Trifolium repens has a prostrate, stoloniferous growth habit with leaves that are composed of three leaflets, which sometimes have a crescent-shaped mark on the upper surface. Leaves and roots develop along the stolon at the nodes. The flower heads, each consisting of 40 to 100 florets which are white in colour, are borne on long stalks from the leaf axils (USDA-NRCS, 2010b).

Trifolium repens is a perennial legume (Caradus, 1994).

Trifolium repens is reported to be contain both poison and healing abilities. Its leaves contain the chemical genistein which is reported to have ethnobotanical properties.
T. repens is also used as a forage crop.

Trifolium repens, in the United States, thrives best in a cool, moist climate in soils with ample lime, phosphate, and potash. In general, T. repens is best adapted to clay and silt soils in humid and irrigated areas but also grows successfully on sandy soils with a high water table or irrigated droughty soils when adequately fertilized. T. repens seldom roots deeper than 2 feet, which makes it adapted to shallow soils when adequate moisture is available (USDA-NRCS, 2010b). In New Zealand, T. repens is frost tolerant down to -8 degrees Celsius (Caradus, 1994). In Australia it is common between the alpine and montane areas of the Australian Alps. It can be found up just over 2000m altitude and was introduced to help reduce the impacts of soil erosion (Johnston & Pickering, 2001). On the Amsterdam Islands it has been found to be a host for exotic aphid species, which could potentially affect endemic species (Hulle et al, 2010).

Two varities of Trifolium repens; T. repens L. var. nigricans G. Don and T. repens L. var. repens, are known to be established alien species and/or found in the Japanese wild. Because of this, mitigation could be undertaken under the Invasive Alien Species Act, 2004 (Mito & Uesugi, 2004). However T. repens is so widespread within natural vegetation in the Australian Alps, that control is considered impracticable (MacDougall et al, 2005). Pickering & Hill (2007) further establish this by mentioning that although the feasibility of controlling vegetative regeneration is moderate, there is little chance of controlling the seed bank.