tick-trefoil

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English

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The pods (loments) of Desmodium gangeticum, with hooked hairs visible around the edges

Etymology

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From tick +‎ trefoil (three-leaved). Tick refers to the plant's loments – pods that break apart into segments that each contain one seed – which have small hooked hairs that allow the segments to stick to clothes, hair, or fur, similar to the way a tick clings on with its legs.

Noun

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tick-trefoil (plural tick-trefoils)

  1. One of several species in the genus Desmodium in the legume family