Trifolium pratense
| Trifolium pratense | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 2' |
| Width: | 2' |
| Speed: | Moderate |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Nitrogen Fixer Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Trifolium pratense (common name: red clover)
Propagation: Pre-soak the seed for 12 hours in warm water and then sow in spring in situ.
If the seed is in short supply it might be better to sow it in pots in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in late spring.
Division in spring[1].
Cultivation: Succeeds in a moist, well-drained circum-neutral soil in full sun[2]. Prefers a medium-heavy loam[3].
A short-lived perennial[2].
A very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to at least -23°c[1].
A very important food plant for the caterpillars of many butterfly and moth species[4]. It is also a good bee plant[5], but not so valuable as the white clover, T. repens[6].
It grows well in an apple orchard, the trees will produce tastier fruit that stores better[7]. 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[7].
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[2]. Buttercups growing nearby depress the growth of the nitrogen bacteria by means of a root exudate[7].
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain and W. Asia.
Habitat: Meadows, pastures and other grassy places[8], especially on calcareous soils. Usually found on circumneutral soils[9].
Edibility: Leaves and young flowering heads - raw or cooked[10][11][12][13]. The young leaves are harvested before the plant comes into flower, and are used in salads, soups etc[8]. On their own they can be used as a vegetable, cooked like spinach[8].The leaves are best cooked[14]. They can be dried, powdered and sprinkled on foods such as boiled rice[13]. The leaves contain 81% water, 4% protein, 0.7% fat, 2.6% fibre and 2% ash[15].
The seed can be sprouted and used in salads. A crisp texture and more robust flavour than alfalfa (Medicago sativa)[13]. The seeds are reported as containing trypsin inhibitors[15]. 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[16]. The young flowers can also be eaten raw in salads[17][14].
A delicate sweet herb tea is made from the fresh or dried flowers[19][11][13].
The dried leaves impart a vanilla flavour to cakes etc[14].
Medicinal: 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[20]. 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[20]. Flavonoids in the flowers and leaves are oestrogenic and may be of benefit in the treatment of menopausal complaints[20].
The flowering heads are alterative, antiscrofulous, antispasmodic, aperient, detergent, diuretic, expectorant, sedative and tonic[6][19][21][15][1]. It has also shown anticancer activity[14][15], poultices of the herb have been used as local applications to cancerous growths[6]. 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[1]. The plant is normally harvested for use as it comes into flower[22][1] and some reports say that only the flowers are used[6].
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[22].
Usage: A yellow dye is obtained from the flowers[23][24].
The plant makes a good green manure, it is useful for over-wintering, especially in a mixture with Lolium perenne[5]. Deep rooting, it produces a good bulk[3]. It is a host to 'clover rot' however, so should not be used too frequently[3]. It can be undersown with cereals though it may be too vigorous[3]. It is also grown with grass mixtures for land reclamation, it has good nitrogen fixing properties[2].
Pollinators: Bees, lepidoptera
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Wind: Tolerates strong winds
Seed Ripens: Mid Summer-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: Diseased clover, even if no symptoms of disease are visible, can contain toxic alkaloids[22].
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Woodward, L and P Burge. Green Manures. Elm Farm Research Centre, 1982.
- ↑ Carter, David. Butterflies and Moths in Britain and Europe. Pan, 1982.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Hatfield, Audrey. How to Enjoy your Weeds. Frederick Muller Ltd, 1974.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Allardice, Pamela. A-Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers, 1993.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Launert, Edmund. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn, 1981.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Harris, Ben. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health, 1973.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Schofield, Janice. Discovering Wild Plants.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.
- ↑ Sowerby, John. The Useful Plants of Great Britain. 1862.
- ↑ Cribb, Alan and Joan Cribb. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana, 1976.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Lust, John. The Herb Book. Bantam Books, 1983.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Chevallier, Andrew. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants. Dorling Kindersley, 1996.
- ↑ Mills, Simon. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.