Weed Information: Trifolium fragiferum (clover, strawberry)
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Trifolium fragiferum (clover, strawberry)

Family: Fabaceae

Description

The inflated spherical fruiting heads are the most distinctive feature of this species.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Red (or pink)
  • Red-purple
  • White
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Head
Number of Petals
  • 5 petals
Petal Separation
  • Completely free to base
  • United > 75% of length
Petal Tip
  • Bilobed
  • Rounded
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers strongly irregular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • 4 mm (.16 inch)
  • 5 mm (.20 inch)
  • 6 mm (.24 inch)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
Number of Sepals
  • 5 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • United from 25% - 75% length
  • 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 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Trifoliolate (3 leaflets)
Stipules
  • Foliaceous > 1 cm (> .40 inch) long
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Pinnate
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole < 25% total length
  • Petiole 25% - 75% total length
  • Petiole > 75% total length
Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.60 inches)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.60 - 4.0 inches)
Leaf Width
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.6 inches)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.6 - 4.0 inches)
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Serrate
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Acute (cuneate)
  • Rounded
  • Truncate
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Rounded (obtuse)
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Pubescent
  • Sparsely hairy
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
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 1 - 5 cm (.40 - 2.0 inches)
  • 5 - 10 cm (2.0 - 4.0 inches)
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 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
  • Rhizomatous

US State
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Pennsylvania
  • Wisconsin
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Iowa
  • Idaho
  • Montana
  • North Dakota
  • New Mexico
  • Nevada
  • Oregon
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • Wyoming
  • Nebraska
Canadian Province or Territory
  • British Columbia
  • Ontario

  • Garden Weeds of Southern California, 1981, See page: 56
  • Weeds of California and other Western States, 2007 (ISBN 13: 978-1-879906-69-3) See Page: 805
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 234, 236
  • Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 x
  • Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X
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