304 LXXIl. RUBIACEiE. Galium. 



Suborder 1.— S T E li L< A T ^ . 



Calyx •wholly adherent (superior) to the ovary which is two-celled^ 



two-seeded. Leaves verticillate. Herbs. 



1. GALIUM. 



Gt. yaAa, milk; the flowers of one species (G. verum) are used in coagulating milk. 



Calyx minute, 4-toothed ; corolla rotate, 4-cleft ; stamens 4, short ; 

 styles 2 ; carpels 2, united, 1 -seeded, indehiscent. — Herbs, with slen- 

 der, i-angled stems. Lvs. veHiciilate. 



* Fruit smooth. 



1. G. ASPRELLUM. Michx. Rough Cleavers or Clivers. 



St. diffuse, very branching, rough backwards ; lvs. in 6s, 5p or 4s, lanceo- 

 late, acuminate or cuspidate, margin and midvein retrorsely aculeate ; ped. 

 short, in 2s or 3s. — "^Common in thickets and low grounds, Can. and Northern 

 States. Stem weak, 2 — 5f long, leaning on other plants, and closely adhering 

 to them by its minute, retrorse prickles. Leaves 5 — 8" by 2 — 3". Flowers 

 white, small and numerous. Fruit minute, smooth, often slightly hispid when 

 yotmg. Jl. 



2. G. TRiFiDUM. Dyers' Cleavers. Goose-grass. 



St. decumbent, very branching, roughish with retrorse prickles ; lvs. in 5s 

 and 4s, linear-oblong or oblanceolate, obtuse, rough-edged ; parts of the floiver 

 mostly m 3s. — %. In low, wet grounds. Can. and U. S. It is one of the smallest 

 of the species. Leaves 3 — 6" by 1 — 2", often cuneate at base. Peduncles 

 mostly in 3s, and axillary. Flowers small, white. Jl. 



/?. tinctoriium. Torr. (G. tinctorium. Linn.') — tSi!. nearly smooth ; lvs. of the 

 stem in 6s, of the branches in 4s; pcd. 2 — 3-flowered; payrts of thefiover in 4s. — A 

 somewhat less .slender variety than the first. The root is said to dye a perma- 

 nent red. 



y. latifolium. Torr. (G. obtusum. Bw.) — Lvs. in 4s, oblanceolate, obtuse ; 

 ped. 3-flowered ; parts of tlie flower in 4s. 



3. G. VERUM. Yclhvi Bedslrav\ 



Erect ; lvs. in 8s, grooved, entire, rough, linear ; fls. densely paniculate. — • 

 1]. Found in dry, open grounds, in the vicinity of Boston, probably introduced. 

 Bigelow. Root long, fibrous. Stem slender, erect, 1 — 2f high, with short, op- 

 posite, leafy, unequal branches. Leaves deflexed, linear, Avith rolled edges. 

 Flowers numerous, small, yellow, in small, dense, terminal panicles. Jn. — 

 The roots dye red. The flowers are used in England to curdle milk. § 



4. G. coNciNNUM. Torr. & Gray. 



St. decumbent, diffusely branched, retrorsely scabrous on the angles ; lvs. 

 in 6s, linear, glabrous, 1-veined, scabrous upwards on the margins ; pcd. fili- 

 form, twice or thrice trichotomous, with short pedicels; lobes of the corolla 

 acute. Dry woods and hills, Mich., Ky. T. tf- G. la. ! Stems very slender, 

 10 — 15' high. Leaves in numerous whorls, 5 — 8" by 1", slightly broader in the 

 middle. Flowers minute and numerous, white. Jn. 



* * Fruit hifp-ld. 



5. G. APARiNE. Common Cleavers. 



St. weak, procumbent,, retrorsely prickly ; lvs. in 8s, 7s or Gs, linear-oblan- 

 ceolate, mucronate, rough on the midvein and margin; ped. axillary, 1 — 2-flow- 

 ered. — (i) In wet thickets, Can. and Northern States tola. Plvnnner! Stems 

 several feet long, leaning on other plants, and closely adhering by their hooked 

 prickles to everything in their way. Leaves 12 — 20" by 2 — 3". Flowers nu- 

 merous, small, white. Fruit rather large, armed with hooked prickles. Jn. — 

 The root will dye red. The herbage is valued as a domestic remedy. § 1 



6. G. TRiFLORUM. Michx. Tri-fioivering Galium. 



St. weak, often procumbent, smoothish, shining ; lvs. in 5s and 6s, lanceo- 

 late, acuminate-cuspidate, 1-veined, scarcely ciliate on the margin ; ped. elon- 

 gated, axillary, 3- (rarely 2 ) flowered at the extremity ; ^5. pedicellate; /r. 



