Trifolium repens L., Fabaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Trifolium occidentale Coombe

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: bai che zhou cao

English: Dutch clover, ladino clover, ladino white clover, white clover, white Dutch clover

French: trèfle blanc, trèfle rampant

Spanish: trébol, trébol amargo, trébol blanco, trébol rastrero

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Perennial herbs, stoloniferous, glabrous to glabrescent. Stems 10-30 cm, prostrate, rooting at nodes. Leaves long petiolate, palmately 3-foliolate; stipules ovate-lanceolate, membranous, with veins green or red, sheathing at base, apex subulate; petiolule 1-1.5 mm; leaflets obovate to ovate, 6-20 (-40) x 8-16 (-25) mm, lateral veins 13 pairs, prominent on both surfaces, base cuneate, apex emarginate to broadly rounded. Flowers 20-50 (-80), in terminal, globose umbels, 1.5-4 cm; peduncle equal to or longer than petiole; involucre absent; bracts lanceolate-ovate, membranous; pedicels 2-5 mm, reflexed after anthesis. Calyx 3-5 mm, veins 6-10; teeth shorter than tube. Corolla white, rarely pink-tinged, 5-12 mm, fragrant; standard elliptic, ca. 2x wings and keel. Ovary sessile; ovules 3 or 4. Legume linear-oblong. Seeds 2-4, ovoid to reniform"  (Flora of China online).

Habitat/ecology:  In China, "cultivated, escaped, and naturalized; grasslands, ravines, roadsides"  (Flora of China online).  In New Zealand, "A wide range of habitats including waste places, pasture, riverbeds, cultivated land, lawns and gardens"  (Webb et al., 1988; p. 690).  "In Chile this species grows in the following environmental conditions:  Medium altitude up to the timber line; low altitude, interior valleys; coastal mountains, 500-2000 m; coastal areas, 0-500 m. The plant grows in water or it has its roots within a permanent water course, this corresponds to marshes, bogs, water courses, lake and river shores; humid areas, with almost constant rainfall, short dry periods are possible (generally not longer than 1 month); Somewhat dry areas where the drought may last 3-5 months, precipitations of 400-800 mm. are concentrated in winter. Fully exposed to the sun, level areas or slopes facing north; some shadow, some protection against direct sunlight, some shadow from vegetation, filtering about 20-40% of light"  (Chileflora).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Europe, northern Africa, western and central Asia; widely cultivated and naturalized (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Lord Howe Island	Lord Howe Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) "Sown and widely naturalised".
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 558)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 558)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1985) (p. 267) "Perhaps occasionally naturalized in pastures".
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 714) var. repens. Voucher cited: Rock 3400 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 714) var. repens
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Lāna‘i Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Oppenheimer, Hank (2008) (p. 28) Voucher cited: Oppenheimer H110704 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 714) var. repens
Japan (offshore islands) Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	introduced	Kato, Hidetoshi (2007)
New Zealand (offshore islands) Kermadec Islands	Kermadec Islands	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 690)
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	Australia (continental)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011) Australian Capital Territory, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	introduced invasive cultivated	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2011) "Frequently cultivated, widely naturalized, a common lawn weed".
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced invasive cultivated	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2011) "Frequently cultivated, widely naturalized, a common lawn weed".
Canada Province of British Columbia	Canada (British Columbia)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
Canada Canada	Canada (country)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
Chile (continental) Chile	Chile (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Belov, Michail (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced invasive cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011)
China China	Hong Kong	introduced invasive cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 155)
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Guatemala Guatemala	Guatemala (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 185) var. repens and nigricans G. Don
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 690)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Perú Perú	Perú (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (Oregon)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (California)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (Washington)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
La Réunion (France) La Réunion Island	La Réunion Island	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2011) "Found only once on Reunion in 1944; no recent records".

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	United States (other states)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Additional information:
Invasive species profile from the Global Invasive Species Database.
Weed identification guide from Virginia Tech.
Photos and other information from Chileflora.

Additional online information about Trifolium repens is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Trifolium repens as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Trifolium repens may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John. 2011. Naturalized species in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile. Unpublished spreadsheet.

Belov, Michail. 2011. Chileflora (online resource).

Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido. 2006. Nouveau catalogue de la flore vaculaire de l'archipel Juan Fernández (Chile) [Nuevo catálogo de la flora vacular del Archipélago Juan Fernández (Chile)]. Acta Bot. Gallica 153(4):399-587.

ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre. 2011. International Legume Database & Information Service. Online searchable database.

Kato, Hidetoshi. 2007. Herbarium records of Makino Herbarium, Tokyo Metropolitan University. Personal communication.

Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro. 2004. Invasive alien species in Japan: the status quo and the new regulation for prevention of their adverse effects. Global Environmental Research 8(2)/2004: 171-191.

National Herbarium of New South Wales. 2011. PlantNet: New South Wales Flora online. The Plant Information Network System of the Botanic Gardens Trust Version 2.0. Online resource.

Oppenheimer, Hank. 2008. New Hawaiian plant records for 2007. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucias G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 2007. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 100:22-38.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1994. Flora of Australia. Vol. 49, Oceanic islands 1. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Smith, Albert C. 1985. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 3. 758 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2011. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Wu, Te-lin. 2001. Check List of Hong Kong Plants. Hong Kong Herbarium and the South China Institute of Botany. Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department Bulletin 1 (revised). 384 pp.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).