304 LXXll. RUBIACE^. Galium. 



Suborder 1.— S T E L. L. A T -E . 



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



two-seeded. Leaves verticillate. Herbs. 



1. GALIUM. 



Gr. ya\a, 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, A-angled stems. Lvs. re/iicillate. 



* Fruit smooth. 



1. G. ASPRELLUM. Michx. Ro^if^h Cleavers or Clivers. 



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

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

 short, in 2s or 3s. — T^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 

 young. 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 fio^cer 

 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 

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



/?. iinct<yrium. Torr. " (G. tinctorium. Linn.) — S'/'. nearly smooth ; Ivs.ofth^ 

 stem in 6s, of the branches in 4s; ped. 2— 3-flowered ; parts of the flower in 4s.— A 

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

 nent red. 



y. lati folium. Torr. (G. obtusum, Biv.)—Lvs. in 4s, oblanceolate, obtuse ; 

 ped. 3-fl6wered ; parts of the flower in 4s. 



3. G. VERUM. YelloV' Bedstrav:. 



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

 ^21. Found in dry, open grounds, in the vicinity of Boston, probably introduced. 

 Bigeloic. Root' long, fibrous. Stem slender, erect, l—2f high, with short, op- 

 posite, leafy, imequal branches. Leaves deflexed, linear, with 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. coNXiN.vuM. Torr. & Gray. 



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

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

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

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

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

 middle. Flowers minute and niunerous, white. Jn. 

 * ♦ Fi-itit hi-pid. 



5. G. APARlN'E. Common Cleavers. 



Sf. weak, procumbent, retrorsely prickly ; lvs. in 8s, 7s or 6s, linear-oblan- 

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

 ered.—® In wet thickets, Can. and Northern States tola. Phimvierl 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-flowering 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- (rarelv 2 ) flowered at the extremity ; /5. pedicellate ; /r. 



