Galium mollugo

Galium mollugo, common name hedge bedstraw[1] or false baby's breath, is a herbaceous annual plant of the family Rubiaceae. It shares the name hedge bedstraw with the related European species, Galium album.

Hedge bedstraw
Close up image of the Galium mollugo flower under a dissecting microscope
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Rubiaceae
Genus: Galium
Species:
G. mollugo
Binomial name
Galium mollugo
Synonyms
  • Galium erectum Huds.
  • Galium mollugo subsp. erectum (Huds.) Briq.
  • Galium mollugo var. erectum (Huds.) Domin
  • Rubia mollugo (L.) Baillon

Description

Galium mollugo can reach a height of 15–100 centimetres (5.9–39.4 in). The stems are square in cross-section, more or less erect with ascending branches. Starting from the axils of leaves it has inflorescences of small white flowers with a diameter of about 1 to 1.5 cm, with four petals. The flowering period extends from May to September.[2][3]

Habitat

Galium mollugo commonly occurs in hedges, bushes, paths, meadows and slopes at an elevation up to 2,100 metres (6,900 ft) above sea level.

Distribution

Galium mollugo is widely distributed in Europe and North Africa from Denmark, Portugal and Morocco east to the Altay region of Siberia and to the Caucasus. It is naturalized in the Russian Far East, New Zealand, Norfolk Island, Greenland, Argentina, Uruguay, and much of North America. It has been reported from the Rocky Mountains, the Cascade Range, the Sierra Nevadas and the Appalachian Mountains as well as the Great Lakes region. It is classified as a noxious weed in New York, Pennsylvania and much of New England.[4][5][6]

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References
  1. "BSBI List 2007". Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-01-25. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  2. Hickman, J. C. 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California 1–1400. University of California Press, Berkeley.
  3. Gleason, H. A. & A.J. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of the Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada (ed. 2) i–910. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx.
  4. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  5. Biota of North America Program
  6. Altervista Flora Italiana


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