Relatives
Lotus uliginosus Schkuhr - Bog Bird.s-foot-trefoil.
Taxonomic position.
Family Fabaceae Lindl., genus Lotus L.Morphology and biology.
Perennial plant with creeping rhizome. Stems ascending, hollow, 20-60 cm tall. Lowermost pair of leaflets sessile obovate, acuminate, 8-12 mm long, 6-8 mm wide; three pairs of upper leaflets obovate, acuminate. Peduncles 7-10 cm long, with 8-12 flowers in inflorescence. Calyx 5-6 mm long, with linear-lanceolate acute teeth, star-like reflexed before flowering, teeth as long as tube. Corolla yellow, standard 11-12 mm long, limb as long as unguis. Wings 10-11 mm long, keel 9 mm long. Pods slender, cylindrical, brown, 30 mm long, 2-3 mm wide. 2n=12, 24. Flowers in June, fruits in July.Distribution.
General distribution: Central, Western and Atlantic Europe, Western Mediterranean. Former USSR: European part - Baltic and Upper Dniester regions; Caucasus - Transcaucasia.Ecology.
In swampy meadows, cuttings in damp forests, at roadsides, in field fringes.Use and economic value.
Forage plant. Contains more proteins in plant and less hydrocyanic acid in flowers compared with L. corniculatus L.References:
Grossheim AA. 1952. Flora of Caucasus. 2nd ed. V.5. P.290. (In Russian).Minjaev NA., Ulle ZG. 1987. Bird.s-foot-trefoil - Lotus L. In: Fedorov AA., Tzvelev NN., eds. Flora of the European part of the USSR. V.6. P.114. (In Russian).
Shishkin BK., ed. 1945. Flora URSS. V.11. P.292-295. (In Russian).