Madrid Sweet Clover Sweet clover is adapted to clay upland soils that have a pH of 7 or higher. It is used primarily on the blacklands. Moisture would be the major limiting factor in West Texas. In the past, sweet clover was widely used in Central and South Texas for soil improvement in crop rotations and for pasture.

Madrid sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis (L) Lam.) is a yellow flowered biennial that was selected for shorter growth and finer stems. It can be used for either pasture or hay production. All sweet clovers contain coumarin which causes a bitter taste to which animals become accustomed. Coumarin can result in the loss of the blood clotting ability in animals that eat sweet clover hay that has heated and spoiled.

Sweet clover is planted in the Fall at a rate of 12 to 15 pounds of scarified seed per acre.