Taxon: Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.

Summary

Genus:

Melilotus

Family:

Fabaceae (alt. Leguminosae)

Subfamily:

Faboideae

Tribe:

Trifolieae

Nomen number:

24009

Place of publication:

Fl. franç. 2:594. 1779 ("1778") (Pallas, Reise russ. reich. 3:537. 1776, nom. nud.)

Comment:

Trifolium M. officinale L. was not cited by Lamarck, although he cited T. M. vars. for other species such as Melilotus italicus and M. ornithopodioides, but Shenzhen ICN Art. 41.4 allows treatment as a new combination

Verified:

01/14/2004 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

444 (342 active, 301 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

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

Basionym
Trifolium officinale L.

Autonym(s)
Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam. subsp. officinalis
Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam. var. officinalis

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Melilotus arvensis Wallr.
Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam. var. micranthus O. E. Schulz
Melilotus vulgaris Hill, nom. inval.

No images

Links

Forestry Images – from www.forestryimages.org
Seeds or fruits – Seed ID Workshop image, from Department of Horticulture and Crop Science, Ohio State University

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

University of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
Afonin, A. N., S. L. Greene, N. I. Dzyubenko, & A. N. Frolov, eds. Interactive agricultural ecological atlas of Russia and neighboring countries. Economic plants and their diseases, pests and weeds (on-line resource).
Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Campbell, F. T., ed. 1995. Report of National Coalition of Exotic Plant Pest Councils (unpublished draft)
Cooper, M. R. & A. W. Johnson. 1998. Poisonous plants and fungi in Britain: animal and human poisoning Note: poisonous
Craker, L. E. & J. E. Simon, eds. 1987. Herbs, spices, and medicinal plants, 2 vols. 2:208.
Cronquist, A. et al. 1972-. Intermountain flora. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Darbyshire, S. J. 2003. Inventory of Canadian Agricultural Weeds Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. 145-146.
Davis, P. H., ed. 1965-1988. Flora of Turkey and the east Aegean islands. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Desr.
Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
Erhardt, W. et al. 2002. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 17. Auflage Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
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.
Graham, E. H. 1941. Legumes for erosion control and wildlife. USDA Misc. Publ. 412.
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
Inst. Bot. V. L. Komarova, Acad. Sci. URSS. 1963-. Plantae asiae centralis.
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).
Iwatsuki, K. et al. 1993-. Flora of Japan.
Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Note: poisonous
Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Desr.
Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Lock, J. M. 1989. Legumes of Africa: a checklist
Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Mun-Chan, B. et al. 1986. A checklist of the Korean cultivated plants. Kulturpflanze 34:110.
Munro, D. B. Canadian poisonous plants information system (on-line resource).
Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Pignatti, S. 1982. Flora d'Italia. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
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. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Sales, F. & I. C. Hedge. 1993. Melilotus Miller (Leguminosae): typification and nomenclature. Anales Jard. Bot. Madrid 51:173. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Sell, P. & G. Murrell. 1996-. Flora of Great Britain and Ireland.
Smythies, B. E. 1984-1986. Flora of Spain and the Balearic Islands: checklist of vascular plants. Englera 3:1-882. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Stace, C. 1995. New flora of the British Isles.
Stevenson, G. A. 1969. An agronomic and taxonomic review of the genus Melilotus Mill. Canad. J. Pl. Sci. 49:8. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966-. Flora of Iraq. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. UC SAREP on-line cover crop database (on-line resource).
Uphof, J. C. T. 1968. Dictionary of economic plants, ed. 2.
Weber, E. 2003. Invasive plant species of the world: a reference guide to environmental weeds
Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
2018. Mid-Atlantic invasive plant species (on-line resource)
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Note: forage crop

