Four-leaf clover

According to traditional sayings, such clovers bring good luck,[1] a belief that dates back to at least the 17th century.

[2] The term four-leaf is botanically a misnomer, as clovers typically only have a single leaf consisting of varying numbers of leaflets.

[3] The clover with the most leaflets ever found had 63 of them, and was discovered by Yoshiharu Watanabe of Nasushiobara city, Tochigi prefecture, Japan, on 2 August 2023.

[18] Researchers from the University of Georgia have reported finding the gene that turns ordinary three-leaf clovers into the coveted four-leaf types.

These traits can be quite attractive, particularly if combined with others, and can turn clover into an ornamental plant for use in flower beds.

[20] According to an experiment made in 2019 by the, at that moment, 17-year old Minori Mori, from Tsukuba, Japan, four-leaf clovers seem to be more likely to appear in well-fertilized soil.

Phosphates (a common ingredient in fertilizers) have been proved to play a role in the frequency of development of four-leaf clovers in cloverplants.

[21] There are reports of farms in the US which specialize in four-leaf clovers, producing as many as 10,000 a day (to be sealed in plastic as "lucky charms") by introducing a genetically engineered ingredient to the plants to encourage the aberration (there are, however, widely available cultivars that regularly produce leaves with multiple leaflets – see below).

[citation needed] A description from 1869 says that 4-leaf clovers were "gathered at night-time during the full moon by sorceresses, who mixed it with vervain and other ingredients, while young girls in search of a token of perfect happiness made quest of the plant by day.

"[31] In an 1877 letter to St. Nicholas Magazine, an 11-year-old girl wrote, "Did the fairies ever whisper in your ear, that a 4-leaf clover brought good luck to the finder?