White sweet clover, White melilot
Melilotus albus

Family: Fabaceae

What it is like

An annual or biennial herb. It grows 20-100 cm high. It is tall and bushy. The leaves are made up of 3 leaflets with teeth around the edge. The flowers are small and white. They are pea-like. The flowers and stalk are 5-20 cm long. The fruit is an oval wrinkled pod. It is 3-5 mm long and grey-brown.

It contains coumarin which thins blood. There are about 20 Melilotus species. They are temperate and subtropical.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It grows is tussock grassland. Tasmania Herbarium. In Sichuan and Yunnan.

Countries/locations it is found in

Afghanistan, Africa, Algeria, Arabia, Argentina, Asia, Australia, Balkans, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, Central Asia, Chile, China, Dominican Republic, East Africa, Europe (country/location of origin), France, Hungary, India, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Mediterranean, Middle East, Mongolia, Mozambique, Myanmar, New Zealand, North Africa, North America, Pakistan, Paraguay, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, Slovenia, South Africa, South America, Spain, Tajikistan, Tasmania, Tibet, Turkey, Türkiye, Uruguay, West Indies, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

CAUTION: Don't use plants dried. Plants dried in damp poorly ventilated conditions can contain discoumarin. Leaves and seeds flavour Gruyere cheese. The young leaves before flowering can be added to salads or boiled for 5 minutes. The flowers are used as a vanilla like flavouring. The pea like seeds can be used for seasoning in soups.

Edible parts

Flowers, leaves, seeds, seeds pod, root

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from seeds. Plants produce a very large number of seeds and these can remain viable in the soil for many years.

Its other names

Local names

Alfa rusa, Bela medena detelja, Bokara clover, Bon-methi, Khandai, K'ita alfa, Meliloto, Pe-yaing, Ranmethi, Safed, Safed banmethi, Senji, Trebillo, Trebol de olor blanco, Trevo-doce

Synonyms

Melilotus argutus Rchb.; Melilotus melanospermus Ser. and others