Eastern Forest Threat Center - Japanese Clover

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Japanese clover plant

Japanese clover plant

Ted Bodner, Southern Weed Science Society, Bugwood.org

Japanese Clover
Kummerowia striata

Japanese clover is native to Japan, China, Korea, and Manchuria. It has been used for wildlife food and cover, forage, cover or nurse crop, and as temporary cover for erosion control.

Keywords: Fabaceae, summer, annual, wiry, ground-hugging, oblong leaflets, hermaphroditic flowers, shallow taproots; Common names: common lespedeza

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Threat Description

Japanese clover is a wiry, ground-hugging summer annual that grows to 8 inches in height. Oblong leaflets occur in triplets and have a noticeable mid-vein running down the center. A parallel arrangement of veins is attached at 90-degree angles to the midvein. Single pink to purple flowers appear in mid- to late-summer along the branching stems. The flowers are hermaphroditic (have both male and female organs) and are self-pollinating or pollinated by insects. Japanese clover has shallow taproots and reproduces by seed. The plant prefers moist sandy, loamy, or clay soils with a pH range of 4.5-7.0. It can grow in semi-shade, such as in light woodlands, or no shade. It can be found on riverbanks, roadsides, waste ground, and utility rights of way. This plant may become invasive in some regions or habitats and may displace desirable vegetation if not properly managed.