Selected Plants of Navajo Rangelands

Diné bikéyah Chi’l nooséłígíí Bąąhą́ą́nosin
Take care of our Navajo Rangelands

California burclover
Tł’oh azee

Trifoliate leaves and yellow flowers
Ixitixel (eigene Arbeit, selbst fotografiert) [GFDL or CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Burclover is a shallow-rooted annual legume that generally has numerous prostrate stems branching from the crown and spreading outward 6 to 30 inches. Where thick stands develop, however, stems may become erect, obtaining heights of 18 to 24 inches in favorable years. The leaves are subglabrous and clover-like in appearance, with leaflets normally wedge-shaped and toothed toward the top. The inflorescence is usually quite limited, presenting only a few small, yellow, pea-like flowers. The several-seeded fruit is a flattened, coiled pod, commonly up to 1/4 inch in width and fringed with a double row of conspicuous, hooked spines. Well developed plants may produce more than 1,000 pods. The seed is rather large for a legume of this type, usually developing to over 3/32 inch in length.

Stems and trifoliate leaves
Forest & Kim Starr [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Growth habit, including burs just starting to form
Forest & Kim Starr [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Green burs and leaves
Forest & Kim Starr [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
All parts of burclover visible at once: leaves, yellow flowers, and burs
Forest & Kim Starr [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Scientific Name
Medicago polymorpha
Plant Type
Forb
Growing Season
Warm Season
Stem Placement
Alternate
Habitats
  • Brushlands
  • Grasslands
Flower Color
Yellow
⚠
Noxious
For definitions, see the glossary.

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