The numerical taxonomy of some species in Trifolieae tribe in Iran

Trifolieae is one of the largest tribe in Fabaceae family with genera that have trifoliate leaves. There are large morphological similarities among the genera of this tribe, particularly in calyx and corolla characters. To determining the phonetic similarities between these species, 32 characters in 50 species have been studied by numerical taxonomy. A cluster analysis based on UPGMA method determined two main groups. Melilotus species were placed in separate group based on style and seed characters. Second cluster divided into three other genera. Trifolium species showed one homogene subgroup and some of the Trigonella species have been grouped between Medicago species. Type of leaflets, stipulates shape, style and legume characters were an important factors to separate those species.