Editing Trifolium repens (section)

== Cultivation and uses ==

===Forage===
White clover has been described as the most important forage legume of the [[temperate zones]].<ref>{{citation
  | last1 = Elgersma
  | first1 = Anjo
  | first2 = Jan
  | last2 = Hassink
  | title = Effects of white clover (''Trifolium repens'' L.) on plant and soil nitrogen and soil organic matter in mixtures with perennial ryegrass (''Lolium perenne'' L.)
  | journal = Plant and Soil
  | volume = 197
  | year = 1997
  | issue = 2
 | pages = 177–186| doi = 10.1023/A:1004237527970
 | bibcode = 1997PlSoi.197..177E
 | s2cid = 32120149
 }}</ref> Symbiotic nitrogen fixation (up to {{convert|545|kg/ha/year|lb/acre/year}} of N,<ref>{{citation
  | last1 = Carlsson
  | first1 = G.
  | first2 = K.
  | last2 = Huss-Danell
  | title = Nitrogen fixation in perennial forage legumes in the field
  | journal = Plant and Soil
  | volume = 253
  | year = 2003
  | issue = 2
 | pages = 353–372| doi = 10.1023/A:1024847017371
 | bibcode = 2003PlSoi.253..353C
 | s2cid = 42742227
 }}</ref> although usually much less, e.g. about {{convert|110 to 170|kg/ha/year|lb/acre/year}}<ref>Andrae, John.  2004. White clover establishment and management guide. B 1251. Univ. of Georgia Extension.</ref>) in root nodules of white clover obviates synthetic nitrogen fertilizer use for maintaining productivity on much temperate zone pasture land. White clover is commonly grown in mixtures with forage grasses, e.g. perennial ryegrass (''[[Lolium perenne]]'').<ref>Ulyatt, M. J., D. J. Thomson, D. E. Beever, R. T. Evans, and M. J. Haines. "The digestion of perennial ryegrass (''Lolium perenne'' cv. Melle) and white clover (''Trifolium repens'' cv. Blanca) by grazing cattle." British Journal of Nutrition 60, no. 01 (1988): 137–149.</ref><ref>Evans, D. R., and T. A. Williams. "The effect of cutting and grazing managements on dry matter yield of white clover varieties (''Trifolium repens'') when grown with S23 perennial ryegrass." Grass and Forage Science 42, no. 2 (1987): 153–159.</ref><ref>Moseley, G., and J. R. Jones. "The physical digestion of perennial ryegrass (''Lolium perenne'') and white clover (''Trifolium repens'') in the foregut of sheep." British Journal of Nutrition 52, no. 02 (1984): 381–390.</ref> Such mixtures can not only optimize livestock production, but can also reduce the bloat risk to livestock that can be associated with excessive white clover in pastures.<ref>Wolfe, E. C., and Alec Lazenby. "Bloat incidence and liveweight gain in beef cattle on pastures containing different proportions of white clover (''Trifolium repens'')." Animal Production Science 12, no. 55 (1972): 119–125.</ref> Such species mixtures also tend to avoid issues that could otherwise be associated with cyanogenic glycosides ([[linamarin]] and [[lotaustralin]]) intake on pure or nearly pure stands of some white clover varieties.<ref>Crush, J. R., and J. R. Caradus. "Cyanogenesis potential and iodine concentration in white clover (''Trifolium repens'' L.) cultivars." New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research 38, no. 3 (1995): 309–316.</ref> However, problems do not inevitably arise with grazing on monocultures of white clover, and superior ruminant production is sometimes achieved on white clover monocultures managed to optimize sward height.<ref>{{citation
  | last1 = Orr
  | first1 = R. J.
  | first2 = A. J.
  | last2 = Parsons
  | first3 = P. D.
  | last3 = Penning
  | first4 = T. T. 
  | last4 =Treacher.
  | title = Sward composition, animal performance and the potential production of grass/white clover swards continuously stocked with sheep.
  | journal = Grass and Forage Science
  | volume = 45
  | year = 1990
  | issue = 3
 | pages = 325–336| doi = 10.1111/j.1365-2494.1990.tb01957.x
 | bibcode = 1990GForS..45..325O
 }}</ref>

