W80 



NORTHERN BEDSTRAW 



Ga'lium borea'Ie 



Flowers white, small (about ,'i in. wide), 

 numerous, stalked, borne in branched, showy 

 end cluster.? (compound cymes) 



Threadlike stalks (styles) 2-branched, tip- 

 ping seed-producing organ (ovary), with knob- 

 like ends (stigmas) 



United petals (corolla) wheel-shaped, with 4 

 spreading lobes; outer Mower parts (sepals) 

 lacking 



Stamens 4, alternating with corolla lobes 



Seed pod (capsule) globular, about y lt in. in 

 diameter, 2-celled, 2-sccdcd, somewhat stilf- 

 hairy to smooth, dry and separating into ?. 

 parts when mature 



Stems erect, up to about 2y 2 ft. high, 4-angled, 

 usually rough on the angles but otherwise hair- 

 less, arising from underground, perennial, 

 slender, woody rootstocks 



Leaves opposite but alternating with 2 leaf- 

 like bracts (stipules), thus appearing as whorls 

 of 4, linear to broadly lance-shaped, about J to 2 

 in. long, distinctly 3-veined, thick, blunt-tipped 



Northern bedstraw is an erect, leafy perennial with 4-angled stems and 

 numerous small white flowers. It takes its specific name from the Latin 

 borealis (-e), northern. This is a widely distributed species which occurs 

 in all the Western States, ranging in North America from Alaska to Quebec, 

 New Jersey, Missouri, New Mexico, and California. It also occurs in Europe 

 and northern Asia. Although usually scattered, it is of general occurrence 

 from the plains and foothills to an elevation of 10,000 feet in the mountains 

 of Colorado and New Mexico. It is typical in grass and weed types of 

 parks, in brush types, in aspen and, to some extent, in open coniferous timber. 



