Medicago lupulina (Black medic)

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Medicago lupulina L.

Black medic, black medick, black meddick

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Fabales	Legumes (pea and bean families)
Family	Fabaceae	Legume family (peas and beans)
Genus	Medicago	From Latin medica, “alfalfa, lucerne,” in turn from Greek μηδική (πόα), “Median (grass).’Latin medica ‘alfalfa, lucerne,’ from Greek: median μηδική (πόα), “grass”
Species	lupulina	From lupus, “wolf,” here meaning “hop-like” in its climbing

About plant names...

Black medic is a low-growing clover-like plant. It is a member of the very large pea family. Bacteria on its roots trap nitrogen, allowing it to grow in low nitrogen soils. It lives for one or two seasons. It grows throughout the world.

Identification: Black medic rarely exceeds 30" (76 cm) in height, and often remains much closer to the ground. It favors dry ground and alkaline (limestone) soils. It is easily confused with hop clovers. There are several closely similar varieties that are not documented here yet.

6/1/2008

	*Trifolium aureum*	*Trifolium campestre*	*Trifolium dubium*
Common Name	hop clover	low hop clover	least hop clover
Plant	Plants 6-18" (15-45 cm) high.	Up to 16" (40 cm) tall, sometimes erect, sometimes growing along the ground	2-6" (5-15 cm) tall, often forming mats.
Flowers	About ¾" (1.9 cm) high. Flowers turn brown and wilt, seeds fall to the ground instead of forming a fruit	Yellow, less than ½" (1.3 cm) across; roughly spherical, with 20-40 individual flowers; flowerheads become brown with age. Upper petals of the flowers have grooves.	About ¼" (6.3 mm) yellow flowerheads, oval to spherical, 5-15 flowers per head. Flowers turn brown when seeds ripen.
Leaves	Groups of 3. Central leaf is not on a separate stem (petiole). Leaflets about ¾" (1.9 cm) long, ¼" (6.3 mm) wide.	Groups of 3, about ¾" (1.9 cm) long; with small teeth near the leaf tips. The central leaf is on a longer stem (petiole) than with other hop clovers, often notched at the top	Alternate, in groups of 3, with a larger center leaf on a short petiole (stem), often notched at the top.
Stem	Multiply branched, usually erect	Green or reddish green, multiply branched	Green or reddish, multiply branched.
Seeds	Inconspicuous	Inconspicuous
Fruit			Inconspicuous.
Range/ Zones
Habitats	Grasslands, fields, roadsides, wastelands	Temperate grasslands, fields, roadsides, wastelands, cultivated fields	Disturbed soil, meadows, common in lawns.
Type	Wild	Wild	Wild
Occurrence	Common	Common	Common

	You are here Medicago lupulina
Common Name	black medic
Plant	Plant may reach up to 30" (76 cm) long
Flowers	Rounded, about ¼-½" (6.3-12 mm)
Leaves	Three leaves, with slightly serrated tips, center leaf on separate petiole
Stem	Often prostrate, light green or reddish green, covered with white hairs
Seeds	Black, coiled
Fruit	Seedpods are "coiled"—this is probably the most unique feature of black medic
Range/ Zones
Habitats	Prairies (black soil, clay), weedy meadows, old fields, cropland, pastures, vacant lots, landfills, cemeteries, lawns, areas along railroads and roadsides, and miscellaneous waste areas; common in low-cut lawns
Type	Wild