FAMILY

Annual to tree
Leaves generally compound, alternate, stipuled; leaflets generally entire
Inflorescence: generally raceme, spike, umbel or head; flowers sometime 1–2 in axils
Flowers generally bisexual, generally bilateral; hypanthium generally flat or cup-like; sepals generally 5, fused; petals generally 5, free, or the 2 lower ± fused; stamens 1–many, often 10 with 9 filaments at least partly fused, 1 (uppermost) free; pistil 1, ovary superior, generally 1-chambered, ovules 1–many, style, stigma 1
Fruit: legume, sometimes including a stalk-like base above receptacle, dehiscent, or indehiscent and breaking into 1-seeded segments, or indehiscent, 1-seeded, and achene-like
Seeds 1–several, often ± reniform, generally hard, smooth
Genera in family: ± 650 genera, 18,000 species: worldwide; with grasses, requisite in agriculture and most natural ecosystems. Many cultivated, most importantly Arachis , peanut; Glycine , soybean; Phaseolus , beans; Medicago ; Trifolium ; and many orns
Reference: [Polhill & Raven (eds) 1981 Advances in legume systematics; Allen & Allen 1981 Leguminosae]
Family description and key to genera by Duane Isely.

TRIFOLIUM

CLOVER

Duane Isely

Annual or perennial herb, unarmed
Leaves generally palmately compound; stipules conspicuous, partly fused to petiole; leaflets generally 3, sometimes 5–9, ± serrate or dentate
Inflorescence: raceme (often umbel-like), head, or spike, axillary or terminal, generally many-flowered, often involucred, generally peduncled; flowers bracted or not
Flower generally spreading to erect, often becoming reflexed; corolla generally purple to pale lavender, sometimes yellow, persistent after flower; 9 filaments fused, 1 free
Fruit generally indehiscent, but often breaking, short, plump, generally included in corolla; base often stalk-like
Seeds 1–6
Etymology: (Latin: 3 leaves)
Reference: [Gillett 1980 Can J Bot 58:1425–1558; Zohary & Heller 1984 Genus Trifolium]

Native

T. microcephalum Pursh

Annual; hairs generally soft, wavy
Stem decumbent to erect
Leaves cauline; stipules often ± bristle-tipped; leaflets 0.8–2 cm, generally obovate, tip notched
Inflorescence: head, 7–many-flowered, often bur-like in fruit; involucre bowl-shaped, lobes ± entire
Flower: calyx 4–6 mm, tube 10-veined, lobes ± = or > tube, entire, unbranched, bristle-tipped; corolla 4–7 mm, pink to lavender
Fruit rupturing corolla
Seeds 1–2
Chromosomes: 2n=16
Ecology: Streambanks, moist, disturbed areas, roadsides, serpentine, conifer forest
Elevation: 200–2700 m.
Bioregional distribution: Northwestern California, Sierra Nevada, Great Central Valley, San Francisco Bay Area, South Coast, Channel Islands, San Bernardino Mountains, Peninsular Ranges, Mojave Desert
Distribution outside California: to British Columbia, Idaho, Arizona
Flowering time: Apr–Aug
Horticultural information: STBL.

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bioregional map for TRIFOLIUM%20microcephalum being generated
 
N.B. The distribution depicted here differs from that given in The Jepson Manual (1993)

Retrieve Jepson Interchange Index to Plant Names entry for Trifolium microcephalum
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