Galium triflorum / fragrant bedstraw
- low, herbaceous plant on forest floor
- whorls of thin, pointy leaves – 6 per whorl
- teeny, 4-petaled white flowers in groups of three
Also known as: cudweed, sweet-scented bedstraw
See also: Galiium boreale / northern bedstraw
Fragrant bedstraw is a low growing herb, widespread throughout the northern hemisphere, including all of North America. Although is is “pretty” and all that, it’s considered a noxious weed in parts of the eastern US.
The flowers are greenish-white, teeny, and have four petals that taper sharply to a point at the tip. Each has 4 stamens, but since the flowers are only about 1/8 inch across, it is very hard to see the stamens. Technically the petals are fused into a tube, but again, this will be hard to see without a hand lens.
The inflorescence is a multi-branched cyme, panicle or cluster (I guess botanical terminology is not all that precise sometimes); the individual flowers are in clusters of 3 (usually). All-in-all the flowers are not that unusual; i.e. they look like other members of the genus (e.g. G. boreale / northern bedstraw).
The leaves are more diagnostic. They are simple, and arranged in whorls of 6, up to 2½ inches long and about ½ inch wide. In shape, they are elliptical with a sharp tip. This is a distinct difference from the northern bedstraw which has only 4 leaves per whorl. On the other hand, it is similar to G. odoratum, sweet woodruff, and can lead to confusion. The sweet woodruff, however, is usually in gardens and only naturalized in some areas, not including Idaho.
Fragrant bedstraw is pretty much always found on the forest floor – usually moist woodlands – crawling along or leaning on other plants. Although it spreads by seed, locally, it spreads vegetatively by means of rhizomes, sometimes forming substantial colonies.
Interesting bits – Fragrant bedstraw gets its name from the [supposed] vanilla scent of crushed up dried leaves. That’s the “fragrant” part. It was also formerly used to stuff mattresses. That’s the bedstraw bit. And, some concoction of the leaves has been used to stimulate hair growth. That’s the apocryphal bit.
Like all bedstraws, this vine has square stems, and although they don’t really feel coarse, they are rough enough to stick to clothing.
