Varieties: There are two, see note below the photo section.

Seeds typically germinate in warm soil without the need for cold stratification. Seed: Bumblebees and other bees will pollinate the flowers which when fertile, produce a small dry thin hairy seed pod, containing one or two smooth irregularly shaped seeds, which are dispersed by the wind when mature, falling close to the plant. Flowers open from the bottom of the spike to the top. The petals of the corolla have an upright banner like most Pea family flowers, but the other 4 petals are much reduced allowing the stamens and style to be visible and exserted from the corolla. The pinkish-white style is longer than the stamens. The stamens number 5, have greenish-purple filaments and usually pale orange anthers. The flowers are small 1/4 inch 5-part, with a green calyx and purple corollas.

If branched, side stems will also have a spike. The inflorescence is a dense cone-shaped spike, 1 to 2 inches long on a stalk held above the leaves. All but the smallest upper leaves will be stalked and the small uppers may have only 3 lobes. The leaves are pinnately compound with an odd number of narrow leaflets (3 to 9 but usually 5), hairless, with each leaflet being about 1 inch long, only 1/8 inch wide, having smooth margins and translucent gland dots on the underside. Mature plants will frequently have many stems rising from the root.

Stems are usually hairless but some plants may have dense short hair stems are pale green with vertical ridge lines. Purple Prairie Clover is a native, erect, perennial forb growing on slender, stems usually under 2 feet tall (range 8 to 35 inches).

Clover with purple flowers