Many people are surprised to learn that clover is an edible weed. We all know it well having grown up with it, wishing away sunny afternoons as kids searching for that elusive four-leaf clover.
Clover is the common name for plants of the genus Trifolium which, broken down in Latin, means three (tri) leaf (folium). It consists of 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or Fabaceace family.
Trifolium repens, or white or Dutch clover, is probably the most common in urban and regional areas. It has white or soft-pink flowers and the leaves boast distinctive markings. Red clover is also common; it’s similar in appearance to Dutch clover but its flowers are red and it has no markings on its leaves.