Weed Information: Lotus corniculatus (trefoil, birdsfoot)
Back to Plant List

Lotus corniculatus (trefoil, birdsfoot)

Family: Fabaceae

Description

Birdsfoot trefoil was introduced as a forage and hay species and is desirable in many situations. The umbrella-shaped clusters of flowers are bright yellow, sometimes tipped with red. The leaves have three leaflets and two large leaf-like stipules.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Red (or pink)
  • Yellow-orange
  • Yellow
  • Multi-colored
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Simple umbel
Number of Petals
  • 5 petals
Petal Separation
  • Completely free to base
  • United > 75% of length
Petal Tip
  • Rounded
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers strongly irregular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
  • 1.5 cm (.6 inch)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • 4 mm (.16 inch)
  • 5 mm (.20 inch)
  • 6 mm (.24 inch)
  • 7 mm (.28 inch)
Number of Sepals
  • 5 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • United > 75% of length
Sepal Tip
  • Pointed
Flower Sex
  • Bisexual (perfect)
Number of Styles
  • 1 style
Number of Stamens
  • 10 stamens
Stamens Attached to the Petals
  • Stamens NOT attached to the petals
Stamens Connate (united)
  • Filaments united, diadelphous

Carpel Separation
  • Carpels united (or one)
Number of Carpels
  • 1 carpel
Ovary Position
  • Superior (hypogynous)
Fruit Type
  • Capsule, 1-celled
  • Legume
Fruit Length at Maturity
  • 2.0 cm (.80 inch)
  • 2.5 cm (1.0 inch)
  • 3.0 cm (1.2 inches)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
  • 4 mm (.16 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Compound odd pinnate < 8 leaflets
  • Trifoliolate (3 leaflets)
Stipules
  • Foliaceous 4-10 mm (.16 - .40 in) long
  • Foliaceous > 1 cm (> .40 inch) long
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Pinnate
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole 25% - 75% total length
Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.60 inches)
Leaf Width
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.6 inches)
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Entire
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Acute (cuneate)
  • Rounded
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Rounded (obtuse)
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Glabrous (NO hairs)
  • Pubescent
Succulence
  • Not succulent

Milky Juice
  • Juice NOT milky (watery)
Woodiness
  • Herbaceous
Spines or Thorns
  • Spines or Thorns ABSENT
Aromatic (vegetative structures)
  • Not aromatic
Life Cycle
  • Perennial
Growth Habit (while flowering)
  • Prostrate
  • Spreading ascending
  • Erect, spherical (bushy)
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 5 - 10 cm (2.0 - 4.0 inches)
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
Wind Dissemination
  • Not wind disseminated
Moisture Regime
  • Mesic
Chlorophyll
  • Present

Stem Cross Section
  • Round
Flowering Stem Leaves
  • Stem uniformly leafy
Main Stem Branches
  • Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule
  • Tap Root

US State
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Massachusetts
  • Maine
  • Michigan
  • Missouri
  • North Carolina
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • West Virginia
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Iowa
  • Idaho
  • Minnesota
  • Montana
  • North Dakota
  • New Mexico
  • Nevada
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • South Dakota
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • Wyoming
  • Nebraska
Canadian Province or Territory
  • British Columbia
  • New Brunswick
  • Nova Scotia
  • Ontario
  • Prince Edward Island
  • Quebec
  • Alberta
  • Manitoba
  • Newfoundland
  • Saskatchewan
  • Yukon
Other
  • District of Columbia
  • St. Pierre and Miquelon
  • Labrador

  • The Biology of Canadian Weeds: Canadian Journal of Plant Science Vol:60Pg.965
  • California Growers Weed Identification Handbook, 1968 - 1998 University of California Publication # 4030-1, See page: 263
  • Field Guide To The Common Weeds Of Kansas, 1983 (ISBN 0-7006-0233-X) See page: 61
  • Garden Weeds of Southern California, 1981, See page: 62
  • More Turfgrass and Related Weeds: Beyond the Color Atlas, 2011 Clemson University Publishing ISBN# 978-0-9798777-5-9 See Page: 260
  • Northwest Weeds, 1990 (ISBN 0-87842-249-8) See page: 63
  • Ontario Weeds, 1992 Agdex 640, Publication #505 See page: 123
  • Weed Seeds of the Great Plains, 1993 University of Kansas# 92-125-B ISBN# 0-7006-0651-3 See index #: 97
  • Weeds of California and other Western States, 2007 (ISBN 13: 978-1-879906-69-3) See Page: 770
  • Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains, 1994 (ISBN 0939870-00-4) See page: 304
  • Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 220
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 228,330
  • Weeds of the Northern United States and Canada, 1964 Montgomery See page: 101
  • Wildly Successful Plants, A Handbook of North American Weeds, 1977 (ISBN# 0-02-528850-4) See page: 24, 159
  • Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 x
  • Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X
Back to Plant List