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24-759: Galium aparine , with common names including cleavers , clivers , catchweed , robin-run-the-hedge , goosegrass ,and sticky willy , is an annual , herbaceous plant of the family Rubiaceae . Galium aparine is known by a variety of common names in English. They include ' 'sweetheart', 'hitchhikers , cleavers , clivers , bedstraw , (small) goosegrass (not to be confused with other plants known as goosegrass ), catchweed , stickyweed , sticky bob , stickybud , stickyback , sticky molly , robin-run-the-hedge , sticky willy , sticky willow , stickyjack , stickeljack , grip grass, sticky grass, bobby buttons, whippysticks , velcro plant and sticky plants . Galium

48-472: A higher persistence of soil seed banks . These differences in life history strategies profoundly affect ecosystem functioning and services. For instance, annuals, by allocating less resources belowground, play a more minor role in reducing erosion, storing organic carbon, and achieving lower nutrient- and water-use efficiencies than perennials. The distinctions between annual and perennial plants are notably evident in agricultural contexts. Despite constituting

72-676: A minor part of global biomass, annual species stand out as the primary food source for humankind, likely owing to their greater allocation of resources to seed production, thereby enhancing agricultural productivity. In the Anthropocene epoch, marked by human impact on the environment, there has been a substantial increase in the global cover of annuals. This shift is primarily attributed to the conversion of natural systems, often dominated by perennials, into annual cropland. Currently, annual plants cover approximately 70% of croplands and contribute to around 80% of worldwide food consumption. In 2008, it

96-586: A pH value between 5.5 and 8.0. G. aparine is often found in post-fire plant communities in the United States, likely developing from onsite seed and therefore rendering controlled burns as an ineffective means of removing G. aparine in areas where it is considered a noxious weed. Many insects feed on cleavers including aphids and spittlebugs . The anthraquinone aldehyde nordamnacanthal ( 1,3-dihydroxy-anthraquinone-2-al ) present in G. aparine has an antifeedant activity against Spodoptera litura ,

120-429: A precautionary measure after the horse has worked hard, such as after racing , jumping , or a cross-country run , to prevent heat and filling . They are also used to treat abscess wounds, where a build-up of pus needs to be drawn out. Poultices may also be heated and placed on an area where extra circulation is desired. A poultice is a cooling product that is commonly used for show-jumpers and racehorses , as it

144-534: A solvent used to remove stains from porous stone such as marble or granite . The word "poultice" comes from the Greek word "poltos" transformed in the Latin puls, pultes , meaning " porridge ". A poultice is a common treatment used on horses to relieve inflammation. It is usually used on the lower legs, under a stable bandage , to focus treatment on the easily injured tendons in the area. Poultices are sometimes applied as

168-410: A stimulant substitute for coffee or tea. Chemical constituents of Galium aparine include: iridoid glycosides such as asperulosidic acid and 10-deacetylasperulosidic acid ; asperuloside ; monotropein ; aucubin ; alkaloids such as caffeine ; flavonoids ; coumarins ; organic acids such as citric acid and a red dye; phenolics such as phenolic acid ; and anthraquinone derivatives such as

192-601: A unique scenario unfolds: when annuals establish dominance, perennials do not necessarily supplant them. This peculiarity is attributed to alternative stable states in the system—both annual dominance and perennial states prove stable, with the ultimate system state dependent on the initial conditions. Annual plants commonly exhibit a higher growth rate, allocate more resources to seeds, and allocate fewer resources to roots than perennials. In contrast to perennials, which feature long-lived plants and short-lived seeds, annual plants compensate for their lower longevity by maintaining

216-508: Is Dioscorides ’ name for the plant. It is derived from the Greek word for ‘milk’, because the flowers of Galium verum were used to curdle milk in cheese making. Aparine is a name used by Theophrastus . It means 'clinging' or 'seizing', and is derived from the Greek απαίρω apairo 'lay hold of, seize', itself coming from από 'from' + αίρω 'pull to lift'. Cleavers are annuals with creeping straggling stems which branch and grow along

240-444: Is higher than seedling (or seed) mortality, i.e., annuals will dominate environments with disturbances or high temporal variability, reducing adult survival. This hypothesis finds support in observations of increased prevalence of annuals in regions with hot-dry summers, with elevated adult mortality and high seed persistence. Furthermore, the evolution of the annual life cycle under hot-dry summer in different families makes it one of

