Medicago arabica

Medicago arabica, the spotted medick, spotted burclover, heart clover, is a flowering plant in the pea and bean family Fabaceae. It is native to the Mediterranean basin but is found throughout the world, usually on clifftop grasslands and grassy places.^[2] It forms a symbiotic relationship with the bacterium Sinorhizobium medicae, which is capable of nitrogen fixation.

Medicago arabica
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Genus:	Medicago
Species:	M. arabica
Binomial name
Medicago arabica (L.) Huds.
Varieties[1]
M. a. var. heptacycla Urb. M. a. var. immaculata Schur M. a. var. intermis Ricker M. a. var. minor Loj. and Poj. M. a. var. vulgaris Rouy
Synonyms
Medica arabica Med. Medicago cordata Desr. Medicago coronata Pall. Medicago immaculata Schur Medicago maculata Sibth. Medicago maculata Willd. Medicago maculata var. immaculata Schur Medicago oxaloides Schur Medicago polymorpha var. arabica L. Medicago tinei Loj. & Poj.

Description

It is a sprawling plant with a height of 20–60 cm. It has spotted trifoliate leaves (sometimes, the number of leaflets per leaf can be different). The flowers are pale yellow and appear between April and August. The fruits are legumes, strangely coiled and are sharply spiny.^[2]

References

1. The use of these varieties is deprecated since intermediate forms are as frequent as the extreme forms used to identify the varieties.
2. Preston-Mafham, Rod (2004). Sea shore. [CollinsGem]. ISBN 978-0-00-717859-9.