Structural variation of white clover root systems

White clover root systems ( Trifolium repens L.) vary considerably from large taprooted forms with a small percentage of fibrous roots to those with no large taproots but a high percentage of fibrous roots. The former are found on plants of large‐leaved and highly productive cultivars such as ‘Ladino’ or ‘Grasslands Pitau’, the latter on plants of small leaved cultivars such as ‘Kentish Wild White’. Several root characters and several shoot and root characters are shown to be correlated both on perennating plants grown in the field and on seedlings grown in pots.