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Environmental Weed – Cleavers (Galium aparine L.) More common names for this weed are: Velcro weed, Velcro plant, sticky weed, barweed, bedstraw, burrweed, catch weed, cleavers, goosegrass, everlasting friendship, goose-grass, grip grass, hayruff, hedge clivers, mutton chops, robin run over the hedge, robin-run-inthe-grass, scratch grass, stickyweed, sticky-willy, or white hedge The plant originally is a native to Europe and western Asia (i.e. Eurasia) but its species is now very widespread and its exact natural distribution is obscure.This species is widely naturalised in Australia and is particularly common in the wetter temperate regions of south-eastern Australia (i.e. it is widespread and common in New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania and south-eastern South Australia). It is also occasionally naturalised in south-western Western Australia and in the cooler districts of south-eastern Queensland. Where it grows - This species is mostly commonly found growing in temperate environments, but sometimes also inhabits sub-tropical and semi-arid regions. It is a weed of crops, orchards, gardens, waste areas, disturbed sites, pastures, grasslands, open woodlands, closed forests and margins, waterways and wetlands. Distinguishing features This is an annual, sprawling herb which has small hooks along the stems, at the tip and along the edges of the leaves and on the fruit. These hooks will catch (cleave) onto clothes, fur and feathers helping this plant to spread to new locations. The stem is square in crosssection. It has hooked bristles mostly along the angles and may have long thin hairs at the nodes (place on the stem from where leaves arise). Leaves are in whorls of 5-9. Leaves are lance-shaped with the apex or tip broadly rounded. The leaf margins, the upper surface of the leaf and the midvein on the lower surface all have small hooked hairs. Flowers are small and appear on a short straight stem from the nodes and are in small clusters. Each small flower has 4 white petals. Fruit is kidney-shaped, densely covered with hooked hairs on a straight pedicel (flower stalk). Hooked hairs on leaves, stems and fruits will attach to passing animals or humans who brush against this plant to assist in plant and fruit dispersal. Impacts Cleavers (Galium aparine) is regarded as an environmental weed in Victoria, Tasmania and New South Wales. It invades a variety of native habitats including dry coastal vegetation, coastal sand dunes, rocky sites, open woodlands, temperate rainforests, wetlands and riparian areas. This species is thought to pose a very serious threat to one or more vegetation formations in Victoria (e.g. riparian forests and riverine escarpment scrub). Cleavers (Galium aparine) is a common weed of crops, orchards, gardens, and pastures in southern Australia and New South Wales. In pasture situations its prickly stems can cause injury, and so are not readily grazed by livestock. The fruit may also contaminate fleece, increasing vegetable fault in wool. Similar Species Cleavers (Galium aparine) is very similar to false cleavers (Galium spurium), threehorned bedstraw (Galium tricornutum), slender bedstraw (Galium divaricatum) and small bedstraw (Galium murale). These species can be distinguished by the following differences: Cleavers (Galium aparine) has relatively slender (up to 2 mm thick) and somewhat stiff stems that are often more than 50 cm long. Its relatively large (10-80 mm long) leaves are arranged in groups (i.e. whorls) of six to nine along the stems. Its white flowers are arranged in relatively loose clusters and its relatively large fruit (2-6 mm across) are densely covered in hooked bristles. False cleavers (Galium spurium) has relatively thick (1-4 mm thick) and stiff stems that that are often more than 50 cm long. Its relatively large (12-62 mm long) leaves are arranged in groups (i.e. whorls) of six to ten along the stems. Its greenish-yellow flowers are borne in small dense clusters and its relatively small fruit (less than 3 mm across) are densely covered in hooked bristles. Three-horned bedstraw (Galium tricornutum) has relatively slender (up to 2 mm thick) and somewhat stiff stems that are often more than 50 cm long. It relatively large (10-50 mm long) leaves are arranged in groups (i.e. whorls) of six to eight along the stems. Its white flowers are arranged in small, relatively dense, clusters and its relatively large fruit (3-5 mm across) are turned downwards (i.e. deflexed) do not have any hairs or bristles (instead they are covered in small lumps known as tubercules). Slender bedstraw (Galium divaricatum) has very slender (about 1 mm thick) delicate stems that are usually less than 30 cm long. Its very small (less than 10 mm long) leaves are usually arranged in groups (i.e. whorls) of six to eight along the stems (except on flowering branches). Its white to yellowish-red flowers are borne singly or in pairs and its tiny fruit (0.5-1 mm long) are not covered in hairs or bristles (instead they are covered in small lumps known as papillae). Small bedstraw (Galium murale) has very slender (about 1 mm thick) delicate stems that are usually less than 15 cm long. Its very small (less than 10 mm long) leaves are arranged in groups (i.e. whorls) of three to six along the stems. Its white or yellowish-green flowers are borne singly or in pairs and its very small fruit (1-1.5 mm long) are covered in small hairs or bristles (particularly towards their tips). Native Look alikes. Cleavers (Galium aparine) is also similar to some of the native bedstraws (Galium spp.), but these native species generally have leaves in groups (i.e. whorls) of three to five. It is also relatively similar to field madder (Sherardia arvensis ) and Indian chickweed (Mollugo verticillata). However, field madder (Sherardia arvensis ) has lilac to white stalkless (i.e. sessile) flowers that are borne in small dense clusters and Indian chickweed (Mollugo verticillata) is a mostly hairless plant that has flowers with five petals. .