ALFALFA

£5.00 – £17.00

Alfalfa. (Medicago sativa)

The family name Medicago refers to the ancient Medea in Perisa, where it is believed that the plant once originated, and the family name can be said to mean “sown by those who lived in Medea”. The species name sativa comes from the Latin satus (sown), and means in short that the plant is grown. The species names sativa or sativum have often been used on plants that have been cultivated since ancient times, such as garlic (Allium sativum).

The popular name alfalfa (alfalfa in English) means “lamp”, and refers to the plant’s shiny bright seeds. The name alfalfa may come from the Arabic al-fac-facah, meaning “father of all food”, or from the Old Iranian an aspo-asti meaning “the best food” or “food for horses”. Alfalfa has been an important fodder plant in Arab countries, where they fed their racehorses with the herb.

size

50 gram

100 gram

200 gram

Clear

SKU: alfalfa-dried Category: Herbs Tag: Alfalfa

Description

The blue alfalfa is a perennial, bushy herb with flowers that sit in head-like clusters. The stems can be both drooping and erect, and they grow up to one meter long. The blue alfalfa has a deep, thick taproot and a richly branched stem so that the plant often has a dense, bushy growth over the years. The leaves are trifoliate with toothed, oval to oblong leaflets that become 3 cm long. The flowers are about 1 cm long, and can vary in color from pale yellowish white to dark purple. The blue alfalfa blooms from July to September, and the flowers are followed by hairy, twisted seed capsules. These pods contain several seeds, and are sickle-shaped bent or more or less helically twisted in up to four turns.