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Cleavers
Galium aparine
42.6732, -89.4208
Field Notes
Description:
Growth habit is vine like sprawling over the ground and other plants, reaching heights of 4'-5', occasionally 6'-7'. The leaves are simple and borne in whorls of six to eight. Both leaves and stem have fine hairs tipped with tiny hooks, making them cling to clothes and fur much like velcro. The white to greenish flowers are 2-3 mm across, with four petals.
It flowers in early spring to summer, with the flowers occurring in most of the leaf nodes. The fruits are clustered 1-3 seeds together; each seed is 4-6 mm diameter, and is also covered with hooked hairs which cling to animal fur, aiding in seed dispersal.
Habitat:
Galium aparine is widely distributed in North America. It occurs in every U.S. state except Hawaii.
It is a common weed in hedges and other low shrubby vegetation, and is also a common weed in arable fields, as well as gardens. Also in woody areas with accompanying brush growth.
As they grow quite rampantly and thickly, they end up shading out any small plants that they overrun.
Notes:
Can be invasive.
Edible.
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