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Common Melilot

Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.

Associations

provided by BioImages, the virtual fieldguide, UK
Foodplant / internal feeder
larva of Apion meliloti feeds within stem of Melilotus officinalis
Other: major host/prey

In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / parasite
effuse colony of Ramularia anamorph of Cladosporium cf cladosporioides parasitises live Melilotus officinalis

Plant / resting place / on
adult of Cryptocephalus hypochaeridis may be found on Melilotus officinalis
Remarks: season: 4-9

Foodplant / parasite
conidial anamorph of Erysiphe trifolii parasitises live Melilotus officinalis

Foodplant / parasite
sporangium of Peronospora meliloti parasitises live Melilotus officinalis

Foodplant / feeds on
larva of Sitona cylindricollis feeds on Melilotus officinalis
Other: major host/prey

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Comments

provided by eFloras
A weed of cultivated fields and waste places.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 309 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
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eFloras.org
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Description

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Annual to biennial, erect or decumbent plant, 30-250 cm tall. Leaflets of lower leaves obovate to ovate, the upper ovate-lanceolate, serrate. Stipules of lower leaves entire. Inflorescence a 4-10 cm long raceme, longer than the subtending leaf. Corolla 5-7 mm long, yellow, wing and vexillum equal, longer than the keel. Fruit 3-5 mm long, glabrous, transversely striated, usually 1-seeded.
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cc-by-nc-sa-3.0
copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 309 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
project
eFloras.org
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eFloras

Distribution

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Distribution: Pakistan, Kashmir, India (N. Punjab), Tibet, Russia (Central Asia, Siberia, Caucasus, European Russia), China, Persia, Turkey, Middle and Southern Europe; introduced in America and Tropical Africa.
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cc-by-nc-sa-3.0
copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 309 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
project
eFloras.org
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eFloras

Flower/Fruit

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Fl.Per.: September.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 309 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
project
eFloras.org
original
visit source
partner site
eFloras

Physical Description

provided by USDA PLANTS text
Annual, Perennial, Herbs, Taproot present, Nodules present, Stems erect or ascending, Stems less than 1 m tall, Stems 1-2 m tall, Stems solid, Stems or young twigs glabrous or sparsely glabrate, Stems or young twigs sparsely to densely hairy, Leaves alternate, Leaves petiolate, Stipules conspicuous, Stipules setiform, subulate or acicular, Stipules persistent, Stipules free, Stipules adnate to petiole, Leaves compound, Leaves pinnately 3-foliolate, Leaves odd pinnate, Leaflets dentate or denticulate, Leaflets opposite, Leaflets 3, Leaves glabrous or nearly so, Inflorescences racemes, Inflorescence axillary, Bracts very small, absent or caducous, Flowers zygomorphic, Calyx 5-lobed, Calyx glabrous, Petals separate, Corolla papilionaceous, Petals clawed, Petals white, Petals orange or yellow, Banner petal ovoid or obovate, Wing petals narrow, oblanceolate to oblong, Wing petals auriculate, Wing tips obtuse or rounded, Keel tips obtuse or rounded, not beaked, Stamens 9-10, Stamens diadelphous, 9 united, 1 free, Filaments glabrous, Style terete, Style persistent in fruit, Fruit a legume, Fruit stipitate, Fruit unilocular, Fruit tardily or weakly dehiscent, Fruit oblong or ellipsoidal, Fruit rugose wrinkled or reticulate, Fruit exserted from calyx, Fruit beaked, Fruit glabrous or glabrate, Fruit hairy, Fruit 1-seeded, Seeds ovoid to rounded in outline, Seed surface smooth, Seeds olive, brown, or black.
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Dr. David Bogler
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Missouri Botanical Garden
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USDA NRCS NPDC
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USDA PLANTS text

Melilotus officinalis

provided by wikipedia EN

Melilotus officinalis, known as sweet yellow clover, yellow melilot, ribbed melilot[1] and common melilot, is a species of legume native to Eurasia and introduced in North America, Africa, and Australia.[2]

