ROUGH CLOVER

Trifolium scabrum

Pea Family [Fabaceae]

month8may month8jun month8june

status
statusZnative
flower
flower8white
flower
flower8pink
inner
inner8pink
morph
morph8zygo
petals
petalsZ5
type
typeZclustered
stem
stem8round
rarity
rarityZuncommon

26th June 2019, flanks of Great Orme, Llandudno, North Wales. Photo: © RWD
Rough Clover is admixed with a small patch of Knotted Hedge-Parsley but in this carefully selected part of the photo, your Author thinks that the only example of that present in this view are the paler-green fern-type leaves at the bottom leftish side; all the rest is Rough Clover (with the darker-green trefoil leaves, the small and tight clumps of tiny white (sometimes pink) flowers and their fruiting stage where the fruits are orange-brownish. All the thickish, hairy, pink stems also belong to Rough Clover.


26th June 2019, flanks of Great Orme, Llandudno, North Wales. Photo: © RWD
All visible here are stems, leaves, flowers and fruits of Rough Clover (except for the large yellow petal on the left side, the larger, brighter-green leaves at the top which belong to an unknown other plant, and the brighter-green fern-type leaves of yet more Knotted Hedge-Parsley). [There might also be some hairy pods of yet some other unknown plant in the bottom half of the photo].

As can be seen, Rough Clover os usually procumbent along the ground.



26th June 2019, flanks of Great Orme, Llandudno, North Wales. Photo: © RWD
Apart from the long, thin, green spike at the bottom left, and the curved green spikes at the top, and the long broad faintly-toothed left at bottom right, all the rest belongs to Rough Clover.


26th June 2019, flanks of Great Orme, Llandudno, North Wales. Photo: © RWD
All Rough Clover: The hairy trefoil leaves, the clustered white (or pinkish) barely-opened clusters of small flowers and the thick, hairy stems; all are Rough Clover.


26th June 2019, flanks of Great Orme, Llandudno, North Wales. Photo: © RWD
All Rough Clover (except for the pale-fawn object with spiky-hairy bright-green object below it on the right, and some grass-like leaves top right)


29th May 2011, Bembridge Point, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The pink coloured Knotted Clover is the analogue of this rarer white flowered plant which is a hairy annual, the hairs being appressed to the stem upwards. All leaves are alternate on the stem (despite the top 2 leaves usually looking as if they are opposite, but they are not). It is usually procumbent along the ground, measuring up to 20cm in length.


23rd July 2017, Visitor Centre, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
This specimen fruiting.


23rd July 2017, Visitor Centre, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
The fruiting stage.


29th May 2011, Bembridge Point, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The leaves are in 3-s with the individual leaflets being obovate and hairier underneath. The flowers are in small crowded bunches and do not seem to open much at all.


29th May 2011, Bembridge Point, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
An isolated bunch of just 7 white-petalled flowers. The flower heads (bunches) are not stalked and between 5 to 12mm long.


29th May 2011, Bembridge Point, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The flowers might have pink tinges before they are fully developed. The leaflets of the leaves on the stem have a gradually tapered point at their tips.


29th May 2011, Bembridge Point, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The flowers are 4 to 7mm long and don't seem to open wide at all.


18th June 2012, causeway, Isle of Purbeck, South England. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The side-veins of the leaflets curve outwards (best seen in top 2 leaflets).


18th June 2012, causeway, Isle of Purbeck, South England. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The rear flowerhead still in flower; the nearer one turning to fruit.


23rd July 2017, Visitor Centre, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
This seems to be as far as the petals open, with the thin but long banner folded at 45° around the longish wings and the smaller keel hiding well.


23rd July 2017, Visitor Centre, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Just turning to fruit; the petals withering to a fawn-brown.


1st July 2006, Norton Spit, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
The five sepal teeth look about equal in length. [The two upwardly-curved brown cup-shaped objects on the middle left are old leaves - look at the outwardly-curved veins]


1st July 2006, Norton Spit, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
In fruit the racemes are spherical to ovoidal (between 1.5x to twice as long as they are wide). [The curled up dark-brown but hairy 'tails' are the old leaves]


1st July 2006, Norton Spit, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone


1st July 2006, Norton Spit, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
When in fruit the sepal teeth splay outwards.


30th May 2011, Bembridge Point, IoW. Photo: (CC by 2.0) Geoff Toone
Two specimens hung out to dry. The upper leaves are longer than the lower leaves. [Smallest squares: 1 mm]


Photo: (CC by 2.0) Diane Napier
Note the veins in the leaves



Easily mistaken for : Knotted Clover (Trifolium striatum) which is also both hairy and procumbent but at up to 30cm could be longer than Rough Clover at up to 20cm. Knotted Clover has flowers 4-7mm long too but they are pink (not the white to pale-pink of Rough Clover).

Not to be semantically confused with : Rough Chervil (Chaerophyllum temulum), Rough Stonewort (Chara aspera), Rough Hawk's-beard (Crepis biennis), Rough Horsetail (Equisetum hyemale), Rough Hawkbit (Leontodon hispidus), Rough Poppy (Papaver hybridum), Rough Comfrey (Symphytum asperum) or Rough Cockelbur (Xanthium strumarium) [all plants with similar names]

For identifying characteristics, see captions.


  Trifolium scabrum  ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ Fabaceae  

Distribution
 family8Pea family8Fabaceae
 BSBI maps
genus8Trifolium
Trifolium
(Clovers)

ROUGH CLOVER

Trifolium scabrum

Pea Family [Fabaceae]