| Galium sylvaticum | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Gentianales |
| Family: | Rubiaceae |
| Genus: | Galium |
| Species: | G. sylvaticum |
| Binomial name | |
| Galium sylvaticum | |
Galium sylvaticum, commonly known as wood bedstraw or Scotch mist, is a plant species of the genus Rubiaceae. Its genus name, Galium, is derived from the Greek word for "milk," apparently because some species have been used to curdle milk. [1]
It is native to central Europe: France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Hungary, [2] the former Yugoslavia and smaller countries in between. [3] [4] It is also naturalized in scattered locations in North America (Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Ontario, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Washington and Oregon). [5] It is often found in anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed) habitats, forest edges, meadows and fields. [1]
It is a perennial, branching herb with thin stems. Its leaves are in whorls of six, each narrowly linear. Flowers are in open terminal panicles, white and four-petaled. [4]
