It’s often considered impossible to find a four-leaf clover. I remember that back in Highland Oaks Elementary School that my friends and I would sometimes search for four-leaf clovers during recess. None of us have ever seen one, and if we ever did, those clovers were often just three-leaf clovers with someone holding an extra petal underneath with their finger to fool us. But it does exist.

The official name would be Trifolium Repens, roughly translated into white clover. With these official clovers, it can be somewhat difficult to distinguish them from other four-leaf clovers. Therefore, in order characterize whether or not you got the correct clover, keep in mind the size of the petals on the clover, its overall shape, and its color. For the Trifolium Repens, one of the four petals on the plant is noticeably smaller than compared to the other three. The overall shape is a blend between a square and circle, such that if you were to outline the clover, you would get a sort of rounded square. Lastly, the white clover, despite its name, is a rich, deep green.

So why then do four-leaf clovers illustrate luck? According to Irish tradition, the traditional three-leaf clover represents the Holy Trinity. One leaf represents the Father, the other the Son, and the other the Holy Spirit. If one is to find a fourth leaf, then that illustrates God’s grace. For a more modern interpretation, the leaves can be interpreted to illustrate faith, hope, love, and luck. But even then, the four-leaf clover has its roots in the Bible. From its origin, the four-leaf clover has been universally accepted to represent good luck. For instance, according to the legend of Adam and Eve, as Eve was exiting the Garden of Eden, she was supposedly holding a four-leaf clover. Druids held four-leaf clovers within high esteem because they believed it brought them luck by warding off evil spirits. Even warlocks at the time followed suit and used clovers to fend off what they considered bad luck. As such, children and adults wore four-leaf clovers to rid of bad omens.

Despite these superstitions and numerous records for the usage of clovers, they are rare. For every 10,000 three-leaf clovers, there is one four-leaf clover. And because Ireland is believed to have grown the most four-leaf clovers, the country has been adequately given the slogan the “Luck of the Irish”.