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Name That Plant!

Narrow, Stellar Leaves & Tiny White Flowers?

9 years ago

What is this plant?

Featured Answer

briaustex

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

Goosegrass (Galium aparine), commonly called velcro plant. Once you touch it, you know why it is called that. I hate the stuff! It is a winter annual here that dies once summer arrives. It reseeds readily and will spread if you don't keep it under control.

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Comments (9)

eaga
9 years ago
Looks like Galium aparine.
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^^ Weird. Would be interesting to get some more taste testers and samples to try to establish some consensus on it. I did find these other online evaluations - that seem to echo mine? ----------------------------------- "In terms of flavor, Cleavers is some of my favorite yard food. To me cleavers tastes very much like spring – it’s a fresh, green sort of flavor that I look forward to after winter. I’m guessing my neighbors think I’m a little odd as I’ll often grab a sprig to munch on my way out for work. Cleavers is best mixed in with a salad, if you’re eating it raw, or with other greens to cook as a pot green. I think it would be too much on it’s own and probably too much for your body as well – in part because cleavers, or Galium aparine is strongly medicinal." ----------------------------------- "Can we eat Cleavers ? Galium Aparine Of course we can ! It is a wonderful wild herb, can be found nearly all non-winter year around and can be eaten as salad, can be juiced, dried and used as a herbal infusion. It can be added to your coffee too ! It has no, bad taste at all, non-bitter, crunchy and very easy to identify ! Instead of claiming all the health benefits, don't even think about it ! Just drink a little juice, a little tea, hide a couple of leaves in your regular spinach-watercrest salad and off you go, you used wild herbs !"
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Low growing plant with very narrow leaves and tiny white flowers
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You're welcome. Those flowers are very small, but cute when viewed close up. Also, that's a tough plant, which seems unfazed by incidental foot traffic.
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Native with 3 part red leaves and tiny white flowers.
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Not a native unless you are asking from Japan. Purple Japanese Parsley (Cryptotaenia japonica 'Atropurpurea') Also self seeds with abandon and maintains a seed reservoir in the soil...you'll probably want to clip the flower stalks off to better manage it. How this hasn't been identified as an invasive garden escapee yet is beyond me.
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Lithospermum arvense/ Buglossoides arvensis, Corn Gromwell, Bastard alkanet. Not native, from Europe and Asia. Litho = stone, sperma = seed, arvense = cultivated, gromwell = plants in Boraginaceae that have hard white nutlets. Alkanet = another European. ( Mediterranean) plant in the Borage family that superficially resembles Buglossoides arvensis. Alkanna tictoria is grown to make dye, Buglossoides arvensis is grown for the oil from its seeds.
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fatamorgana2121
9 years ago
Cleavers is the most common name for Galium aparine here - has multiple common names. It is an herb and food plant. Wrote an article about it and its sisters here: http://ourgreenneighbors.blogspot.com/2012/04/herb-of-week-galium-cleavers-galium.html

FataMorgana
eaga
9 years ago
That's a very interesting article, fatamorgana2121. With a common name of bedstraw, I've wondered whether any of the galiums were used for bedding. I thought they might be sweet-smelling, or if they ward off insects, or something like that. Is that what you meant when you said sweet woodruff can be used for strewing?
blakrab Centex
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks!!! Yanking these out then! :P
0
fatamorgana2121
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Eaga- yes, "strewing" herbs were scattered on floors for their sweet smell and occasionally repellent properties. A great boon just like hand-held pomanders around unwashed, dirty, smelly people! ;) List of strewing herbs here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strewing_herb

FataMorgana
eaga
9 years ago
Thank you fatamorgana2121!
0
Mike McGarvey
9 years ago
Galium aparine is a trail weed here. Not only is the foliage like Velcro, so are the seeds. I pull it up whenever I see it.
Galium oderata might as well be a weed. It has spread all over for me, and in places it's not wanted. It can be controlled, but I wish I had never planted it. More trouble than it's worth, in my opinion.
Mike
0
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
9 years ago
The ancient uses of various Galiums are also betrayed by the common name Bedstraw. We have a native, Galium verum, which is called Lady's Bedstraw.

The name Galium comes from the Greek for milk and a thick wodge of Cleavers made a good milk strainer in the past.

Wonderful read at your Blog, Fata.

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