Description

20140613Melilotus officinalis.jpg

Melilotus officinalis can be an annual or biennial plant, and is 4–6 feet (1.2–1.8 m) high at maturity.[2] Leaves alternate on the stem and possess three leaflets. Yellow flowers bloom in spring and summer and produce fruit in pods typically containing one seed. Seeds can be viable for up to 30 years. Plants have large taproots and tend to grow in groups.[2] Plants have a characteristic sweet odor.[2]

Habitat

M. officinalis is native to Europe and Asia and has been introduced to North America as a forage crop.[2] It commonly grows in calcareous loamy and clay soils with a pH above 6.5 and can tolerate cold temperatures and drought; it does not tolerate standing water[2] or acidic soils, with a pH of 5.5 as the plant's lowest limit.[3] Common places where it can be found include open disturbed land, prairies, and savannahs, and it grows in full or partial sunlight. It is an invasive species in areas where it has been introduced, especially in open grasslands and woodlands where it shades and outcompetes native plant species.[2]

Toxicology

Sweet clover contains coumarin that converts to dicoumarol, which is a powerful anticoagulant toxin, when the plant becomes moldy. This can lead to bleeding diseases (internal hemorrhaging) and death in cattle. Consequently, hay containing the plant must be properly dried and cured, especially in wet environments.[4][3]

Uses

The seeds are eaten by game birds, including grouse.[5]

Sweetclover can be used as pasture or livestock feed when properly cured.[6] It is most palatable in spring and early summer, but livestock may need time to adjust to the bitter taste of coumarin in the plant. Prior to World War II, before the common use of commercial agricultural fertilizers, the plant was commonly used as a cover crop to increase nitrogen content and improve subsoil water capacity in poor soils.[3] It is the most drought-tolerant of the commercially available legumes.[7] Sweet clover is a major source of nectar for domestic honey bees as hives near sweetclover can yield up to 200 pounds of honey in a year.[3]

Sweetclover has been used as a phytoremediation—phytodegradation plant for treatment of soils contaminated with dioxins.[8]

In the chemical industry, dicoumarol is extracted from the plant to produce rodenticides.[3]

Management

When M. officinalis is invasive, it can be managed by mulching, hand-pulling, mowing, or herbicide applications such (e.g., 2,4-D) before flowering. Prescribed burns in late fall or early spring followed by another burn in late spring can reduce the number of plants before seed set.[2]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Melilotus officinalis.
Wikispecies has information related to Melilotus officinalis.
  1. ^ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h United States Forest Service. "Yellow Sweetclover" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-28.
  3. ^ a b c d e USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. "Yellow Sweetclover & White Sweetclover" (PDF).
  4. ^ Nicole Kresge; Robert D. Simoni & Robert L. Hill. "Hemorrhagic Sweet Clover Disease, Dicumarol, and Warfarin: the Work of Karl Paul Link". Retrieved 2009-08-11.
  5. ^ Niering, William A.; Olmstead, Nancy C. (1985) [1979]. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers, Eastern Region. Knopf. p. 535. ISBN 0-394-50432-1.
  6. ^ Reiner, Ralph E. (1969). Introducing the Flowering Beauty of Glacier National Park and the Majestic High Rockies. Glacier Park, Inc. p. 52.
  7. ^ Dan Ogle; Loren St. John; Mark Stannard & Larry Holzworth. "Grass, Grass-like, Forb, Legume, and Woody Species for the Intermountain West" (PDF). Retrieved 2019-01-31.
  8. ^ Sandia National Labs: SSFL Report; pg.10 . accessed 6.12.2012
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Melilotus officinalis: Brief Summary

provided by wikipedia EN

Melilotus officinalis, known as sweet yellow clover, yellow melilot, ribbed melilot and common melilot, is a species of legume native to Eurasia and introduced in North America, Africa, and Australia.

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wikipedia EN