Relatives

Trigonella caerulea (L) Ser. - Blue fenugreek, blue-white trigonella

Taxonomic position.

Family Leguminosae Endl., genus Trigonella L.

Biology and morphology.

It is an annual herb. Stems ascending or erect, hollow, thin, with uprising branches, 30-60 cm tall. Stipules are triangular-lanceolate, serrate. Leaves are obovate or lance-shaped, 2-5 cm long, 1-2 cm wide and saw-toothed in upper part. Flower stalks longer than leaves. Racemes compact, globular. Calyx twice as short as corolla, its teeth are equal to tube. Corolla 5.5-6.5 mm long, blue, Pod erect or slightly curved, compressed, 4-5 mm long with beak 2 mm. Seeds small elongated. Blossoms in April-May, seeds ripen in May-June. It is self-pollinated. 2n=16.

Distribution.

Species is distributed throughout the European part of Russia, Ukraine, Crimea, Moldova and Caucasus.

Ecology.

Prefers ruderal places. It grows among bushes, along roads and in fields.

Utilization and economic value.

It is a forage and aromatic plant. Good palatability by animals but poor productivity. Used in cheese production. It is useful in breeding programs in crosses with cultivated Trigonella species.

Reference citations:

Brezhnev D.D., Korovina O.N. 1980. Wild relatives of the cultivated plants of flora of the USSR. Leningrad: Kolo. 376 pp. (In Russian)
Galushko, A.I. 1980. Flora of Northern Caucasus. V. 2. A field guide. Rostov-na-Donu. 350 pp. (In Russian)
Grossheim, A.A. 1952. Genus Trigonella. V. 5. Flora of the Caucasus. Moscow-Leningrad: AN USSR. 168-177 p. (In Russian)
Kolakovskiy, A.L. 1958. Flora of Abhasiya. V. 3. Tbilisi. 292 pp. (In Russian)
Phyodorov, A.A., ed. 1987. Flora of the European part of the USSR. V. 6. 254 pp. (In Russian)
Schishkin, V.K. & E.G. Bobrov, ed. 1948. Flora of the USSR. V. 13. Genus Trigonella. Moscow-Leningrad: AN USSR. 102-129 p. (In Russian)

© Dzyubenko N.I., Dzyubenko E.A.

 

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