658 



RUBIACE.E. CCXVI. GALIUM. 



long-linear, with hairy revolute edges ; floriferous branches 

 short, axillary, few-flowered ; lobes of corolla hardly acutish ; 

 fruit glabrous. Native of New Holland, at Port Jackson, where 

 it was collected by Gaudichaud. Stems 8-10 inches long. Leaves 

 2-3 lines long, shorter than the internodes. Flowers white. 

 Gaudichaud's Bed-straw. PI. decumbent. 



1 2. Euaparines (from eu, well, and aparine, cleavers ; the 

 section is supposed to contain the true kinds of cleavers). D. C. 

 prod. 4. p. 607. Plants annual. Stems scabrous. Leaves 4-8 

 in a whorl. Inflorescence axillary. Floners usually hermaphro- 

 dite. Fruit granular or hispid, didymously globose. 



117 G. SACCHARA'TUM (All. pedem. no. 39.) stems weak, 

 branched, with retrograde roughness along the angles ; leaves 

 6 in a whorl, linear-lanceolate, scabrous from prickles along 

 the margins; prickles not retrograde; peduncles axillary, 3-4- 

 flowered, recurved when bearing the fruit, and length of 

 leaves ; fruit didymosely globose, wartecl. Q. H. Native of 

 Europe, in corn fields ; Scotland, in the Carse of Gowrie, and 

 near Forfar ; and near Malton, in Yorkshire. D. C. fl. fr. 

 ed. 3. no. 3379. Wallr. ann. bot. 24. Req. diss. mss. G. ver- 

 rucosum, Smith, in engl. bot. t. 2173. fl. graec. t. 133. Va- 

 lantia saccharata, Gmel. fl. bad. 3. p. 781. Valantia aparine, 

 Lin. spec. 1491. Schrad. spic. 55. t. 1. f. 3. V. aparine a, Lam. 

 fl. fr. 3. p. 383. Aparine verrucosa, Moench. meth. p. 640. 

 Vaill. bot. t. 4. f. 3. b. Perhaps G. granulatum, Rcem. et Schultes, 

 syst. 3. p. 249. or Valantia granularis, Spreng. in Schrad. journ. 

 1800. 2. p. 200. Peduncles 3-flowered, lateral ones male, and 

 middle one hermaphrodite. 



Sugary Cleavers or Goosegrass. Fl. Ju. Aug. Britain. PI. dif. 



118 G. TRICO'RNE (With. brit. ed. 2. p. 153.) stems weak, 

 simple, rouoh from retrograde prickles along the angles ; leaves 

 8 in a whorl, lanceolate, scabrous from retrograde prickles along 

 the margins and keel ; peduncles axillary, 3-flowered, recurved 

 when in fruit, not exceeding the leaves ; fruit didymously glo- 

 bose, granular. O- H. Native throughout the whole of Eu- 

 rope, in corn-fields ; also of Caucasus ; in many parts of England, 

 in chalky fields, but not common. D. C. fl. fr. ed. 3. no. 

 3378. Smith, engl. bot. t. 1641. Wallr. ann. bot. t. 23. Req. 

 diss. mss. G. spurium, Huds. angl. p. 68. G. Valantia, Wigg. 

 prim. p. 12. Valantia triflora, Lam. fl. fr. 3. p. 384. exclusive 

 of the synonymes. Valantia aparine, Mart. fl. rust. 1. t. 122. 

 Valantia tricornis, Roth, neu. beytr. 1. p. 142. Vaill. bot. t. 

 4. f. 3. a, a. Flowers greenish-white. 



Three-horned Goosegrass. Fl. Ju. Aug. Britain. PI. to 1ft. 



119 G. SPU'RIUM (Lin. spec. p. 154.) stems decumbent, sca- 

 brous from retrograde prickles along the angles, but glabrous at 

 the knees ; leaves 6-9 in a whorl, lanceolate, mucronate, keeled, 

 scabrous from retrograde prickles along the keel and edges ; 

 peduncles many-flowered, hardly recurved, while in the fruit 

 longer than the leaves; fruit glabrous, smooth. Q. H. Native 

 of Europe and Siberia, in fields and all cultivated ground ; in 

 Scotland, in corn-fields about Forfar, but rare. D. C. fl. fr. ed. 3. 

 no. 3377. Smith, eng. bot. t. 1871. G. agreste leiospermum, 

 Wallr. sched. p 59. G. hispidum, Hoffm. germ. l.p. 74. G. 

 adhse'rens, Jacq. hort. vind. ex Jan. herb. G. aparine var. 

 Spreng. Flowers green. Perhaps two species are confused 

 under this name, differing much in the size of the fruit. 



Spurious Goosegrass. Fl. June, July. Britain. PI. decumb. 



