The putative species Medicago polyceratia occurs in northwestern Africa, Iberia, and southern France.
Annual plant of 20-50 cm, prone or erect, glabrous or pubescent; leaflets obovate wedge-shaped, toothed above; stipules dentate at base; flowers yellow, small (5-7 mm long), 2-6 in subsessile lateral umbels; calyx with equal teeth, equal to the tube; standard longer than the wings and obtuse hull; pods in erect bundles, 3-4 cm long, linear, arched, mucronate, pubescent, with branched veins, oblique, protruding; seeds cylindrical, grieved.
How to get rid of:
Can be easily controlled by hand-pulling, hoeing, or cultivation. Mulching, depending on the size and depth of the mulch, can prevent seedling establishment. Before seeds germinate, a 4-inch thick organic mulch (e.g., compost, wood chips, etc.) can prevent establishment.
Organic mulch can also be applied after the seedlings have germinated but must be applied in a thicker layer (4 to 6 inches) and must cover the plants completely to block out all light.
