Trifolium cyathiferum
Bowl clover
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Family: Fabaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Trifolium cyathiferum (Bowl clover) is a native California herb in the Fabaceae family, recognized by bowl-shaped involucre with wavy margins diagnostic.
Bowl clover is a California native annual found in northwestern California, the Cascade Range, northern and central Sierra Nevada, Central Valley, and northern eastern Sierra Nevada in spring-moist valleys, chaparral, roadcuts, and forest at elevations below 2,500 meters. Flowering from May to August, this plant produces white to pink-tipped flowers in compact heads 6 to 20 millimeters wide with a distinctive bowl-shaped involucre. Growing with ascending to erect stems that are slightly glabrous, it reaches small to robust sizes depending on local conditions. Its leaves have three leaflets ranging from 1 to 3 centimeters long, each leaflet oblanceolate to obovate in shape with entire or deeply toothed stipules. The flower's calyx measures 7 to 11 millimeters long, with lower lateral lobes nearly equal to the tube and bristle tips generally forked.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 59 sympatric species; bowl-shaped involucre with wavy margins diagnostic
Habitat and range
Habitat: Generally spring-moist valleys, chaparral, roadcuts, forest
Elevation: < 2500 m
California counties: Amador, Alpine, Tuolumne, Kern, Mono, Tehama, Plumas, Nevada, Siskiyou, Madera, Trinity, Lassen, Modoc, Mendocino, El Dorado, Butte, Humboldt, Tulare, San Joaquin, Ventura, Sierra, Lake, Glenn, Yuba, Shasta, Placer, Santa Clara, Colusa, Del Norte, Calaveras, Santa Barbara, Sonoma
Outside California: to British Columbia, Idaho, Nevada
Bloom period
Trifolium cyathiferum blooms May-Aug.
How to tell it apart
vs Medicago: Trifolium flowers persist around fruits; Medicago flowers fall off leaving exposed coiled fruits.; vs Oxalis: Trifolium has pea-shaped flowers; wood-sorrels (Oxalis) have 5-petaled star-shaped flowers and heart-notched leaflets.; vs Melilotus: Trifolium flowers persist enclosing fruits; Melilotus flowers fall off leaving exposed ridged pods.; vs Castilleja: Trifolium has pea flowers and 3 toothed leaflets; paintbrush (Castilleja) has tubular flowers in colorful bracts.; vs Acmispon: Trifolium leaflets have toothed edges; Acmispon leaflets have smooth untoothed margins.
Frequently asked questions
Is Trifolium cyathiferum native to California?
Yes. Trifolium cyathiferum is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Trifolium cyathiferum bloom?
Trifolium cyathiferum blooms May-Aug.
Where in California does Trifolium cyathiferum grow?
Trifolium cyathiferum occurs in Amador, Alpine, Tuolumne, Kern, Mono, Tehama, Plumas, Nevada and other counties, at elevations of < 2500 m.
What plant family does Trifolium cyathiferum belong to?
Trifolium cyathiferum is in the Fabaceae family, genus Trifolium.
What habitat does Trifolium cyathiferum grow in?
Trifolium cyathiferum grows in Generally spring-moist valleys, chaparral, roadcuts, forest.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Trifolium dedeckerae — Dedecker's clover
- Trifolium depauperatum — Cowbag clover
- Trifolium depauperatum var. amplectens — Pale sack clover
- Trifolium depauperatum var. depauperatum — Dwarf sack clover
- Trifolium depauperatum var. truncatum — Truncate sack clover
- Trifolium dichotomum — Branched indian clover
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.