Common names

Language	Name	note	seq	Citation
English	common melilot		1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
English	field melilot		1	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
English	ribbed melilot		1	Stace, C. 1995. New flora of the British Isles.
English	yellow melilot		1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	yellow sweet-clover		1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	yellow trefoil		1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
English (Canada)	yellow sweet-clover	Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada official name	2	Darbyshire, S. J. 2003. Inventory of Canadian Agricultural Weeds Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. 145-146.
French	mélilot jaune		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
French	mélilot officinal		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
French (Canada)	mélilot jaune	Agriculture & Agroalimentaire Canada nom officiel	2	Darbyshire, S. J. 2003. Inventory of Canadian Agricultural Weeds Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. 145-146.
German	echter Steinklee		2	Erhardt, W. et al. 2002. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 17. Auflage Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
German	gelber Steinklee		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Italian	meliloto giallo		2	Craker, L. E. & J. E. Simon, eds. 1987. Herbs, spices, and medicinal plants, 2 vols. 2:208.
Japanese Rōmaji	seiyō-ebira-hagi		2	Iwatsuki, K. et al. 1993-. Flora of Japan.
Portuguese	trevo-cheiroso		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	cornilla real		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	meliloto amarillo		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	trébol de olor		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Swedish	gul sötväppling		2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
Transcribed Chinese	cao mu xi		2	Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Armenia			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Azerbaijan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Georgia			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Russian Federation	Dagestan		Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia	Ciscaucasia		Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	China	China		w.	Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Kazakhstan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Kyrgyzstan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Tajikistan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Turkmenistan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Uzbekistan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Siberia	Russian Federation-Eastern Siberia	Eastern Siberia		Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Siberia	Russian Federation-Western Siberia	Western Siberia		Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Afghanistan			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Iran			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Iraq		n.e.	Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Turkey			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	India	Himachal Pradesh		Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	India	Jammu and Kashmir		Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	Pakistan		n.	Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Belarus			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Estonia			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Latvia			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Lithuania			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Moldova			Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Russian Federation-European part	European part		Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Austria			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Belgium			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Czechoslovakia			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Germany			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Hungary			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Netherlands			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Poland			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Switzerland			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Albania			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Bulgaria			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Former Yugoslavia			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Greece			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Italy		incl. Sardinia	Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Romania			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	France			Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Spain		incl. Baleares	Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
2	Cultivated					also cult.
4	Naturalized	Africa	East Tropical Africa	Kenya			Lock, J. M. 1989. Legumes of Africa: a checklist
4	Naturalized	Africa	Northern Africa	Morocco			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa	Gauteng		Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
4	Naturalized	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa	Western Cape		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-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Japan			Iwatsuki, K. et al. 1993-. Flora of Japan.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Lebanon			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia			Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
4	Naturalized	Australasia	New Zealand	New Zealand
4	Naturalized	Europe	Northern Europe	Denmark			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Northern Europe	Finland			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Northern Europe	Ireland			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Northern Europe	Norway			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Northern Europe	Sweden			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Northern Europe	United Kingdom			Sell, P. & G. Murrell. 1996-. Flora of Great Britain and Ireland.
4	Naturalized	Northern America		Canada			Munro, D. B. Canadian poisonous plants information system (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Northern America		United States
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Southern South America	Argentina			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.

Native
Asia-Temperate

WESTERN ASIA: Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq (n.e.), Turkey
CAUCASUS: Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia [Ciscaucasia], Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russian Federation [Dagestan]
SIBERIA: Russian Federation-Western Siberia [Western Siberia], Russian Federation-Eastern Siberia [Eastern Siberia]
MIDDLE ASIA: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
CHINA: China (w.)

Asia-Tropical

INDIAN SUBCONTINENT: India [Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir], Pakistan (n.)

Europe

MIDDLE EUROPE: Czechoslovakia, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland
EASTERN EUROPE: Russian Federation-European part [European part], Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Moldova
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Former Yugoslavia, Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy (incl. Sardinia), Romania
SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: Spain (incl. Baleares), France

Cultivated (also cult.)
Naturalized
Africa

NORTHERN AFRICA: Morocco
EAST TROPICAL AFRICA: Kenya
SOUTHERN AFRICA: South Africa [Western Cape, Gauteng]

Asia-Temperate

WESTERN ASIA: Lebanon
EASTERN ASIA: Japan

Australasia

AUSTRALIA: Australia
NEW ZEALAND: New Zealand

Europe

NORTHERN EUROPE: Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, Sweden

Northern America

REGION: Canada, United States

Southern America

SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Argentina, Chile, Uruguay

Reference(s)

Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (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.
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Iwatsuki, K. et al. 1993-. Flora of Japan.
Kumar, S & P. V. Sane. 2003. Legumes of South Asia: a checklist.
Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
Lock, J. M. 1989. Legumes of Africa: a checklist
Munro, D. B. Canadian poisonous plants information system (on-line resource).
Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Sell, P. & G. Murrell. 1996-. Flora of Great Britain and Ireland.
Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea. Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Animal food	fodder		Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
Animal food	forage		Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
Bee plants	honey production		Uphof, J. C. T. 1968. Dictionary of economic plants, ed. 2.
Environmental	soil improver		University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. UC SAREP on-line cover crop database (on-line resource).
Food additives	flavoring		Uphof, J. C. T. 1968. Dictionary of economic plants, ed. 2.
Medicines	folklore		Yakovlev, G. P. et al. 1996. Legumes of Northern Eurasia Note: lists as Melilotus officinalis (L.) Pall.
Medicines	folklore		Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Medicines	folklore		McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Note: poisonous
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Cooper, M. R. & A. W. Johnson. 1998. Poisonous plants and fungi in Britain: animal and human poisoning Note: poisonous
Weed	seed contaminant	potential	Weber, E. 2003. Invasive plant species of the world: a reference guide to environmental weeds
Weed	seed contaminant	potential	Campbell, F. T., ed. 1995. Report of National Coalition of Exotic Plant Pest Councils (unpublished draft)

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=24009. Accessed 17 April 2026.