120 G. SCABE'RRIMUM (Vahl, in Horn. hort. hafn. 1. p. 135.) 

 stem angular, scabrous from retrograde prickles ; leaves 8 in a 

 whorl, linear, spreadingly reflexed, longer than the internodes, 

 mucronate, very scabrous above, and scabrous from prickles 

 along the keel and margins ; peduncles axillary, few-flowered, 

 subcorymbose ; fruit globose, didymous, hispid from bristles, 

 which are hooked at the apex. Q. H. Native of Egypt. G. 



hispidum, Willd. enum. hort. berol. 1. p. 150. Corollas yel- 

 lowish. Stem simple. 



Very-rough Goosegrass. Fl. Ju. July. Clt. 1821. PI. -| foot. 



121 G. APARINE (Lin. spec. p. 157.) stems weak, branched, 

 rough from retrograde prickles, villous at the nodi ; leaves 8 in a 

 whorl, lanceolate-linear, apiculated, scabrous from retrograde 

 prickles along the margins and keel ; peduncles simple and bifid, 

 scabrous ; fruit didymously globose, very hispid from bristles, 

 that are hooked at top. 0. H. Native throughout the whole 

 of Europe, north of Asia, and North America, in hedges, fields, 

 and in most cultivated places ; plentiful in Britain. Oed. fl. dan. 

 t. 495. Smith, engl. bot. t. 816. Bull. herb. fr. t. 215. Heyn'e, 

 term. bot. t. 13. f. 6. Mart. fl. rust. t. 104. Woodv. med. bot. 

 suppl. 269. Valantia Aparine /3, Lam.fl. fr. 3. p. 383. Aparine 

 hispida, Moench. meth. p. 640. Rubia tinctorum, Lapeyr. ex 

 Benth. Aparine, Dod.pempt. 353. Petiv.brit. t. 30. f. 11. Flowers 

 small, pale buff-coloured. Fruit rather large. Stems climbing. 

 The well known property of this plant of adhering to whatever it 

 comes in contact with, acquired it the names of Cleavers or 

 Clivers, and Catchweed or Scratchweed ; and from being a 

 favourite food or medicine of geese, Goosegrass, Gooseshare, and 

 Goslingweed. The stalks, according to Linnaeus, are used in 

 Sweden as a filtre to strain milk through. Dioscorides relates 

 that the shepherds made the same use of it in his time. It is 

 reckoned to purify the blood, and for that purpose the tops are 

 an ingredient in spring broth. The expressed juice of the herb 

 taken to the amount of 4 ounces or a quarter of a pint night and 

 morning, during several weeks, is very efficacious in removing 

 many cutaneous disorders. It has been most celebrated in 

 scrofulous and cancerous sores, but the experiments made has 

 not turned out in its favour. The seeds are a good substitute 

 for coffee. The roots, like most of the genus, will dye red, and 

 eaten by birds have tinged their bones of that colour. 



Var. ft, minor (Req. diss. mss. ex D. C. prod. 4. p. 608.) stem 

 dwarf; leaves usually 6 in a whorl, and smaller. Q. H. Native 

 of the island of St. Lucia, near Narbonne. 



Common Cleavers or Goosegrass. Fl. May, Aug. Britain. 

 PI. climbing. 



122 G. VAILLA'NTII (D. C. fl. fr. 1805. no. 8381.) stems 

 weak, nearly simple, glabrous at the nodi, but scabrous from re- 

 trograde prickles along the angles ; leaves 8 in a whorl, linear, 

 having the keel and margins scabrous from retrograde 

 prickles ; peduncles simple or bifid ; fruit globosely didy- 

 mous, rather hispid from a few bristles, which are hooked at 

 their tops. 0. H. Native of Europe, in cultivated fields ; 

 plentiful in some parts of Britain. G. infestum, Waldst. et Kit. 

 pi. rar. hung. 3. p. 202. (1808) Bess. gall. 121. G. agreste 

 echinospermum, Wallr. sched. p. 59. G. Aparine ft, Lam. 

 Flowers small, yellowish. Fruit about half the size of those of 

 G. aparine, and not so hispid. 



Vaillant's Goosegrass. Fl. June, July. Clt. 1817. PL 2 

 to 3 feet. 



123 G. APARINOIDES (Forsk. descrip. p. 30.) stems weak, 

 prickly along the angles, but the prickles are not retrograde as 

 in most of the species, but lean forward, and the knees or joints 

 are equal and glabrous ; leaves 6 in a whorl, oblong, scabrous 

 from retrograde prickles along the margins and keel ; peduncles 

 3 from the top of each branch, bifid ; fruit hispid from bristles, 

 which are hooked at the tops. Q. H. Native of Arabia, in 

 shady places. Vahl, symb. 2. p. 30. Flowers white. Fruit 

 like that of G. apartne. 



Cleavers' -like Goose-grass. PI. procumbent. 



124 G. PAUCIFLORUM (Bunge, 1. c.) annual ; stems weak, gla- 

 brous, tetragonal, scabrous from retrograde prickles along the 

 angles ; leaves 6 in a whorl, spatulately oblong, attenuated at 

 the base, cuspidate by a spine, hispid above, and glabrous be- 



