12 CLOVERS 



The true clovers have their flowers collected into 

 roundish or oblong heads and in some instances into 

 cone-shaped spikes. The flowers are small and of 

 several colors in the different varieties, as crimson, 

 scarlet, pink, blue, yellow and white, according to 

 the variety, and some are variously tinted. The 

 stems are herbaceous and not twining. The seeds are 

 inclosed in pods or seed sacks, each of which con- 

 tains one, two and sometimes, but not often, three or 

 four seeds. The plants have tap roots, and in some 

 varieties these go far down into the sub-soil. The 

 roots are also in some varieties considerably 

 branched. 



Varieties. — At least twenty varieties, native or 

 naturalized, are found in Great Britain; more than 

 twelve varieties belong to the United States. The 

 more valuable varieties found in this country have 

 been introduced from Europe, unless it be the small 

 white clover (Trifolium repens). Viewed from the 

 standpoint of the agriculturist the varieties that are 

 most generally useful include medium red clover 

 {Trifolium pratense), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), 

 alsike {Trifolium hybridum), mammoth (Trifolium 

 magnum), crimson (Trifolium incarnatum) and 

 small white (Trifolium repens). The varieties 

 which flourish only In the South include the Japan 

 (Lespedeza striata) and the burr clover (Medicago 

 denticulata) . Sweet clover (Melilotus alba),, some- 

 times called Bokhara, which will grow equally well 

 North and South, is worthy of attention because of 

 its power to grow under hard conditions, in order 

 to provide honey for bees and to renovate soils. 



