Meet The Clovers

I enjoy the Clovers, looking for a four leafed one is the best, finding one is even better. I used to keep them pressed in between pages of an old book. I also used to enjoy Red Clover, I would pick out the individual inflorescences of the flower bud and chew off the sweet ends..it was like an instant sweet treat for a farm kid.

Red Clover or Trifolium pratense, this one was along our driveway. I was tempted to stop and have a taste from my childhood..but I left the sweet nectar for the bees.

White Clover or Trifolium repens can have plain green leaves or the stripe with the classic clover marking. These were at the Dentists office.

Aslike Clover or Trifolium hybridum, this one I found at a cemetery. It is also called Swedish Clover..I wonder if it is found in Sweden? Maybe Lady Fi can tell us? This is one of my favorite clovers simply for its color.

Now for some weird clovers. I have always liked the out of the ordinary plants.

White Prairie Clover, the experts are fighting over the scientific name of this one. The purple form is supposed to be more commonly found than this white form. I am still looking for the purple. I did find lots of white along our road. This plant is tiny, less than a foot tall and easily blends in with other white blooms. These white flowers bloom from the bottom up.

Rabbits Foot Clover, ground hugging and tiny..you probably can't see it from a car. I found this one last Monday when Chance and I were taking foggy photos about a half a mile from our house.

One great thing about the Clovers, they are in the Pea Family or Fabaceae. They fix nitrogen in the soil, enriching it naturally. Instead of robbing it from the soil, these plants make it and put it back in the soil. This is why beans are part of the crop rotation by the big farmers in our area.. they attempt to replenish..with a rotation of potato, beans (usually pinto), small grain, and corn. The field across from us is Potatoes this year. Last year it was beans. The potatoes grown here are for French Fries at McDonalds, large russet potatoes cut into french fries so they will stand up in the box perfectly. They have no taste, they are grown so huge and so fast that they have no taste left...but they make great french fries that stand tall in the box and taste like grease :)