name: Alfalfa

flavor_db_name_variants: alfalfa

source: foodb

status: draft

food_db_id: Alfalfa

id: 286

name_scientific: Medicago sativa

description: Alfalfa, Medicago sativa, also called lucerne, is a perennial flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. The Spanish-Arabic (according to wiktionary and the DRAE) name alfalfa is widely used, particularly in North America and Australia. But in the UK, South Africa and New Zealand, the more commonly used name is lucerne. It superficially resembles clover, with clusters of small purple flowers followed by fruits spiralled in 2 to 3 turns containing 10-20 seeds. Alfalfa is native to a warmer temperate climate such as that of Iran (where it is thought to have originated). It has been cultivated as livestock fodder since at least the era of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

itis_id: 183623

wikipedia_id: Alfalfa

picture_file_name: 287.jpg

picture_content_type: image/jpeg

picture_file_size: 145781

picture_updated_at: 2012-04-20T09:42:00.000Z

legacy_id: 314

food_group: Herbs and Spices

food_subgroup: Herbs

food_type: Type 1

created_at: 2011-02-09T00:37:30.000Z

updated_at: 2019-05-14T18:04:21.000Z

creator_id: null

updater_id: null

export_to_afcdb: false

category: specific

ncbi_taxonomy_id: 3879

export_to_foodb: true

public_id: FOOD00286