Taxon: Alysicarpus vaginalis (L.) DC.

Summary

Genus:

Alysicarpus

Family:

Fabaceae (alt. Leguminosae)

Subfamily:

Faboideae

Tribe:

Desmodieae

Subtribe:

Desmodiinae

Nomen number:

2740

Place of publication:

Prodr. 2:353. 1825

Protologue link:

https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/153659

Verified:

11/17/1986 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

70 (15 active, 8 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

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

Basionym
Hedysarum vaginale L.

Autonym(s)
Alysicarpus vaginalis (L.) DC. var. vaginalis

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Alysicarpus rupicola Edgew.
Hedysarum cylindricum Poir.

Invalid Designation(s)
Alysicarpus nummulariifolius auct.

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

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

University of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Aubréville, A. et al., eds. 1960-. Flore du Cambodge du Laos et du Viet-Nam.
Backer, C. A. & R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. 1963-1968. Flora of Java.
Brunel, J. F. et al., eds. 1984. Flore analytique du Togo. Phanerogames
Chinese Academy of Sciences. 1959-. Flora reipublicae popularis sinicae.
Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
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.
Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
Huang, S. F. & T. C. Huang. 1987. Taxonomic treatment of the Papilionoideae (Leguminosae) of Taiwan. Taiwania 32:11-117.
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.
Keay, R. W. J. & F. N. Hepper. 1953-1972. Flora of west tropical Africa, ed. 2.
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
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
Matthew, K. M. 1983. The flora of the Tamilnadu Carnatic.
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Sanjappa, M. 1992. Legumes of India
Schrire, B. D. 1988. A synopsis of the tribe Desmodieae (Fabaceae) in southern Africa. Bothalia 18:18.
Smith, A. C. 1979-1991. Flora vitiensis nova.
't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
Turrill, W. B. et al., eds. 1952-. Flora of tropical East Africa.
Verdcourt, B. 1974. Summary of the Leguminosae - Papilionoideae - Hedysareae (sensu lato) of Flora Zambesiaca. Kirkia 9:546.
Verdcourt, B. 1979. A manual of New Guinea legumes.
Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama. Note: introduced
Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).

Common names

Language	Name	Alternate name	seq	Citation
English	alyce-clover		1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	buffalo-bur		1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
English	buffalo-clover		1	Duke, J. A. 1981. Handbook of legumes of world economic importance
English	one-leaf-clover		1	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Chinese	lian jia dou	链荚豆	2	Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
French	alysicarpus		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Italian	trifoglio d'alice		2	International Seed Testing Association. 1982. A Multilingual Glossary of Common Plant-Names 1. Field crops, grasses and vegetables, ed. 2.
Spanish	maní cimarrón		2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Africa	East Tropical Africa	Kenya			Turrill, W. B. et al., eds. 1952-. Flora of tropical East Africa.
1	Native	Africa	East Tropical Africa	Tanzania			Turrill, W. B. et al., eds. 1952-. Flora of tropical East Africa.
1	Native	Africa	East Tropical Africa	Uganda			Turrill, W. B. et al., eds. 1952-. Flora of tropical East Africa.
1	Native	Africa	Northeast Tropical Africa	Sudan
1	Native	Africa	Northeast Tropical Africa	Yemen	Arkhabīl Suquţrá		Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
1	Native	Africa	South Tropical Africa	Angola
1	Native	Africa	South Tropical Africa	Mozambique
1	Native	Africa	South Tropical Africa	Zambia
1	Native	Africa	South Tropical Africa	Zimbabwe
1	Native	Africa	Southern Africa	Eswatini			Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
1	Native	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa	KwaZulu-Natal		Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
1	Native	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa	Limpopo		Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
1	Native	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa	Mpumalanga		Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
1	Native	Africa	West Tropical Africa	Ghana
1	Native	Africa	West Tropical Africa	Niger
1	Native	Africa	West Tropical Africa	Nigeria
1	Native	Africa	West Tropical Africa	Sierra Leone
1	Native	Africa	West Tropical Africa	Togo
1	Native	Africa	West-Central Tropical Africa	Democratic Republic of the Congo
1	Native	Africa	West-Central Tropical Africa	Gabon
1	Native	Africa	West-Central Tropical Africa	Rwanda
1	Native	Africa	West-Central Tropical Africa	Sao Tome and Principe
1	Native	Africa	Western Indian Ocean	Mauritius
1	Native	Africa	Western Indian Ocean	Reunion
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Oman
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Yemen			Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Japan	Ryukyu Islands
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Taiwan
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	India
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	Pakistan
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indian Subcontinent	Sri Lanka
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indo-China	Cambodia			Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indo-China	Laos			Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indo-China	Thailand			Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Indo-China	Vietnam			Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Malesia	Indonesia
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Malesia	Malaysia
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Malesia	Philippines
1	Native	Asia-Tropical	Papuasia	Papua New Guinea
2	Cultivated	Asia-Tropical	Papuasia	Papua New Guinea			Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
2	Cultivated	Northern America		United States		s.e.	Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia		n.	't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia	Northern Territory		Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia	Queensland		Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
4	Naturalized	Northern America		United States			't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
4	Naturalized	Southern America		South America			't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Central America	Panama			Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama. Note: introduced

Native
Africa

NORTHEAST TROPICAL AFRICA: Sudan, Yemen [Arkhabīl Suquţrá]
EAST TROPICAL AFRICA: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda
WEST-CENTRAL TROPICAL AFRICA: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe
WEST TROPICAL AFRICA: Ghana, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo
SOUTH TROPICAL AFRICA: Angola, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe
SOUTHERN AFRICA: Eswatini, South Africa [KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga]
WESTERN INDIAN OCEAN: Mauritius, Reunion

Asia-Temperate

ARABIAN PENINSULA: Oman, Yemen
EASTERN ASIA: Japan [Ryukyu Islands], Taiwan

Asia-Tropical

INDIAN SUBCONTINENT: India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan
PAPUASIA: Papua New Guinea
INDO-CHINA: Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam
MALESIA: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines

Cultivated
Asia-Tropical

PAPUASIA: Papua New Guinea

Northern America

REGION: United States (s.e.)

Naturalized
Australasia

AUSTRALIA: Australia [Queensland, Northern Territory], Australia (n.) [Queensland, Northern Territory]

Northern America

REGION: United States

Southern America

CENTRAL AMERICA: Panama
REGION: South America

Reference(s)

Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
Hnatiuk, R. J. 1990. Census of Australian vascular plants. Australian Flora and Fauna Series No. 11.
Lock, J. M. & J. Heald. 1994. Legumes of Indochina: a checklist
't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
Turrill, W. B. et al., eds. 1952-. Flora of tropical East Africa.
Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama. Note: introduced

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Reference
Animal food	fodder	't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
Animal food	forage	't Mannetje, L. & R. M. Jones, eds. 1992. Forages. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 4:42.
Environmental	soil improver	Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6

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=2740. Accessed 15 April 2026.