Bird's-Foot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus)
A plant, flowering from June to September, often found on sandy soil along pathways. This is an introduced species in North America and very common around Montreal.
| 🇫🇷 | Lotier corniculé |
| 🇩🇪 | Gewöhnlicher Hornklee |
| 🇲🇽 | Trébol Criollo, Loto Corniculado, Zapaticos de la Virgen |
Taxonomy
| Order | Fabales |
| Family | Fabaceae |
How to Identify
Identified by its vivid yellow color and the typical, asymmetric shape of the petals. Usually low growing but can get up to 20 cm in height.
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| Flowers | |
| Color | yellow |
| Shape | papilionaceous |
| Inflorescence | umbel |
| Leaves | |
| Arrangement | alternate |
| Petiole | short |
| Shape | pinnate |
| Margin | entire |
| Venation | pinnate |
Learn more about morphological characteristics of flowers here.
Where and When to Spot
Found in almost every park around Montreal all summer long.
Flowering Records by Park and Season
| Location | Spring | Summer | Autumn | Winter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belvédère Outremont | - | x | - | x |
| Champ des Possibles | x | - | - | - |
| Jardin Botanique de Montréal | - | x | - | - |
| Parc Angrignon | - | x | - | - |
| Parc de la Cité | - | x | - | - |
| Parc de la Frayère | - | x | - | - |
| Parc des Rapides, Lachine | - | x | - | - |
"x" indicates that the species was observed flowering, while "-" indicates no observation. The absence of observation doesn't necessarily imply that the species was not flowering. Data is derived from our park visit journals.