Classification of Medicago Sativa L. Using Legume Characters And

28 ~ 00/ !~12.5 ~ ~i2.8 111113.5 1.0 I.ii = 1.0 W s=== Ii: 32 32 1 Ii: 1Dll 2.2 a..: ~ L. I~ ~ I~ ~ - ~ ~ W :r ~ '" "" ... ...,",I.;.,," . 1.1 ..... ~ --1.1 -- ""'1.8 11I1I1.2~ 111111.4 11111 1.6 111111.25 111111.4 111111.6 MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART NAlIONA, BUREAU or 5T~NOARDS 1903·/, NAlIONAL BUREAU or 51 ANDARD5-1963-A CLASSIFICATION OF MEDICAGO SATIVA L. US I NG LEGlJv1E a-JARACTERS AND FLCMER COLORS By Charles R. Gwm, \\T. H. Skrdla, and H. C. Spencer Technical Bulletin No. 1574 Agricultural Research Service UNITED STATES DEPAR1NENT OF AGRICULWRE Washington, D.C. February 1978 ACKNa~LEDGt-iENTS The following scientists contributed taxonomic and agro nomic data for this bulletin: r. K. Barnes, Plant Science Research Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service CARS), f..t. Paul, ~linn.; E. T. Bingham, Agronomy Department, University of WIsconsin, rradison; T. E. Devine, Cell Culture and Nitro gen Fixation Laborat017, J. A. Duke, Plant T~~onomy Laboratory, J. H. Elgin, Jr., Field Crops Laboratory, and H. 1. Hyland, Gennplasm Resources Laboratory, ARS, Beltsville, Md.; D. Isely, Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Iowa State University, Ames; W. K. Keh~', Department of Agronomy, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; R. P. f'.hJrphy, Department of Plant Breeding and Biometry, Cornell Univel.'::-ity, Ithaca, N.Y.; E. E. Terrell, Plai1t Taxonomy Laboratory, and G. A. White, Germplasm Resources Laboratory, ARS, Beltsville, r.ld.; and J. J. Wurdack, Botany Department, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Regina O. Hughes, Smithsonian Institution, prepared the illustrations. iii CONTENTS Page History----------------------------------------------- 2 ~Iaintenance of Medicago sativa plant introduction accessions-------------------------------------- 4 Scoring flower colors, legume characters, ail.d plant growth habits--- _. ------------------------------- 4 Medicago sativa L. comp1ex.--------------------------- 6 Medicaqo sativa L. emend. sensu 1ato------------- 6 Key to~ subspecies of Medicago sativa-------------- 7 Subspecies descriptions------------------------------- 7 1. Medicago sativa L. subsp. sativa (1/1, 2/1)--- 7 2. /'vJedicago sativa L. subsp. praefalcata (Sinskaya) C. R. Glmn (1/1g, 2/1g)------------------------ 10 3. Medicago sativa L. subsp. caerulea (Lessing ex Ledebour) Schma1hausen (1/1s)------------------ 10 4. l~ledicago sativa L. subsp. g lomerata (Balbis) Tutin (3/1)------------------------------------ 12 5. Medicago sativa L.. X varia (Martyn) Arcangeli (1/2, 2/2, 3/2)-------------------------------- 12 6. Medicago sativa L. subsp. ambigua (Trautvetter) Tutin (1/3)------------------------------------ 14 7. Medicago sativa L. subsp. X hemicycla (Grossheim) C. R. Gunn (2/3)---- -------------- IS 8. l1edicago sativa L. subsp. fa ?'cata (L.) Arcange1i (3/3)------------------------------------------ 15 9. t!edicago sativa L. subsp. viscosa (Reichenbach) C. R. Gunn (3/3g)------------------------------ 18 Literature cited-------------------------------------- 18 Appendix.--------------------------------------------- 20 Table l.--Annotated plant introduction accessions of Medicacro sativa----------------------------20 Plant ir:.troduction accessions of Medicago sativa grouped by subspecies------------------------- 78 Disposition of synonyms of Medicago sativa------ -- 81 iv CLASSIFICATION OF MEDICAGO SATIVA L. USING LEGLME CHARACTrnS AND FLOWER COLORS By Charles R. GUIll,!! W. H. Skrdla,ij and H. C. Spencer~! This investigation is designed. to establish and. define legume (fruit or pod) characters and flm.;cr colors of the Medicago sativa L. complex and to correlate these characters with the available nomenclature. Based on these data we believe that alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is a species complex with nine facies. These facies are best classified as subspecies, because they have a rather distinct though intergrading morphology and probably hybridize with each other. Although these facies have several characteristics of subspecies, some facies may lack natural ranges because of their putative or established hybrid origins. Further research is need.ed to determine which subspecies, if any, other than subspecies X hemicycla and X varia, have hybrid origins and the stability of all subspecies. The disposition of synonyms is based on legume characters and flower colors recorded. in the protolog of the type descriptions and not on a study of the types. Legwnes and. seeds from this investigation are deposited in the U.S. National Seed HerbariLnn, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Beltsville, Md., and herbarilUll specimens are deposited in the U.S. National Arboretum Herbarium and the U.S. National Herbariwn, Washington, D.C. Alfalfa