Four-leaf clover

Four-leaf clover

"For information on the song, go to Four Leaf Clover (song)"

The four-leaf clover is an uncommon variation of the common, three-leaved, clover. According to tradition, such leaves bring good luck to their finders, especially if found accidentally. [Mabey, Richard, "Flora Britannica", Sinclair-Stevenson, London, 1996, p225. ISBN 1-85619-377-2 ] According to legend, each leaflet represents something: the first is for hope, the second is for faith, the third is for love, and the fourth is for luck. [http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20050531.html]

The name "four-leaf clover" is a misnomer: the clover leaf actually consists of three (or in this case, four) leaflets. Clovers can have more than four leaflets: the most ever recorded is twenty one. It has been estimated that there are approximately 10,000 three-leaf clovers for every four-leaf clover. [http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20050531.html]

It is debated whether the fourth leaflet is caused genetically or environmentally. Its relative rarity suggests a possible recessive gene appearing at a low frequency. Alternatively, four-leaf clovers could be caused by somatic mutation or a developmental error of environmental causes. They could also be caused by the interaction of several genes that happen to segregate in the individual plant. It is possible all four explanations could apply to individual cases.

Certain companies produce four-leaf clovers using different means. Richard Mabey alleges, in "Flora Britannica", that there are farms in the US which specialise in four-leaf clovers, producing as many as 10,000 a day (to be sealed in plastic as "lucky charms") by feeding a secret, genetically-engineered ingredient to the plants to encourage the aberration (there are, however, widely-available cultivars that regularly produce leaves with multiple leaflets – see below) . Mabey also states that children learn that a five-leaved clover is even luckier than a four-leaved one. [Mabey, Richard, "Flora Britannica", p225 (citing Edward and Helene Wenis of Leonia, New Jersey, USA, writing in "BSBI News", 56, 1990)]

Other plants may be mistaken for, or misleadingly sold as, "four-leaf clovers"Fact|date=February 2007; for example, "Oxalis tetraphylla", a species of wood sorrel with leaves resembling a four-leaf clover.

Multi-leaved cultivars

There are some cultivars of white clover ("Trifolium repens") which regularly produce more than three leaflets, including purple-leaved "T. repens" 'Purpurascens Quadrifolium' and green-leaved "T. repens" 'Quadrifolium'. [Lord, Tony (ed), "RHS Plant Finder 2006–2007", (20th edition), Dorling Kindersley, London, 2006, p743. ISBN 1-4053-1455-9] "Trifolium repens" 'Good Luck' is a cultivar which has three, four, or five dark-centred leaflets per leaf. [http://www.killerplants.com/weird-plants/20030710.asp (photo)]

ee also

* 4-H emblem
* Rabbit's foot
* Horseshoe
* Cloverleaf interchange
* Shamrock
* Quatrefoil, a four-lobed structure
* Cloverleaf or "Quadrifoglio" badges denote variants of Alfa Romeo cars where the name denotes the high-end of the range in comfort and engine size, but previously denoted Alfa Romeo racing cars in the pre-Second-World-War era
* The four leaf clover also features on the badge of Celtic F.C.
* The political Centre Parties of Estonia, Finland, Norway and Sweden all use a four-leaf clover as their logo
* "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover"

External links

* [http://members.cox.net/theluckyleprechaun/index.html Pictures of four-, five- and six-leaf clovers]

References


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • four-leaf clover — also .four leaved clover BrE n a ↑clover plant that has four leaves instead of the usual three, and is considered to be lucky …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • four-leaf clover — noun count a leaf from a CLOVER plant that has four parts instead of the usual three, and that people think will bring them good luck …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • four-leaf clover — [fôr′lēf΄] n. a leaf of clover with four leaflets on one leafstalk, popularly believed to bring good luck to the finder …   English World dictionary

  • four-leaf clover — {n.} A small green plant with four leaves which many people think means good luck because clover plants usually have three leaves. * /John has a four leaf clover in his pocket. He thinks he will have good luck now./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • four-leaf clover — {n.} A small green plant with four leaves which many people think means good luck because clover plants usually have three leaves. * /John has a four leaf clover in his pocket. He thinks he will have good luck now./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • four-leaf\ clover — noun A small green plant with four leaves which many people think means good luck because clover plants usually have three leaves. John has a four leaf clover in his pocket. He thinks he will have good luck now …   Словарь американских идиом

  • Four Leaf Clover (song) — Single infobox Name = Four Leaf Clover Artist = Second Person from Album = Come to Dust (unreleased) Released = Currently unreleased Format = CD, DVD Recorded = 2006 Genre = Post Trip Hop Electronica Length = 4:34 Label = Unreleased Producer =… …   Wikipedia

  • four-leaf clover — ˈ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷ noun 1. also four leafed clover ˈ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷ : an atypical clover leaf with four leaflets often believed to be an omen of good luck 2. : a closed circle of four square dancers with overlapping arms …   Useful english dictionary

  • four-leaf clover — (also four leaved clover) noun a clover leaf with four lobes, thought to bring good luck …   English new terms dictionary

  • four-leaf clover — clover with four leaves (often considered to be a sign of luck) …   English contemporary dictionary

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