Taxon: Medicago polymorpha L.

Summary

Genus:

Medicago

Section:

Spirocarpos

Subsection:

Leptospireae

Family:

Fabaceae (alt. Leguminosae)

Subfamily:

Faboideae

Tribe:

Trifolieae

Nomen number:

23645

Place of publication:

Sp. pl. 2:779. 1753

Comment:

since Medicago polymorpha L. did not have a holotype or syntypes, all 13 varietal names of Linnaeus are validly published fide Shenzhen ICN Art. 26, Ex. 4

Typification:

View in Linnean Typification Project

Verified:

06/09/1987 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

620 (565 active, 560 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Medicago polymorpha L. var. brevispina (Benth.) Heyn (35 active accession[s])
Medicago polymorpha L. var. denticulata (Willd.) Kerguélen (33 active accession[s])
Medicago polymorpha L. var. polymorpha (113 active accession[s])

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Medicago hispida Gaertn.
Medicago hispida Gaertn. f. hispida
Medicago hispida Gaertn. var. hispida

Images (1 total. Click on image for more.)

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

University of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
Ali, S. I. & S. M. H. Jafri, eds. 1976-. Flora of Libya.
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Arechavaleta, M. et al., coords. 2009. Lista de especies silvestres de Canarias: hongos, plantas y animales terrestres
Batra, L. R. 1995. Names of Japanese plants sorted by their Japanese names in Romanized Katakana and scientific nomenclature
Botanical Society of the British Isles. BSBI taxon database (on-line resource).
Boulos, L. 1999-. Flora of Egypt
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Cooper, M. R. & A. W. Johnson. 1998. Poisonous plants and fungi in Britain: animal and human poisoning Note: poisonous
Davis, P. H., ed. 1965-1988. Flora of Turkey and the east Aegean islands.
Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
Eriksson, O. et al. 1979. Flora of Macaronesia: checklist of vascular plants, ed. 2.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
Ghazanfar, S. A. 1992. An annotated catalogue of the vascular plants of Oman. Scripta Botanica Belgica 2
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 2000. International code of botanical nomenclature (Saint Louis Code) Art. 26.2, Ex. 4.
Heyn, C. C. 1963. The annual species of Medicago. Scripta Hierosolymitana 12:71.
Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California
Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
Holm, L. et al. 1979. A geographical atlas of world weeds
Huang, S. F. & T. C. Huang. 1987. Taxonomic treatment of the Papilionoideae (Leguminosae) of Taiwan. Taiwania 32:11-117.
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
International Seed Testing Association. 1982. A Multilingual Glossary of Common Plant-Names 1. Field crops, grasses and vegetables, ed. 2.
Isely, D. 1998. Native and naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the United States (exclusive of Alaska and Hawaii)
Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
Kellerman, T. S. et al. 1988. Plant poisonings and mycotoxicoses of livestock in Southern Africa Note: poisonous
Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
Lesins, K. A. & I. Lesins. 1979. Genus Medicago (Leguminosae). A taxogenetic study 196.
Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
Lock, J. M. & K. Simpson. 1991. Legumes of West Asia: a checklist
Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
Mouterde, P. 1966-. Nouvelle flore du Liban et de la Syrie. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan.
Norton, J. et al. 2009. Illustrated checklist of the flora of Qatar.
Pignatti, S. 1982. Flora d'Italia.
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica.
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants Note: = Medicago nigra
Shinners, L. H. 1956. Authorship and nomenclature of bur clovers (Medicago) found wild in the United States. Rhodora 58:5.
Silva, L. et al. 2005. Listagem da fauna e flora terrestres dos Açores. Lista des plantas vasculares (Pteridophyta e Spermatophyta).
Small, E. & M. Jomphe. 1989. A synopsis of the genus Medicago (Leguminosae). Canad. J. Bot. 67:3272.
Small, E. et al. 1981. The taxonomic value of floral characters in tribe Trigonelleae (Leguminosae), with special reference to Medicago. Canad. J. Bot. 59:1580.
Small, E. 1981. A numerical analysis of major groupings in Medicago employing traditionally used characters. Canad. J. Bot. 59:1555. Note: nom. ambig.?
Smythies, B. E. 1984-1986. Flora of Spain and the Balearic Islands: checklist of vascular plants. Englera 3:1-882.
Stace, C. 1995. New flora of the British Isles.
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
Täckholm, V. 1974. Students' flora of Egypt, ed. 2.
Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966-. Flora of Iraq.
Turrill, W. B. et al., eds. 1952-. Flora of tropical East Africa.
Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. UC SAREP on-line cover crop database (on-line resource).
Vibrans, H., ed. Malezas de México (on-line resource).
Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
Zohary, M. & N. Feinbrun-Dothan. 1966-. Flora palaestina.