introductions rGceived after this bulletin is published will be classified and described in alfalfa seed catalogs issued by the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station at Ames, Iowa. Sinskaya (18)4/ was one of the first taxonomists to integrate legume char acters and flm-.rer colors and to recognize their taxonomic importance in the i\lJedicago sativa complex. He used the alpha taxonomy of Grossheim (10, 11), Vasil'chenko (22), and others cited under Subspecies Descriptions. However, these concepts are buried in a massive interwoven taxonomic system that may leave readers oven-.rhelmed and. bewildered. We have rel1efined and applied these charac ters to plant introduction accessions of alfalfa grown at the North Central Regional Plant Introd.uction Station. 1/ Botanist, Plant Taxonomy Laboratory, Northeastern Region, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, Md. 20705. 2/ Agronomist, North Central Region, Agricultural Research Service; professor of agronomy, Iowa State University, Ames; and coordinator, NC-7, North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station, }-unes, Iowa 50010. 3/ Supervisor, Plant Introduction Fann, Iowa State Un.iversity, Ames, Iowa 500l0~ ±I Italic nwnbers in parentheses refer to Literature Cited, p. 18. 1 These characters and to a less extent other data were used in recognizing nine subspecies in the Medicago sativa complex. Although our concept may be considered an extension of the treatment in "Flora Europaea" (Tutin, 20), it goes beyond Lesins and Gillies (13) and Scofield (17), who summarized Medicago sativa data without making major taxonomic decisions or evaluations. Unlike Altevogt (1), we fOlmd that alfalfa legumes exhibit taxonomically significant characters. HISTORY Alfalfa or lucerne, the modern day "Queen of Forages," may be the only forage crop that was cultivated before recorded history. This distinction complicates tracing its origin and understanding its taxonomy, because taxa \\fere mixed before centers of origin \\fere recorded, and wild progenitors may have been lost. The most likely center of orIgIn for alfalfa is generally agreed to be in Vavilov I s "Near Eastern Center," Asia Minor, Trrulscaucasia, Iran, and the high lands of Turkmenistan (Bolton, 5; Bolton et a1., 6). About 2,400 years ago, alfalfa spread to Greece and Rome, where it became important in Roman agricul ture. According to Pliny, it was introduced into Greece from Media at the time of the Persian wars with King Darius in about 470 B.C. From there it probably spread across North Africa to Spain, then east\·.,rard through Europe and into Russia. The first recorded attempt to grow alfalfa in the United States was in Georgia in 1736. Following the introduction of alfalfa by the Sprulish, it spread throughout South America, especially Argentina, Chile, and Peru. Alfalfa was introduced into California by Spanish settlers and later by European "gold rush immigrants," who when traveling around the southern tip of South America obtained alfalfa seed from Chile and Peru. Because of a favorable continental climate of cold winters and hot, dry SLm1Jl1ers and a well-drained, nearly neutral pH soil in the far ",estern United States, alfalfa flourished and spread eastward into Nevada, Utah, Kansas, Oklahoma, and other Midwestern States. The winte.r hardy Grimm alfalfa introduced into Minnesota by a German immigrant, Wendelin Grimm, helped spread alfalfa into the Northern States. Meanwhile, alfalfa production in the Eastern United States diminished because of high humidity, acid soils, and plant diseases. In 1899, only I per cent of the alfalfa in the United States was grown east of the Mississippi River. However, owing to developments in plant breeding and management practices, such as liming, fertilizing, and seed inoculation, production east of the Mississippi River by 1949 increased to 40 percent of the total U.S. alfalfa acreage. Spanish settlers and westerners referred to Medicago sativa as alfalfa, whereas northern European settlers called it "lucerne." As alfalfa spread east ward, the name sp:eJ.d with the plants, and eventually alfalfa became the common name in the United States. Because alfalfa is a perennial, has a good yield, is palatable, ruld has high nutritive value, it has almost replaced sweetc10ver (MeLilotus alba Desr. and M. officinaZis Lamarck) and nearly replaced red clover (TrifoLiwn pratense 1.) 2 on nonacid soils in the United States. This e)..-pansion has continued despite problems with insects, plant diseases, and nematodes. Entomologists, plant pathologists, nematologists, and alfalfa breeders are providing improved tech nology and ne\\r cultivars needed to minimize damage from these pests. U.S. alfalfa cultivars are products of a wide array of gemplasm introduced since the 1770' s. Through

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