[Clovers: The Genus Trifolium in the Columbia River Gorge of Oregon and Washington]
Big-head Clover, Big-headed Clover, Large-head Clover
Trifolium macrocephalum
Synonyms: Lupinaster macrocephalus, Trifolium macrocephalum var. caeruleomontanum
A close-up view of the broad, attractive
flower head and palmately compound leaves of big-head clover as seen along the
Dalles Mt. Road..........April 3, 2013.
The
photo at right shows a close-up of the calyx and corolla of big-head clover
as seen along the Dalles Mt. Road in the Columbia Hills to the north of The
Dalles, OR........April 9, 2006. Note the long, slender calyx lobes
with numerous soft, spreading hairs and the long wings and banner of the corolla.
Characteristics: Big-head clover is a very attractive perennial
wildflower in terms of both is large, striped leaves and large, showy inflorescence.
Several stems arise 10-30 cm high from a thick, tough root and spreading rhizomes.
The distinct leaves are palmately compound with 5-9 leaflets that are oblanceolate
to obcordate in outline. The thick, leathery leaflets are noticeably ribbed
due to the pinnately spreading veins and have serrate margins, the teeth being
small and thin. A lighter colored stripe runs across the middle of the leaflet
blade (as seen in photos on this page) which measures 12-25 mm long. The stipules
are broad, leaf-like and deeply cleft or toothed.
A single, dense head of flowers measuring up
to 5 cm wide and long is found atop each stem. The heads lack a subtending
involucre and are very showy. Individual flowers measure 22-28 mm long and
are pinkish to rose-pink with white banner. The pedicels are very short. The
calyx is about 2/3 the length of the corolla and is tipped by long, thin calyx
teeth that are several times longer than the calyx tube and are ringed with
many fringing hairs. The small pods are typically 1-4 seeded.
Habitat:
Big-head clover may be found on rocky or shallow
soils in grasslands, amongst sagebrush or in open ponderosa pione woodlands.
Range:
Big-head clover may be found wholly east of the
Cascade Mts. from southcentral Washington to central Oregon and eastward to
western Idaho and Nevada.
In the Columbia River Gorge it may be found between
the elevations of 200'-4200' from near Beacon Rock eastward to near The Dalles
Mt. in the central Columbia Hills.
The photo above shows a close-up frontal view of the large, ascending
banner and central, pink-tipped wings and keel of big-head clover as seen from
the Dalles Mt. Road......... April 9, 2006.
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Bighead clover blooming in the Columbia Hills Natural Area Preserve...........April 3, 2013.
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The photo at left shows a close-up view of the broad, attractive
flower head and palmately compound leaves of big-head clover as seen along the
Dalles Mt. Road..........April 9, 2006. Note that this species of clover
has more than 3 leaflets per each leaf, and note also the light rings marking
the leaflets. The photo at right shows bighead clover blooming along the Weldon Wagon Trail several miles east of Husum, WA.....May 4, 2022.
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The photo at left shows big-head clover as seen at the summit of Grassy Knoll in the southern Gifford Pinchot N.F..........May 24, 2007. The photo at right shows big-head clover atop the Mill Creek Ridge Preserve, Columbia Land Trust lands southwest of The Dalles, OR.......April 22, 2018.
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The photo at left shows big-head clover as seen in the Columbia Hills in the mid-Columbia River Gorge..........March 17, 2007. The photo at right shows big-head clover with flower buds as seen in the Columbia Hills NAP..........March 3, 2016.
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Additional close-up views of the broad, attractive
flower head and palmately compound leaves of big-head clover as seen along the
Dalles Mt. Road..........April 9, 2006.
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Late-blooming bighead clover atop Grassy Knoll, Gifford Pinchot National Forest............May 15, 2015.
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Newly arisen leaves (left) of bighead clover from recently burnt slopes on the southeast side of Sevenmile Hill several miles northwest of The Dalles, Oregon.........February 13, 2015. The photos at center and right are from the same location six weeks later..........March 30, 2015.
Leaves and budding flower head of bighead clover spotted along the Dalles Mountain Road, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area......April 5, 2023.
Paul Slichter