Common names

Language	Name	note	seq	Citation
English	bur medic		1	University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. UC SAREP on-line cover crop database (on-line resource).
English	bur trefoil		1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
English	California bur-clover		1	Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California
English	hairy medic	as Medicago nigra	1	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants Note: = Medicago nigra
English	rough medic		1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
English	toothed bur-clover		1	Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966-. Flora of Iraq.
English	toothed medic		1	Stace, C. 1995. New flora of the British Isles.
English	toothed medick		1	Botanical Society of the British Isles. BSBI taxon database (on-line resource).
English	trefoil-clover		1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
Arabic	nafal		2	Boulos, L. 1999-. Flora of Egypt
French	luzerne hérissée	as Medicago nigra	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants Note: = Medicago nigra
German	rauher Schneckenklee	as Medicago nigra	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants Note: = Medicago nigra
Italian	medica ispida		2	International Seed Testing Association. 1982. A Multilingual Glossary of Common Plant-Names 1. Field crops, grasses and vegetables, ed. 2.
Japanese Rōmaji	uma-goyashi		2	Batra, L. R. 1995. Names of Japanese plants sorted by their Japanese names in Romanized Katakana and scientific nomenclature
Spanish	carretón de amores	as Medicago nigra	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants Note: = Medicago nigra
Spanish	trébol de carretilla	as Medicago nigra	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants Note: = Medicago nigra
Swedish	tagglusern		2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
Transcribed Chinese	nan mu xu		2	Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
Transcribed Korean	gaejari	as Medicago hispida	2	Lee, Y. N. 1997. Flora of Korea. Note: = Medicago polymorpha L.

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Africa	Macaronesia	Portugal	Madeira Islands		Eriksson, O. et al. 1979. Flora of Macaronesia: checklist of vascular plants, ed. 2.
1	Native	Africa	Macaronesia	Spain	Canarias		Arechavaleta, M. et al., coords. 2009. Lista de especies silvestres de Canarias: hongos, plantas y animales terrestres
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Algeria			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Egypt			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Libya			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Morocco			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Tunisia			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Oman			Ghazanfar, S. A. 1992. An annotated catalogue of the vascular plants of Oman. Scripta Botanica Belgica 2
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Qatar			Norton, J. et al. 2009. Illustrated checklist of the flora of Qatar.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	United Arab Emirates			Norton, J. et al. 2009. Illustrated checklist of the flora of Qatar.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Yemen			Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Azerbaijan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Georgia
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Russian Federation	Dagestan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia	Ciscaucasia
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Kazakhstan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Kyrgyzstan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Tajikistan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Turkmenistan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Uzbekistan
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Afghanistan			Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Cyprus			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Iran			Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Iraq			Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966-. Flora of Iraq.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Israel			Zohary, M. & N. Feinbrun-Dothan. 1966-. Flora palaestina.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Jordan			Zohary, M. & N. Feinbrun-Dothan. 1966-. Flora palaestina.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Lebanon			Mouterde, P. 1966-. Nouvelle flore du Liban et de la Syrie. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Syria			Mouterde, P. 1966-. Nouvelle flore du Liban et de la Syrie. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Turkey			Davis, P. H., ed. 1965-1988. Flora of Turkey and the east Aegean islands.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Ukraine		incl. Krym
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Austria			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Germany			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	United Kingdom			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Albania			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Bulgaria			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Former Yugoslavia			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Greece		incl. Crete	Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Italy		incl. Sardinia, Sicily	Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Romania			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	France		incl. Corsica	Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Portugal			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Spain		incl. Baleares	Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
2	Cultivated					also cult.
3	Adventive	Northern America		Mexico			McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
4	Naturalized	Africa	Macaronesia	Portugal	Azores		Silva, L. et al. 2005. Listagem da fauna e flora terrestres dos Açores. Lista des plantas vasculares (Pteridophyta e Spermatophyta).
4	Naturalized	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa			Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	India			Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	Pakistan			Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966-. Flora of Iraq.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Tropical	Indo-China	Vietnam			Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia			Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
4	Naturalized	Europe	Middle Europe	Belgium			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
4	Naturalized	Europe	Middle Europe	Czechoslovakia			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
4	Naturalized	Europe	Middle Europe	Hungary			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
4	Naturalized	Europe	Middle Europe	Netherlands			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
4	Naturalized	Europe	Middle Europe	Switzerland			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
4	Naturalized	Northern America		United States			Isely, D. 1998. Native and naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the United States (exclusive of Alaska and Hawaii)
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil		s.	Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Central America	Costa Rica			Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Central America	Guatemala			Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Southern South America	Argentina		e.-c.	Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Southern South America	Chile			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Southern South America	Uruguay			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Western South America	Ecuador			Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Western South America	Peru			Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45

