Catchweed bedstraw
Catchweed bedstraw |
Catchweed bedstraw
| Scientific Name | Galium aparine L. |
| Other Names | Catchweed, bedstraw, goose-grass, grip-grass, catch-grass. |
| Life Cycle | Annual |
| General Description | A semi-prostrate annual covered with short prickly hairs. |
| Seedlings | Hypocotyls are smooth, stout, and greenish purple. Cotyledons are egg-shaped on prominent petioles. Upper surface has short rough, short hairs. Young leaves are produced in whorls of 4 or more leaves that also have stiff, short hairs. |
| True Leaves and Stem | Leaves are sessile in whorls of 6-8 at nodes. Blades are lanceolate. Upper leaf surface is hairy, lower leaf surface has small spiny hairs. Stems are square with recurved prickles on the ridges and leaves. |
| Roots | Fiberous |
| Flower and Fruit | Flowers are white and produced in clusters near the axils of the whorls. Seeds are only 2-3mm in diameter and are covered in small hooks, but occasionally may be smooth. |