Common Name: Egyptian Clover

General Information

Trifolium alexandrinum is an erect to almost prostrate annual plant with stems 40 - 90cm long[, ]. The var alexandrinum is an unbranched or only slightly branched plant with slender, solid stems, whilst var serotinum branches profusely from the base; its stems are thick and fistulous[].
The plant has long been cultivated as a green manure in Egypt, and since the beginning of the 20th century this cultivation has spread from there to northern India and many Mediterranean countries[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

N. Africa - Egypt; W. Asia - Lebanon, Israel, Jordan

Habitat

The plant arose through cultivation, probably in Syria, and is not known n a truly wild situation.

Properties

Other Uses Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	0.55 m
Pollinators	Bees
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Cultivated

Cultivation Details

Trifolium alexandrinum is a plant of the Mediterranean to subtropical zone. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 16 - 27°c, but can tolerate 3 - 35°c[]. When dormant, the plant can survive temperatures down to about -8°c, but young growth can be severely damaged at -2°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 450 - 900mm, but tolerates 300 - 1,700mm[]. 25% of a stand of the cultivar 'Sacramento' has been reported to have survived temperatures falling to -15°. However, most cultivars only tolerate light frosts[].
Requires a sunny position[]. Succeeds in a range of well-drained soils, preferring a heavy loam[, ]. Plants are relatively tolerant of saline soils[]. Prefers a pH in the range 6.5 - 7, tolerating 4.9 - 7.5[].
The plant probably arose through cultivation from a wild species in Syria. It is grown especially in Egypt, but also in northern India and in warm temperate climates of southern Europe and as a non-seeding annual crop in temperate areas with hot summers[, ].
Especially in Egypt there are hundreds of local races which could be classified into the multi-cut group, profusely basally branched and late-flowering and the single-cut group, sparsely branched and early; both had been given varietal rank[].
Domestication took place presumably in Syria, it was known from Egypt by the 6th century, but untill the late 19th century it was grown only in its traditional eastern Mediterranean area[].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria; these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

None known

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is cultivated as a green manure[]. The plant yields several cuts a year and provides excellent green manure[]. It is grown in conjunction with cotton in Egypt[]. It is commonly integrated into rice-wheat cropping systems as a winter and spring feed; it may be seeded into rice before the harvest of the cereal[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - the seed of Trifolium species is often of two kinds - hard-coated and soft-coated. The soft-coated seeds can germinate immediately, whilst hard-coated seeds remain dormant until the seedcoat has broken down enough to permit the ingress of water. In order to speed up and improve germination rates, hard-coated seeds benefit from scarification before sowing. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Sow the seed in situ. In mild winter areas the plant is often sown in the autumn[].