Native
Africa

MACARONESIA: Spain [Canarias], Portugal [Madeira Islands]
NORTHERN AFRICA: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia

Asia-Temperate

ARABIAN PENINSULA: United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Yemen
WESTERN ASIA: Afghanistan, Cyprus, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey
CAUCASUS: Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia [Ciscaucasia], Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russian Federation [Dagestan]
MIDDLE ASIA: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

Europe

NORTHERN EUROPE: United Kingdom
MIDDLE EUROPE: Austria, Germany
EASTERN EUROPE: Ukraine (incl. Krym)
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Former Yugoslavia, Albania, Bulgaria, Greece (incl. Crete), Italy (incl. Sardinia, Sicily), Romania
SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: Spain (incl. Baleares), France (incl. Corsica), Portugal

Cultivated (also cult.)
Adventive
Northern America

REGION: Mexico

Naturalized
Africa

MACARONESIA: Portugal [Azores]
SOUTHERN AFRICA: South Africa

Asia-Tropical

INDIAN SUBCONTINENT: India, Pakistan
INDO-CHINA: Vietnam

Australasia

AUSTRALIA: Australia

Europe

MIDDLE EUROPE: Czechoslovakia, Belgium, Switzerland, Hungary, Netherlands

Northern America

REGION: United States

Southern America

CENTRAL AMERICA: Costa Rica, Guatemala
BRAZIL: Brazil (s.)
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Ecuador, Peru
SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Argentina (e.-c.), Chile, Uruguay

Reference(s)

Arechavaleta, M. et al., coords. 2009. Lista de especies silvestres de Canarias: hongos, plantas y animales terrestres
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Davis, P. H., ed. 1965-1988. Flora of Turkey and the east Aegean islands.
Eriksson, O. et al. 1979. Flora of Macaronesia: checklist of vascular plants, ed. 2.
Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
Ghazanfar, S. A. 1992. An annotated catalogue of the vascular plants of Oman. Scripta Botanica Belgica 2
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Isely, D. 1998. Native and naturalized Leguminosae (Fabaceae) of the United States (exclusive of Alaska and Hawaii)
Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
Mouterde, P. 1966-. Nouvelle flore du Liban et de la Syrie. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
Norton, J. et al. 2009. Illustrated checklist of the flora of Qatar.
Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica.
Silva, L. et al. 2005. Listagem da fauna e flora terrestres dos Açores. Lista des plantas vasculares (Pteridophyta e Spermatophyta).
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala. Note: = Medicago hispida Gaertn.
Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966-. Flora of Iraq.
Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
Zohary, M. & N. Feinbrun-Dothan. 1966-. Flora palaestina.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Animal food	forage		Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
Animal food	forage		Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
Environmental	soil improver		University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. UC SAREP on-line cover crop database (on-line resource).
Environmental	soil improver	green manure	Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Kellerman, T. S. et al. 1988. Plant poisonings and mycotoxicoses of livestock in Southern Africa Note: poisonous
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Cooper, M. R. & A. W. Johnson. 1998. Poisonous plants and fungi in Britain: animal and human poisoning Note: poisonous
Vertebrate poisons	mammals	as Medicago hispida	Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. 341. Note: as Medicago hispida
Weed	seed contaminant	potential	Small, E. & M. Jomphe. 1989. A synopsis of the genus Medicago (Leguminosae). Canad. J. Bot. 67:3272.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=23645. Accessed 17 April 2026.