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 Leaves Paul Rothrock @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: CC BY-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike) |  Plant Paul Rothrock @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: CC BY-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike) |  Fruit Paul Rothrock @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: CC BY-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike) | | | |
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Origin:
Native
Life Cycle:
Perennial Similar Species: Galium aparine, G. asprellum
General Desc:
Perennial with upright to trailing stems which are weak often leaning on other plants for support; rounded leaves are whorled in groups of 6; tiny star-like greenish-white flowers often grow in clusters of 3 at the stem tips or between the leaf and stem.
Identification notes: Rhizomatous; stems weak, slightly rough to the touch, simple or branching near ends; leaves rounded, in whorls of 6, underside midrib is hairy; flowers greenish-white, stemmed, not subtended by bracts, generally in groups of 3; fruit bristly, not fleshy.
Height:
To about 2-1/2 feet
Habitat Description: Moist shady places like woods, under dense stands of trees or tall shrubs (thickets) and shaded forest floors. Also found on the edges of wetlands, swamps, rocky slopes and talus (buildup of broken rock on a steep mountainside or at the base of a cliff).
Plant Communities:
Pinyon Juniper Woodland, Montane Conifer Forest, Riparian
Elevation: 4500 - 8500 feet
Color:
Greenish-white
Shape:
Regular in round clusters
Tubular:
N
Flowering Period:
Jun - Sep
Description:
The flowers within each cluster of 3 (rarely 1 or 2) have very long branching stalks. Each flower is about 1/8 inch across and has 4 greenish-white petals that are egg-shaped tapering to a sharply pointed tip and 4 greenish-white stamens.
Leaf Color:
Green
Leaf Type:
Simple
Leaf Shape:
Round or oval
Leaf Margin:
Smooth
Leaf Attachment:
Whorl
Leaves Clasp:
N
Hairs:
Leaves and stems
Spines:
Y
Leaf Description:
Leaves are widest above the middle tapering abruptly to a thin sharp tip. They grow mostly in whorls of 6 and have a vanilla odor when crushed especially when dry. There are stiff hairs on the leaf margins and on the center vein on the leaf underside.
Fruit Color: White or brownish
Fruit Type: Nutlet
Fruit Notes: Fruit is a pair of dry round nutlets which separate when ripe, each containing 1 seed. Fruit is about 1/16 inch wide and is densely covered with stiff white or brownish hooked hairs (bristles) which are about as long as the fruit itself.
Seed Notes: The fruit doesn't split open to release the seeds when ripe. The hooked hairs on the fruit often catch onto animals or people enabling the plant to disperse the seeds.
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