Cretan Trefoil is a perennial greyish and densely hairy scrambling herb. The leaves form masses of silvery, silky, hairy leaves with five leaflets - the upper three are oblong to broadly lance-shaped, the lower two are oval. Bright golden yellow pea flowers appear mainly in summer and autumn.

The fruits are almost hairless cylindrical pods grouped together making a shape similar of the diverging toes of a small bird, leading to another common name of ‘bird’s-foot’.

Native to coastal areas of the Mediterranean Cretan Trefoil is a prolific seeder and able to invade naive vegetation, particularly in coastal areas.

Photos courtesy of Neil Tucker.