Weed Identification >
Medic
Common Name
Medic, Burr Medic, Black Medic
Scientific Name
Medicago polymorpha
Family
Fabaceae
Lifecycle
Annual
Seasons of Growth
Autumn / Winter / Early Spring
Key Distinguishing Feature
Yellow flowers, black marks on centre of leaves.
Burr Medic is a low-growing, almost hairless, sprawling herb with leaves divided into 3 heart-shaped leaflets each 4-25mm long. The terminal leaflet is on a longer stalk than the two side leaflets. It has clusters of 2-7, small, yellow, pea-type flowers with petals that are only 3-5mm long.
The fruit is a small, greenish-brown burr with 1-6 tight coils that are often spiny. Native to the Mediterranean region, Burr Medic is a common weed of gardens, pastures and roadsides and flowers in winter and spring.
