''Galium saxatile'' or heath bedstraw is a plant species of the genus ''

Galium ''Galium'' is a large genus of annual and perennial herbaceous plants in the family Rubiaceae, occurring in the temperate zones of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Some species are informally known as bedstraw. There are over 600 spe ...

''. It is related to

cleavers ''Galium aparine'', with common names including cleavers, clivers, catchweed and sticky willy among others, is an annual, herbaceous plant of the family Rubiaceae. Names ''Galium aparine'' is known by a variety of common names in English. They ...

. ''Galium saxatile'' is a perennial mat-forming herb, found on grassland, moors, heaths and woods. It can reach a height of , and flowers in the UK from May to August. The stems are hairless and four sided. Its leaves are long, with 6–8 per whorl, and are lanceolate or obovate in shape. The

mountain ringlet The small mountain ringlet or mountain ringlet (''Erebia epiphron'') is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in mountainous regions of southern and central Europe. Distribution Mountain areas of Albania, Andorra, Austria, Great ...

butterfly uses the plant for nectar. ''Galium saxatile'' is widespread across much of northern and central

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

from

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. It is also reportedly sparingly naturalized in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

.Altervista Flora Italiana
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Gallery

Image:Galium saxatile eF.jpg Image:galium_harcynicum.jpeg Image:galium_harcynicum_detail.jpeg

References

*''The Wild Flower Key British Isles – NW Europe'' by Francis Rose *''Wild Flowers of Britain'' by Roger Phillips

External links

Luontoportti, Nature Gate, Heath BedstrawTela Botanica
saxatile Flora of Belgium Flora of Quebec Flora of California Flora of the Falkland Islands Flora of Portugal Flora of the Azores Flora of the United Kingdom Flora of France Flora of Germany Flora of Poland Flora of Ukraine Flora of Russia Flora of Switzerland Flora of Norway Flora of Sweden Flora of the Faroe Islands Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{galium-stub