Image: Wikimedia Commons (See link for license)
White Clover🌿
Trifolium repens
シロツメクサ
An introduced perennial from Europe, widely found in parks and grasslands. Bears white globular flower heads. Characterized by its trifoliate leaves (rarely four-leaved), beloved by children who search for four-leaf clovers. Performs nitrogen fixation through symbiosis with rhizobia.
Identification Points
- ✓Three leaflets (rarely four) with pale chevron markings
- ✓White globular flower heads (many papilionaceous florets clustered together)
- ✓Stems creep along the ground (stoloniferous)
- ✓Tolerant of trampling
Habitat
Parks, grasslands, roadsides, lawns
Season
April to October (flowers)
3D Specimen Model
Kyushu University, Shikano Lab (CC0)
View on Sketchfab→Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Compound
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf shape
Ovate
Growth form
Herb
Petal count
5 petals
Petal fusion
Free
Flower color
White
Ovary position
Superior
Phylogenetic Positionマメ科 →
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core eudicots > Fabales > Fabaceae
Divergence Era
Late Cretaceous to Paleogene (approx. 70–60 million years ago)
Evolution Notes
Fabaceae can thrive in nutrient-poor soils through symbiosis with nitrogen-fixing rhizobia. The family diversified rapidly from the Late Cretaceous to the Paleogene.
View on evolution timeline →Sources & References
AI-generated, needs verification