Fabaceae
Sweetclover
Melilotus officinalis
- Family
- Fabaceae
- Genus
- Melilotus
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Common names
By language (1)
- English
- Sweetclover
Synonyms
- Brachylobus officinalis (L.) Dulac
- Medicago officinalis (L.) E.H.L.Krause
- Melilotus armenus Boiss.
- Melilotus arvensis Wallr.
- Melilotus arvensis prol. luxurians Rouy
- Melilotus arvensis prol. maximus (Legrand) Rouy
- Melilotus arvensis var. albus St.-Lag.
- Melilotus arvensis var. grandiflorus Lamotte
- Melilotus arvensis var. maximus (Legrand) St.-Lag.
- Melilotus bungeanus Boiss.
- Melilotus citrinus Duval ex Steud.
- Melilotus diffusus W.D.J.Koch ex DC.
- Melilotus expansus Rchb.
- Melilotus flavus Pall.
- Melilotus kochianus DC.
- Melilotus longepedicellatus Rosbach
- Melilotus lutescens Gilib.
- Melilotus luteus Gueldenst.
- Melilotus luxurians Shuttlew. ex Rouy & Foucaud
- Melilotus macrorhizus Besser
- Melilotus macrorrhizus var. palustris (Waldst. & Kit.) W.D.J.Koch
- Melilotus macrospermus K.Koch ex Boiss.
- Melilotus mauritanicus Willd.
- Melilotus maximus Legrand
- Melilotus melilotus-officinalis (Crantz) Asch. & Graebn.
- Melilotus montanus Gaudin
- Melilotus nebrodensis Jord. ex Nyman
- Melilotus neglectus Ten.
- Melilotus officinalis f. maximus Legrand
- Melilotus officinalis var. expansa Mutel
- Melilotus officinalis var. maximus (Legrand) Kojić
- Melilotus officinalis var. vulgaris Wahlenb.
- Melilotus pallidus Besser
- Melilotus paluster Menyh.
- Melilotus palustris (Waldst. & Kit.) Schult.
- Melilotus petitpierreanus Willd.
- Melilotus petitpierrianus Willd. ex Ces., Pass. & Gibelli
- Melilotus rugosus Gilib.
- Melilotus virescens Jord.
- Sertula arvensis (Wallr.) Kuntze
and 13 more.
Flowers
- Flower colour
- white, yellow (USDA PLANTS Database)
Characteristics
- Growth habit
- Forb/herb
- Lifespan
- Annual, Biennial, Perennial
- In the US and Canada
- Alaska: introduced, Canada: introduced, Greenland: introduced, Hawaii: introduced, Lower 48 states: introduced, Pacific Basin: introduced, Puerto Rico: introduced, St. Pierre and Miquelon: introduced
Toxicity: Moderate, as listed by the USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29). USDA rates how toxic a plant is to people or livestock; it is not a pet-safety rating, so ask a vet or poison line if a pet or child ate it.
Photos
Photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: UuMUfQ, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: UuMUfQ, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Ayotte, Gilles, 1948-, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Ayotte, Gilles, 1948-, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Matt Lavin, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Matt Lavin, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons
More in Melilotus
- White melilotMelilotus albusFabaceae
- Annual yellow sweetcloverMelilotus indicusFabaceae
- Tall yellow sweetcloverMelilotus altissimusFabaceae
- Melilotus dentatusFabaceae
- SweetcloverMelilotus wolgicusFabaceae
- Mediterranean sweetcloverMelilotus sulcatusFabaceae
- Melilotus segetalisFabaceae
- Italian melilotMelilotus italicusFabaceae
- Melilotus neapolitanusFabaceae
- SweetcloverMelilotus suaveolensFabaceae
- Melilotus polonicusFabaceae
- Melilotus tauricusFabaceae
Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0); popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.