Trifolium pratense

Taxonomy and growth

Family

Leguminosae

Genus

Trifolium

Life cycle

perennial

Growth rate

moderate

Height

0.6 m

Spread

0.6 m

Fertility

Bees, Lepidoptera

Flower type

hermaphrodite

Pollinators

Bees, Lepidoptera

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Leaves and young flowering heads - raw or cooked^{[9][21][1][8]}. The young leaves are harvested before the plant comes into flower, and are used in salads, soups etc^[24]. On their own they can be used as a vegetable, cooked like spinach^[24].The leaves are best cooked^[6]. They can be dried, powdered and sprinkled on foods such as boiled rice^[8]. The leaves contain 81% water, 4% protein, 0.7% fat, 2.6% fibre and 2% ash^[13]. The seed can be sprouted and used in salads. A crisp texture and more robust flavour than alfalfa (Medicago sativa)^[8]. The seeds are reported as containing trypsin inhibitors^[13]. These can interfere with certain enzymes that help in the digestion of proteins, but are normally destroyed if the seed is sprouted first. Flowers and seed pods - dried, ground into a powder and used as a flour^[2]. The young flowers can also be eaten raw in salads^[3][6]. Root - cooked^[6][7]. A delicate sweet herb tea is made from the fresh or dried flowers^[12][21][8]. The dried leaves impart a vanilla flavour to cakes etc^[6].

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Red clover is safe and effective herb with a long history of medicinal usage. It is commonly used to treat skin conditions, normally in combination with other purifying herbs such as Arctium lappa and Rumex crispus^[16]. It is a folk remedy for cancer of the breast, a concentrated decoction being applied to the site of the tumour in order to encourage it to grow outwards and clear the body^[16]. Flavonoids in the flowers and leaves are oestrogenic and may be of benefit in the treatment of menopausal complaints^[16]. The flowering heads are alterative, antiscrofulous, antispasmodic, aperient, detergent, diuretic, expectorant, sedative and tonic^{[18][12][4][13][15]}. It has also shown anticancer activity^[6][13], poultices of the herb have been used as local applications to cancerous growths^[18]. Internally, the plant is used in the treatment of skin complaints (especially eczema and psoriasis), cancers of the breast, ovaries and lymphatic system, chronic degenerative diseases, gout, whooping cough and dry coughs^[15]. The plant is normally harvested for use as it comes into flower^[14][15] and some reports say that only the flowers are used^[18]. The toxic indolizidine alkaloid 'slaframine' is often found in diseased clover (even if the clover shows no external symptoms of disease). This alkaloid is being studied for its antidiabetic and anti-AIDS activity^[14].

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

A yellow dye is obtained from the flowers^[19][22]. The plant makes a good green manure, it is useful for over-wintering, especially in a mixture with Lolium perenne^[20]. Deep rooting, it produces a good bulk^[23]. It is a host to 'clover rot' however, so should not be used too frequently^[23]. It can be undersown with cereals though it may be too vigorous^[23]. It is also grown with grass mixtures for land reclamation, it has good nitrogen fixing properties^[10].

Environment

Range

Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain and W. Asia.

Habitat

Meadows, pastures and other grassy places^[24], especially on calcareous soils. Usually found on circumneutral soils^[5].

Light

full sun

Shade tolerance

no shade

Water

moderate

Hardiness

Zone 6+

Soil textures

sandy, loamy, clay

Soil pH

acid, neutral, alkaline

Drainage

well drained

Tolerances

high wind

Wind

Yes

Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil

No

Drought

intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Succeeds in a moist, well-drained circum-neutral soil in full sun^[10]. Prefers a medium-heavy loam^[23]. A short-lived perennial^[10]. A very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to at least -23°c^[15]. A very important food plant for the caterpillars of many butterfly and moth species^[17]. It is also a good bee plant^[20], but not so valuable as the white clover, T. repens^[18]. It grows well in an apple orchard, the trees will produce tastier fruit that stores better^[11]. It should not be grown with camellias or gooseberries because it harbours a mite that can cause fruit drop in the gooseberries and premature budding in the camellias^[11]. Very polymorphic, there are many subspecies and varieties. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby^[10]. Buttercups growing nearby depress the growth of the nitrogen bacteria by means of a root exudate^[11].

Related plants

• Trifolium bifidumPiñole Clover
• Trifolium ciliatumFoothill Clover
• Trifolium cyathiferumCup Clover
• Trifolium dichotomumBranched Indian Clover

References

1. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

   ↩

2. Johnson. C. P. The Useful Plants of Great Britain.

   ↩

3. Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana 1976-00-00 ISBN 0-00-634436-4

   ↩

4. Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.

   ↩

5. Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962-00-00

   ↩

6. Schofield. J. J. Discovering Wild Plants - Alaska, W. Canada and the Northwest.

   ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

7. Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984-00-00 ISBN 3874292169

   ↩

8. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

   ↩1↩2↩3↩4

9. Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20459-6

   ↩

10. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

11. Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd. 1993-00-00 ISBN 0-304-34324-2

    ↩1↩2↩3

12. Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983-00-00 ISBN 0-553-23827-2

    ↩1↩2

13. Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985-00-00 ISBN 0-917256-20-4

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

14. Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990-00-00 ISBN 0395467225

    ↩1↩2↩3

15. Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995-00-00 ISBN 0-7513-020-31

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

16. Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996-00-00 ISBN 9-780751-303148

    ↩1↩2↩3

17. Carter D. Butterflies and Moths in Britain and Europe. Pan 1982-00-00 ISBN 0-330-26642-x

    ↩

18. Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984-00-00 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

19. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩

20. Hatfield. A. W. How to Enjoy your Weeds. Frederick Muller Ltd 1977-00-00 ISBN 0-584-10141-4

    ↩1↩2

21. Harris. B. C. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health 1973-00-00

    ↩1↩2

22. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

    ↩

23. Woodward. L. Burge. P. Green Manures. Elm Farm Research Centre. 1982-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

24. Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981-00-00 ISBN 0-600-37216-2

    ↩1↩2↩3