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Montana Field Guide

Montana Field Guides

Small Bedstraw - Galium trifidum

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Native Species

Global Rank: G5
State Rank: S4
C-value: 6


Agency Status
USFWS:
USFS:
BLM:


 

External Links

 
General Description
Rhizomatous perennial. Stems lax, prostrate or climbing, mostly branched, 8–35 cm. Herbage glabrous to hooked-scabrous on stem angles and leaf margins. Leaves linear to narrowly oblanceolate, 5–15 mm long, in whorls of 4 (to 6). Inflorescence axillary 1- to 3-flowered umbels; pedicels 2–15 mm long in fruit. Flowers: corolla ca. 1 mm across, 3- to 4-lobed. Mericarp 1–2 mm long, sparsely spiculose, the mericarps becoming separate (Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).

In Montana we have subspecies trifidum, columbianum, and subbiflorum.

Range Comments
Circumboreal, south to CA, TX, GA and Mexico (Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).

Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database
Number of Observations: 248

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Relative Density

Recency

 

(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)



Habitat
Wet meadows, marshes, fens; montane to lower subalpine (Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).

References
  • Literature Cited AboveLegend:   View Online Publication
    • Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 771 p.
  • Additional ReferencesLegend:   View Online Publication
    Do you know of a citation we're missing?
    • Ament, R.J. 1995. Pioneer Plant Communities Five Years After the 1988 Yellowstone Fires. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 216 p.
    • Clark, D. 1991. The effect of fire on Yellowstone ecosystem seed banks. M.Sc. Thesis. Montana State University, Bozeman. 115 pp.
    • Jones, W. W. 1901. Preliminary flora of Gallatin County. M.S. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State College. 78 pp.
    • Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2022. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants, Second Edition. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 779 p.
    • Martin, S.A. 1985. Ecology of the Rock Creek bighorn sheep herd, Beartooth Mountains, Montana. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 152 p.
    • Martinka, R.R. 1970. Structural characteristics and ecological relationships of male blue grouse (Dendragapus obscurus (Say)) territories in southwestern Montana. Ph.D Dissertation. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 73 p.
    • Stevens, D.R. 1965. Range relationships of elk and livestock in the Crow Creek drainage, Elkhorn Mountains, Montana. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 68 p.
    • Tuinstra, K. E. 1967. Vegetation of the floodplains and first terraces of Rock Creek near Red Lodge, Montana. Ph.D dissertation. Montana State University, Bozeman 110 pp.
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Citation for data on this website:
Small Bedstraw — Galium trifidum.  Montana Field Guide.  .  Retrieved on , from