The ''O''-methylated isoflavones [[formononetin]] and [[biochanin A]] play a role in arbuscular mycorrhiza formation on white clover roots,<ref>Siqueira, J. O., G. R. Safir, and M. G. Nair. "Stimulation of vesicular‐arbuscular mycorrhizal formation and growth of white clover by flavonoid compounds." New Phytologist 118, no. 1 (1991): 87–93.</ref> and foliar disease can stimulate production of estrogenic coumestans in white clover.<ref name="Adams1995">Adams, Norman R. "Detection of the effects of phytoestrogens on sheep and cattle." Journal of Animal Science 73, no. 5 (1995): 1509–1515.</ref> However, while there have been a few reports of phytoestrogenic effects of white clover on grazing ruminants,<ref name="Adams1995" /> these have been far less common than such reports regarding some varieties of subterranean clover (''[[Trifolium subterraneum]]'') and red clover (''[[Trifolium pratense]]''). Among forage plants, some white clover varieties tend to be favored by rather close grazing, because of their [[stolon]]iferous habit,<ref>Lane, L. A., J. F. Ayres and J. V. Lovett. "The pastoral significance, adaptive characteristics, and grazing value of white clover (''Trifolium repens'' L.) in dryland environments in Australia: a review." Animal Production Science 40, no. 7 (2000): 1033–1046.</ref><ref>Caradus, J. R. "Genetic diversity within white clover (''Trifolium repens'' L.)." In Proceedings Agronomy Society of NZ, vol. 24, p. 2. 1994.</ref> which can contribute to competitive advantage.

=== Companion planting, green manure, and cover crops === 
White clover grows well as a [[companion planting|companion plant]] among [[lawn]]s, [[grain]] crops, [[pasture]] grasses, and [[vegetable]] rows.<ref name="wotn" /> It is often added to [[lawn]] seed mixes, as it is able to grow and provide green cover in poorer soils where turfgrasses do not perform well. White clover can tolerate close [[mower|mowing]] and [[grazing]], and it can grow on many different [[soil classification|types]] and [[pH]]s of soil (although it prefers [[clay]] soils).<ref name="wotn" /> As a [[legume|leguminous]] and [[hardiness (plants)|hardy]] plant, it is considered to be a beneficial component of natural or organic [[pasture]] management and lawn care due to its ability to [[Nitrogen fixation|fix nitrogen]] and out-compete [[weed]]s. Natural nitrogen fixing reduces leaching from the soil and by maintaining [[soil health]] can reduce the incidence of some lawn diseases that are enhanced by the availability of synthetic fertilizer.<ref name="Tukey">''The Organic Lawn Care Manual'', Tukey, Storey Publishing. p 183.</ref> For these reasons, it is often used as a [[green manure]] and [[cover crop]].

=== Culinary uses ===
Besides making an excellent forage crop for [[livestock]],<ref name="urlTrifolium repens">{{cite web
 | last =Coladonato
 | first =Milo
 | title = ''Trifolium repens''
 | publisher = U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory
 | date =1993
 | url =http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/trirep/all.html
 | access-date = 2015-07-26}}</ref> its leaves and flowers are a valuable survival food: they are high in [[protein]]s, and are widespread and abundant. The fresh plants have been used for centuries as additives to [[salads]] and other meals consisting of leafy vegetables.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}} They are not easy for humans to digest raw, but, this is however easily fixed by boiling the harvested plants for 5–10 minutes.<ref name="ewp">Lee Allen Peterson, ''Edible Wild Plants'', (New York City: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1977), P. 56.
</ref> Native Americans ate some species raw.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Reiner|first=Ralph E.|title=Introducing the Flowering Beauty of Glacier National Park and the Majestic High Rockies|publisher=Glacier Park, Inc.|year=1969|pages=10}}</ref> Dried white clover flowers may also be smoked as a herbal alternative to tobacco.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.foragingtexas.com/2008/08/clover.html |title=Clover – White |publisher=Foraging Texas |access-date=2018-07-16}}</ref>

=== Medicinal uses ===
In India, ''T. repens'' is considered a folk medicine against intestinal helminthic worms, and an experimental in-vivo study validated that the aerial shoots of ''T. repens'' bear significant [[anticestodal]] (anti-tapeworm) properties.<ref>Yadav, A. K. 2004. Anticestodal activity of ''Trifolium repens'' extract. Pharmaceutical Biology 42: 656–658.</ref>