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Trifolium tembense

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Ecocrop code372268



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DESCRIPTION: Herbaceous legume with many erect or spreading stems. Leaves trifoliate, leaflets up to 20 x 10 mm. Inflorescences usually globose, 3-16 flowered, purple or rarely white, up to 23 mm across. Pods 5-8 mm long. USE: Used for grazing in native pastures and for pasture improvement in high altitude and seasonally waterlogged areas. GROWING PERIOD: Annual. COMMON NAMES: Tembien clover. FURTHER INF: Native of eastern and southern Central Africa frost free highlands at elevations between 1400-3200 mm. Found in upland grasslands in waterlogged areas and as a weed of crop land. Rainfall in its natural range varies from 700-2000 mm/year. Ground temperatures below 7ÂșC during the growing season may retard growth. Adapted to a wide range of often infertile soils from heavy clay vertisols and nitosols to loams and sandy loams from pH 4.0-8.0. It is very tolerant of waterlogging and is the most wetland tolerant of all the indigenous Ethiopian Trifolium species. DM yields of 2-6 t/ha/year have been reported.
Sources
Grassland Index
Tropical forages 2005