Medicago arabica, the spotted medick, spotted burclover, heart clover, is a flowering plant in the pea and bean family Fabaceae.
Description It is a sprawling plant with a height of . It usually has spotted trifoliate leaves, but the number of leaflets per leaf can sometimes be different. The flowers are pale yellow and appear spring and summer. The fruits are legumes, strangely coiled and sharply spiny.
Distribution and habitat It is native to the Mediterranean basin but is found throughout the world, usually on clifftop grasslands and grassy places. It forms a symbiotic relationship with the bacterium Sinorhizobium medicae, which is capable of nitrogen fixation.
Uses Due to its nitrogen fixation, it is sometimes considered a useful cover crop to restore soil nutrients by farmers in its native range, though it is also weedy and can thus be a nuisance. It is edible both for livestock and humans, and attracts pollinators. It also has been used in traditional medicine for possible diuretic, expectorant, and anti-inflammatory properties.
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