Alsike clover is a short term perennial that fixes nitrogen. It is a true clover, not a hybrid as the name suggests. Compared to many annual clovers it can be the slowest to flower after a spring sowing.
This legume is a recent addition to the UK, It is a high biomass plant, with a better cold tolerance than other annual clovers, which means it can be used as an over winter forage or green cover.
This is a short term legume also known as Egyptian clover. It provides fast growing biomass and nitrogen fixation when sown in warm soils.
Birdsfoot Trefoil is a legume, it grows from a basal crown, with numerous stems that can vary from prostrate to erect in growth habit. In some parts of the country it is called the 'eggs and bacon' plant.
Birdsfoot Trefoil Species Guide 
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An annual legume and true clover, traditionally sown in the south east of England for over-winter sheep keep.
Traditionally the fenugreek plant has been used over the centuries as a herb and a spice in cooking and for medicinal purposes. In the UK there has been some trials carried out using the plant as a soil improving green manure. Due to its rapid growth it has been trialled in poly tunnels where productivity is high and gaps in the rotation for fertility building are short.
This forage legume is also known as hairy vetch or winter vetch. It has a similar scrambling, climbing growth habit to common vetch and will survive throughout the winter.
Clover is one of the most popular legumes in the UK, this species can be recognised by its creeping growth habit. Its creeping stolons help to fill in gaps in the sward, putting down roots at each node. White clover varieties can be categorised into small, medium and large leaf sizes. Generally the smaller the leaf size, the more persistent and prostrate the plant will be, the small leaf type will tolerate closer grazing from sheep and tends to sit lower at the base of the sward, the small and medium leaf varieties are used for grazing mixtures. Using mixtures of white clover varieties helps to ensure that at least one can tolerate and contribute to what ever management regime is being imposed at a given time. The larger leaf varieties are more upright and contribute to yield in cutting swards, but they are less persistent. Common large leaf varieties are Alice & Barblanca.
Large Leaved White Clover Species Guide Buy Large Leaved White Clover Straight
Red clover is one of the most popularly used true clovers in the UK. Once established it’s capable of rapid growth and shows reasonably good persistence up to three years, although ongoing breeding work is being carried out to increase plant persistence. The 'single cut' or 'late' strains of red clover, notably the diploid variety altaswede provide one large cut per season, flowering once per season, approximately 2-3 weeks later than the 'double cut' early strains.
Also known as alfalfa in the states, lucerne benefits animal health and soil fertility. It is a high protein forage crop which is usually grown on its own and is very good on drought-prone soils. It establishes relatively slowly, producing significantly more biomass in the second and third years. Lucerne should only be grown on free-draining, alkaline soil. Lucerne requires the correct strain of rhizobia (known as an inoculant) to efficiently fix atmospheric nitrogen and get the most growth.
White clover is one of the most common legumes in the UK. This species can be recognised by its creeping growth habit. Its creeping stolons help to fill in gaps in the sward, putting down roots at each node. White clover varieties can be categorised into small, medium and large leaf sizes. Generally the smaller the leaf size, the more persistent and prostrate the plant will be, the small leaf type will tolerate closer grazing from sheep and tends to sit lower at the base of the sward, the small and medium leaf varieties are used for grazing mixtures. Using mixtures of white clover varieties helps to ensure that at least one can tolerate and contribute to what ever management regime is being imposed at a given time. The medium leaf varieties are very adaptable, generally they can be used for both grazing and cutting mixtures. They combine a good tolerance to cattle or sheep grazing and can contribute to cutting yields, while still being more persistent than the large leaf varieties. There are also variations, which can be classed as small to medium in terms of leaf size. Common medium leaf varieties are aberherald & aberdai, while the variety aberpearl is classed as small to medium leaf in terms of size.
Medium Leaved White Clover Species Guide Buy Medium Leaved White Clover Straight
Native red clover, sometimes known as Essex or indigenous red clover, is a native variety to the UK. Generally this variety is smaller and lower yielding than an agriculturally bred strain, but with a longer lifespan. Despite being lower yielding than some varieties, it is notably early to flower, often seen from April to May.
A legume species which is widely used across Europe. It is less common in the UK but can be a useful forage plant. This short term annual fixes nitrogen and is capable of rapid growth making it ideal for providing a quick boost to soil fertility where there is a window of 5-9 months. When in flower Persian clover has a particularly pleasing smell.
Red clover is one of the most popularly used true clovers in the UK. Once established it’s capable of rapid growth and shows reasonably good persistence up to three years, although ongoing breeding work is being carried out to increase plant persistence. The highest yielding strains of red clover are called 'double cut' varieties, normally providing quick regrowth after cutting and several flushes or cuts per season. The 'single cut' strains of red clover, notably the variety altaswede provide one large cut per season, flowering approximately 2-3 weeks later than the 'double cut' strains.
Sainfoin is extremely palatable to livestock and has very good nutritional balance. It can be grazed or fed as hay or silage. It suits the thin soils and limestone rich downlands found in some areas of the UK. Loosely translated sainfoin in French means 'Healthy Hay'.
Sweet clover (also known as yellow blossom) is a tall biennial plant. There are two forms, one white flowered and one yellow, with little difference between them. Once established it is aggressive, producing a large tap root and significant biomass.
Vetch is a well known legume also known as common vetch or tares. It scrambling, smothering growth habit and frost tolerance make it a very useful winter cover crop or green manure.
White clover is one of the most common legumes in the UK. This species can be recognised by its creeping growth habit. Its creeping stolons help to fill in gaps in the sward, putting down roots at each node. White clover varieties can be categorised into small, medium and large leaf sizes. Generally the smaller the leaf size, the more persistent and prostrate the plant will be, the small leaf type will tolerate closer grazing from sheep and tends to sit lower at the base of the sward, the small and medium leaf varieties are used for grazing mixtures. Using mixtures of white clover varieties helps to ensure that at least one can tolerate and contribute to what ever management regime is being imposed at a given time. The small leaf varieties are the lowest growing and the most prostrate. Due to the low growing point on the plant , they have a good tolerance to cattle and especially sheep grazing. The small leaf varieties are the most persistent perennial clovers. Small leaf varieties are sometimes call 'wild white clover', one of the best known was the Aberystwyth S 184 variety, another was Kent wild white clover, a more modern version of this variety type is called aberace.
Wild White Clover (small leaved) Species Guide Buy Wild White Clover (small leaved) Straight
Yellow trefoil (also known as black medick) is a short lived annual/biennial legume, with a low growth habit making it a common choice for undersowing and soil improvement.
Yellow Trefoil / Black Medick Species Guide Buy Yellow Trefoil / Black Medick Straight
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