GALIUM VERRUCOSUM

Family and Genus:- See- RUBIACEAE/Sect. KOLGYDA

Common Names:- Southern cleavers

Homotypic Synonyms:- Galium valantia, Valantia aparine

Meaning:- Galium (Gr) Milk.

Verrucosum (L) With a warty surface.

General description:- Low to short sprawling annual.

Stems:-

1) 5-50 cm, erect to ascending, retrorsely aculeolate and scabrid.

Leaves:-

1) 5-17 x 1·5-5 mm, in whorls of 5-6(-7), lanceolate, awned, glabrous above, margin

and midrib antrorsely scabrid, margin revolute.

Flowers:-

1) Inflorescence, oblong;

a) partial inflorescences, mostly 3-flowered, shorter than the leaves

2) Pedicels, 1-3 mm, deflexed after flowering.

3) Central flowers, of the cyme, hermaphrodite, the lateral male.

4) Corolla, (1-)2-2·5 mm in diam, greenish-white to white, glabrous;

a) lobes, acute.

Fruit:-

1) Mericarps, paired or often solitary by abortion, globose, 4~6 mm in diam.,

coarsely and densely verrucose.

Key features:-

1) Fruit, verrucose.

2) Leaves, glabrous above.

3) Flowers andro-monoecious, whitish.

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Habitat:- A weed of traditional argiculture, but also in dry open shrubby vegetation,

olive groves and coastal habitats. 0-800(-1300) m.

Distribution:- Coastal areas of SW Greece, rare in the interior and the N. -

Widespread in the Mediterranean region and SW Asia. Limited distribution on

Crete. Not too common.

Flowering time:- Late Mar to May.

Photo by:- Dr. Armin Jagel