panicled ticktrefoil

Also known as Panicled-leaf Ticktrefoil, Narrow-leaf Tick-trefoil, Panicled Tickclover

Panicled ticktrefoil blooms in late summer, sending up branched clusters of dainty, pea-like flowers that range from rose-pink to pale lavender. Its slender trifoliate leaves host specialized root bacteria that capture atmospheric nitrogen, naturally enriching depleted soils in open meadows and woodland margins. Autumn transforms the fading flowers into segmented seedpods lined with microscopic hooked hairs, an adaptation that hitches rides on fur and socks to colonize open ground.