Medicago minima

Burclover

Family: Fabaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

Burclover is a naturalized annual found in California's Central Valley and Foothills in disturbed areas at elevations below 1,000 meters. Flowering from April to July, this plant produces tiny yellow flowers in small clusters of 3 to 6 blooms. Growing with decumbent or ascending stems 10 to 40 centimeters long and covered in dense hairs, it forms low-spreading patches. Its leaves have three small leaflets 4 to 12 millimeters long, typically elliptic or obovate with subtle teeth near the tip. The distinctive fruit develops as a tightly coiled pod with hooked prickles, turning tan to brown when mature.

Habitat: Disturbed areas

Bloom period: Apr-Jul

Elevation: < 1000 m

Bioregions: CA-FP

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.