black medick

not listed

NNA - Not applicable

SNA - Not applicable

not listed

FACU - Facultative upland

FACU - Facultative upland

FACU - Facultative upland

Black medick is a low annual or biennial forb that rises on multiple stems from a taproot. The stems are sprawling, ascending, or erect, hairy, and 4-angled.

The leaves are alternate and compound, divided into 3 leaflets. They are on short leaf stalks. The leaflets are elliptical to egg-shaped with the attachment at the narrow end, ⅜″ to ¾″ long and wide. The terminal leaflet is on a stalk ⅛″ or more long. Leaflet margins are finely-toothed. The tip of each leaflet is notched and bears a small spine. The upper surface is sparsely hairy, the lower surface is hairy.

The inflorescence is many globular, head-like clusters at the end of long, unbranched, leafless, stalks rising from the leaf axils. The stalks are 1 to 4 times longer than the subtending leaves. The flower heads are ¼″ to almost ½″ across. Each head has 10 to 50 flowers.

The flowers are pea-like, with 5 petals organized into a banner, 2 wings, and a keel formed by two petals fused together at the tip. The keel is smooth, not grooved. The petals are yellow. The individual flowers are stalkless.

The fruit is a black, kidney-shaped seed pod containing a single seed.

8″ to 32″

Yellow

Disturbed sites

May to September

Sources

2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 22, 24, 28, 29, 30.

Native to Asia, Europe, Northern Africa, and the Indian Subcontinent. Introduced and naturalized in North America.

Very common

Plant

Inflorescence

Leaves