Onobrychis viciifolia seed

LATIN NAME: Onobrychis viciifolia

COMMON NAME: Sainfoin

The sainfoin is the pink spike of the dry meadow, and the dense racemes of the pink-and-white flowers stand above the fine leaves. The upright, deep-rooted, perennial plant carries the pinnate leaves of the many oval leaflets and the dense, erect racemes of the small, pink-and-white, pea-like flowers through the summer, one of the fine, bright sights of the dry meadow. The plant is a fine, generous presence of the meadow and the soil-building plot. It is a plant of the open, sunny, deep, well-drained ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The sainfoin is a useful subject of the plant science, and the pink racemes keep showing up in the work on the pasture legumes. The way the plant feeds the soil and stands the dry grazing has been studied closely, and it keeps appearing in the studies of the drought-tolerant legumes, the forage plants and the members of the pea family. The pinnate leaves and the deep-rooted habit have also made it a fine study plant, and the sainfoin is a regular subject of the work on the pink spikes of the dry world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The sainfoin is a fine, generous plant of the dry meadow and the soil-building plot. The dense, erect racemes of the small, pink-and-white flowers open through the summer, one of the fine, bright sights of the dry meadow, drawing the bees, and the deep roots feed the soil with the nitrogen and reach the water of the dry ground. The plant stands the drought and the poor, stony ground with the ease, and it is one of the fine choices for the dry meadow, the pasture and the soil-building planting. It has been written up in the agricultural and the botanical papers for the pink racemes and the dry-ground ways, and it is a fine, generous plant of the open, sunny, deep, well-drained garden.

A little lime in the soil suits them well, and the deep roots find the water of the dry ground.

To grow the sainfoin from seed, sow the small, oval seeds just under the surface of a pot of fine, free-draining soil, keep the pot in a warm, bright spot and water gently, then set the young plants out after the last frosts. The seedlings appear within a couple of weeks and grow on steadily. With the sun, the warmth and the deep, well-drained ground, the pink spikes will stand through the summer.