Medicago sativa

Sickle Medick or (Sand) Lucerne;

Scientific name: Medicago sativa L.

Diagnostic features
Erect to decumbent perennial to 90cm.
Leaves pubescent.
Stipules entire to shallowly serrate.
Flowers numerous in ± compact racemes, 5-12mm.
Fruits slightly curved (8-11mm long) to spiralled (5-9mm across) in 2-3(4) turns, spineless, pubescent or glabrous, 2-20-seeded.

This species is keyed out on Page 2974 in the Text Key.

Key to the subspecies:
1a. Fruits spiralled in 2-3(4) complete turns; coils ± closed in centre; flowers mauve to violet............................................... Medicago sativa sativa.
1b. Fruits curved or spiralled in up to 1.5 complete turns; coils ± open in centre; flowers yellow or white to purple or green or blackish............................................... 2.
2a. Fruits nearly straight to curved in arc up to 1/2 circle; flowers yellow ............................................... Medicago sativa falcata.
2b. Fruits curved or spiralled in 0.5-1.5 complete turns; flowers yellow or other colours ............................................... Medicago sativa varia.

Kingdom Plantae
Phylum Angiospermophyta
Class Magnoliopsida
Subclass Magnoliidae
Superorder Rosiflorae
Order Fabales
Family Fabaceae
Tribe Trifolieae
Genus Medicago
Species Medicago sativa

Medicago sativa L.

Medicago sativa falcata 2 (Flowering habit, picture taken in Slovakia by C.A. Stace)
Medicago sativa falcata 3 (Flowering habit, picture taken in the Netherlands by R. van der Meijden)
Medicago sativa falcata a (Fruit, drawing by H. Thompson in Stace, 1997)
Medicago sativa sativa 3 (Flowering habit, picture taken in the Netherlands by K. Ybema)
Medicago sativa sativa 4 (Fruiting, picture taken in the Netherlands by R. van der Meijden)
Medicago sativa sativa a (Fruit, drawing by H. Thompson in Stace, 1997)
Medicago sativa varia 2 (Flowering habit, picture taken in the Netherlands by R. van der Meijden)
Medicago sativa varia 3 (Flowering habit, picture taken in the Netherlands by K. Ybema)
Medicago sativa varia 4 (Flowering, picture taken in the Netherlands, in slide collection of NHN-Leiden)