Galium mollugo (Smooth bedstraw)

Galium mollugo L.

Smooth bedstraw, false baby’s breath, upright bedstraw, upright hedge bedstraw, white bedstraw, wild madder

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Gentianales	Gentians, coffee, gardenias, frangipani, many others
Family	Rubiaceae	Coffee, madder, and bedstraw family
Genus	Galium	From Greek gala, “milk,” because some Galium species were used to curdle milk
Species	mollugo	An old name for the genus Galium, now used in the family Aizoacaea instead

About plant names...

A European native, smooth bedstraw was introduced and now common in North America. This and related plants are called bedstraws because a fragrant-smelling yellow-flowered species, Galium verum, was used to stuff mattresses in medieval times.

Some members of Galium:

6/27/2021 · Maquoit Bay Preserve, Brunswick, Maine
≈ 4½ × 7" (11 × 17 cm)

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

	*Galium aparine*	You are here Galium mollugo	*Galium odoratum*
Common Name	catchweed bedstraw	smooth bedstraw	sweet woodruff
Plant	Stem is square stem, purplish in the spring, green as the plant matures. All parts of the plant are covered with tiny velcro-like hooks.	Up to 3' (1 m), vinelike. Stems are square and smooth.	Low-growing plant may reach 20" (50 cm) in length, but only about 8" (20 cm) in height. Plants have an appealing sweet scent
Flowers	4-petaled, white, ⅛" (3.2 mm) around, appearing from May to July.	Hundreds of tiny white 4-petaled flowers ⅛" (3.2 mm) across, producing white masses.	Small white flowers, each ⅛-¼" (4-7 mm) in diameter, are raised above the leaves on thin stalks
Leaves	Whorls of 6-8 leaves every few inches, each 1-2" (2.5-5 cm) long.	In whorls of 6-8, 1-1½" (2.5-3.8 cm) long, smooth.	¾-1¾" (2-5 cm) long, arranged in whorls of 6-9
Range/ Zones			USDA Zones: 4-8
Type	Wild	Wild	Wild
Occurrence	Common	Common	Common

Identification: Smooth bedstraw is vine-like, growing to a length of up to 4' (1.2 m). If it is flowering, its tiny flowers occurs in white masses that stand out in meadows. If not, you’ll notice the regular whorls of 6-8 leaves every few inches. They give it a neat, orderly appearance. Leaves are 1½-2" (3.8-5 cm) long. On closer inspection, there is the perfectly square stem, which may be purplish in the spring, but is green as the plant matures. The 4-petaled flowers are white and about ⅛" (3.2 mm) around, on a stalk that is longer than the flower is wide. Unlike catchweed bedstraw, which feels sandpapery to the touch, smooth bedstraw is smooth.

Online References:

Galium mollugo on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Galium mollugo on the Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide

Galium mollugo on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Galium mollugo on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

Galium mollugo on the University of Massachusetts Landscape, Nursery & Urban Forestry Program

4/21/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 7 × 11" (18 × 27 cm)

5/29/2010 · Maine Audubon Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth, Maine
≈ 11 × 7" (27 × 18 cm) ID is uncertain

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

6/20/2010 · Blue Hill Reservation, Milford, Massachusetts
≈ 4½ × 6" (11 × 14 cm)

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Groton, Massachusetts

6/9/2017 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts
≈ 4 × 7" (11 × 16 cm)

6/4/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 10 × 15" (26 × 39 cm)

4/6/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 14 × 18" (34 × 45 cm) ID is uncertain

6/17/2013 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Nashoba Hospital, Massachusetts
≈ 7 × 4½" (16 × 11 cm)

Galium erectum Huds.

Galium mollugo L. ssp. erectum (Huds.) Briq.

Galium mollugo L. var. erectum (Huds.) Domin

Galium mollugo description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 6 Sep 2021.

6/4/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 9" (15 × 23 cm)

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

8/15/2021 · Bass Falls Preserve, Alna, Maine
≈ 5 × 4½" (13 × 11 cm)

6/22/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

9/25/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, near Hospital, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 11 × 7" (27 × 18 cm)

6/24/2015 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Ctr, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 5 × 7" (13 × 16 cm)

6/27/2021 · Maquoit Bay Preserve, Brunswick, Maine
≈ 3½ × 4½" (9 × 11 cm)

6/22/2014 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 7 × 4½" (18 × 11 cm)

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

Range:

About this map...