Galium aparine – Stickywilly

Galium aparine - Stickywilly, Common Bedstraw, Goose Grass, Goosegrass, Cleavers, Catchweed Bedstraw, Cleaverwort, Scarthgrass, White Hedge

Galium aparine - Stickywilly, Common Bedstraw, Goose Grass, Goosegrass, Cleavers, Catchweed Bedstraw, Cleaverwort, Scarthgrass, White Hedge

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Galium aparine

Synonyms: Galium agreste var. echinospermum, G. spurium, G. vaillantii

Common Names: Stickywilly, Common Bedstraw, Goose Grass, Goosegrass, Cleavers, Catchweed Bedstraw, Cleaverwort, Scarthgrass, White Hedge

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Annual

Growth Habit: Vine, Herb/Forb

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Desert, Upland, Mountain, Riparian

Flower Color: White

Flowering Season: Spring

Height: Sprawling to 35 inches (89 cm) tall

Description: The flowers are tiny and have 4 petals. The leaves are narrow, sessile, point-tipped, and in whorls of 6 to 8 around the stems. The plants are covered in tiny, hooked hairs that stick to clothing. The numerous stems are weak, slender, and sprawling.

Settlers used masses of the dried plants as soft mattress stuffing.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Asteridae
Order: Rubiales
Family: Rubiaceae – Madder family
Genus: Galium L. – bedstraw
Species: Galium aparine L. – stickywilly

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map