Medicago sativa

Search Criteria
Set New Location Clear All

All Locations

Enter Coordinates

Enter the coordinates of where the flower was found.

Most formats are accepted.
36.056316, -112.08046
36° 3′ 22.77″ N, 112° 4′ 49.66″ W
36 3 22.77, 112 4 49.66

Plant Elevation

Enter the elevation (within 1,000 feet) of where the flower was found.

Examples:
Enter 5500 then press Submit in Feet
Enter 1700 then press Submit in Meters
Press Any Value to ignore elevation

Observation Time

Now

Set plant observation time by clicking on the calendar.

Month	Week
January	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
February	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
March	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
April	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
May	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
June	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
July	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
August	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
September	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
October	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
November	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
December	1^st	2^nd	3^rd	Last
Now	The Current Week
Any Time	Filter Off

Plant Category

All Plants

All

Wildflowers

Shrubs

Broadleaf

Conifer

Woody Vines

Cactus

Grass-like

Fern-like

Moss-like

Lichen

Seaweed

Flower Petals

No Petals

Many

One Petal

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six Petals

Pea Flower

Irregular

Flower Color

Yellow

White

Pink

Violet

Blue

Red

Orange

Brown

Green

Flower Size

Very Small

About 1/4 inch

About 1/2 inch

About 3/4 inches

About an 1 inch

Around 1.5 inches

Around 2 inches

Around 3 inches

Over 4 inches

If you don't carry a ruler you can use a quarter which is an inch in diameter. Although flowers may be easy to measure, the size often varies. Botanical descriptions often do not include the flower size so some of our size information may be wrong.

When a plant has clusters of small flowers you should measure the size of a flower even though it may be very small. Many plants have flowers that are not obvious and in that case we put them in the "Very Small" category.

Leaf Attachment

Alternate

Opposite

Basal

Whorled

Habitat	Description
Alpine	Growing above timberline
Aquatic	Growing in or floating in water
Brush	Scab, chaparral, thicket, clearcut, scrub and similar terms
Cliff	On a cliff, rock wall or similar surface
Desert	Described as a desert, wash, arid or very dry area
Disturbed	Along a road, railroad, burned area, vacant lot and similar places
Epiphyte	Growing on a plant or on decaying plant material
Forest	In a grove, stand or woods or otherwise associated with trees
Grassland	A pasture, prairie, rangeland or steppe
Meadow	An area described as a meadow
Riparian	Near a stream, river, lake, seep or other wet area
Rocky	An outcrop, scree, talus area or other rocky area
Salt Marsh	An alkali or tidal area
Sand	An area described as sandy or a sand dune
Wetland	Marsh, swamp, bog, fen or wetland
Ignore	No habitat specified

Clear

Family→Genus→Species
New Plant Search
Parks and Trails

About This Site
List of Scientific Names
List of Common Names
List of Image Authors
Go to North America

alfalfa

alfalfa Pea Family
Medicago sativa Fabaceae
--more--

common name
  alfalfa
accepted scientific name
  Medicago sativa L.
rules for finding collection records
  Medicago falcata (0)
  Medicago sativa (26)
family name
  Fabaceae

Image Author: Steve Sullivan

Category: Wildflowers
Flowers: Pea shaped flowers
Petal colors:

Flower size is .15 to .4 inches
Leaf: Alternate
Plant Observed 3rd week of February thru 3rd week of November
Native to Europe. A fodder plant naturalized in Hawaii.

How Likely at this Location (14%)

Name Match (100%)

Plant Showiness (36%)

Links to Plant Descriptions
Minnesota Wildflowers (10)
Illinois Wildflowers (2)
Flora of the Hawaiian Islands
UW Herbarium (30)
E-Flora BC
Wikipedia
Yavapai County Plants (3)
Mark Turner
SW Desert Flora (4)
SE Arizona Wildflowers (2)
USDA Plant Guide
Go Botany
USDA Fact Sheet

Links to Plant Photos
Wikimedia Commons (70)
Cal Photos (49)
Starr Environmental (20)
Missouri Plants (11)
Paul Slichter (7)
U of Michigan Herbarium (7)
Tony Valois NPS (6)
R.L.Carr (13)
Measurable Photos (5)
G.D.Carr (10)
Maryland Biodiversity (5)
Walter Muma (5)
FloraFinder (5)

Where the plant has been found

credits

Elevation (feet) vs. Time of Observation (Flowering)

credits