El white clover It is a herb that, normally, we would not want to have in the gardens, since it grows so fast that it is sometimes difficult - not impossible - to control it. But the truth is that It has various uses that cannot go unnoticed.
For this reason, we are going to do our bit so that it stops looking like a weed that must be eliminated at all costs 🙂.
Origin and characteristics
The white clover, whose scientific name is trifolium repens, is a perennial herb native to Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia. It has become naturalized in North America. It has a creeping bearing, and reaches a height of 10 centimeters. Its habit is stoloniferous, which means that it develops lateral shoots that are born at the base and that grow horizontally.
Its leaves are petiolate and trifoliate. The leaflets are oval, with a white spot. The flowers are grouped in inflorescences called glomeruli 1,5 to 2 cm wide, containing 50 to 100 white or white-pink flowers. The fruits contain 3-4 small heart-shaped seeds, yellow or reddish-brown.
What do you need to live?
White clover needs a sunny exposure and a warm temperature to be able to develop normally. Although it supports frosts down to -3ºC, the ideal is that it does not drop below 7ºC as it tends to suffer damage.
In addition, it is also necessary that it receives water on a regular basis, since it does not withstand drought. For this reason, it thrives best where it rains frequently throughout the year.
What uses does it have?
Forage
It constitutes one of the main foods of ruminant animals (cattle, sheep, goats, jiraphids, cervids). Of course, it is not given as the only food, but is mixed with grasses to avoid abdominal distention caused by the production and accumulation of an excessive amount of gases in the intestines.
Culinary
If the leaves are cooked for 5-10 minutes, they can be added to salads for example, or to soups. In addition, the dried flowers and seeds are a very nutritious flour that can be mixed with other foods.
Ornamental
It is a very curious and decorative plant. 😉 In fact, often mixed with other lawn grasses. Even so, we must know that to avoid causing us problems, it can be kept in a pot throughout its life, since as it does not exceed 10cm, it will surely adapt wonderfully well.
What did you think of the white clover?