264-421: Is native to North America is a question of some debate, but it is considered to be native there in most literature. It is considered a noxious weed in many places. For some people, contact with Galium aparine can cause skin irritation. Although the plant's hairs are small, they can scratch more sensitive parts of the skin. Numerous such scratches can resemble a rash. As it contains caffeine, it can be used as

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288-452: Is often cheaper and easier to administer than many other cooling products. A poultice is applied to the horse's distal limbs after exercise, for 9–12 hours. The intended effect of the poultice is to cool the horse's legs over a long period of time, by drawing heat out of the leg through evaporation. It is a common practice to bandage over the poultice, using bandages and bandage fillers, and to place either wet newspaper or cellophane wrap between

312-661: The leaf axils . The corolla bears 4 petals. The globular fruits are burrs which grow one to three seeds clustered together; they are covered with hooked hairs which cling to animal fur and human clothing, aiding in seed dispersal. The species is native to a wide region of Europe, North Africa and Asia from Britain and the Canary Islands to Japan. It is now naturalized throughout most of the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, South America, Australia, New Zealand, some oceanic islands and scattered locations in Africa. Whether it

336-578: The Oriental leafworm moth, a species which is considered an agricultural pest. The mite Cecidophyes rouhollahi can be found on G. aparine . Annual plant An annual plant is a plant that completes its life cycle , from germination to the production of seeds , within one growing season , and then dies. Globally, 6% of all plant species and 15% of herbaceous plants (excluding trees and shrubs) are annuals. The annual life cycle has independently emerged in over 120 different plant families throughout

360-494: The affected area. Making a tea with the dried leaves is most common. It can be brewed hot or cold. For a cold infusion, steep in water and refrigerate for 24–48 hours. Dioscorides reported that ancient Greek shepherds would use the barbed stems of cleavers to make a "rough sieve", which could be used to strain milk. Carl Linnaeus later reported the same usage in Sweden, a tradition that is still practised in modern times. In Europe,

384-439: The aldehyde nordamnacanthal ( 1,3-dihydroxy-anthraquinone-2-al ). Galium aparine is edible. The leaves and stems of the plant can be cooked as a leaf vegetable if gathered before the fruits appear. However, the numerous small hooks which cover the plant and give it its clinging nature can make it less palatable if eaten raw. Geese frequently consume G. aparine , hence one of its other common names, "goosegrass". Cleavers are in

408-483: The best examples of convergent evolution . Additionally, annual prevalence is also positively affected by year-to-year variability. Globally, the prevalence of annual plants shows an upward trend with an increasing human footprint. Moreover, domestic grazing has been identified as contributing to the heightened abundance of annuals in grasslands. Disturbances linked to activities like grazing and agriculture, particularly following European settlement, have facilitated

432-482: The dried, matted foliage of the plant was once used to stuff mattresses. Several of the bedstraws were used for this purpose because the clinging hairs cause the branches to stick together, which enables the mattress filling to maintain a uniform thickness. The roots of cleavers can be used to make a permanent red dye. Children in Britain and Ireland have historically used cleavers as a form of entertainment. The tendency for

456-493: The entire angiosperm phylogeny. Traditionally, there has been a prevailing assumption that annuals have evolved from perennial ancestors. However, recent research challenges this notion, revealing instances where perennials have evolved from annual ancestors. Intriguingly, models propose that transition rates from an annual to a perennial life cycle are twice as fast as the reverse transition. The life-history theory posits that annual plants are favored when adult mortality

480-489: The ground and over other plants. They attach themselves with the small hooked hairs which grow out of the stems and leaves. The stems can reach up to 3 feet (0.91 m) or longer, and are angular or square shaped. The leaves are simple, narrowly oblanceolate to linear, and borne in whorls of six to eight. Cleavers have tiny, star-shaped, white to greenish flowers , which emerge from early spring to summer. The flowers are clustered in groups of two or three, and are borne out of

504-513: The invasion of annual species from Europe and Asia into the New World. In various ecosystems, the dominance of annual plants is often a temporary phase during secondary succession , particularly in the aftermath of disturbances. For instance, after fields are abandoned, annuals may initially colonize them but are eventually replaced by long-lived species. However, in certain Mediterranean systems,

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528-416: The leaves and stems to adhere to clothing is used in various forms of play , such as mock camouflage and various pranks. The plant can be found growing in hedges and waste places, limestone scree and as a garden weed. G. aparine prefers moist soils and can exist in areas with poor drainage. It reportedly flourishes in heavy soils with above-average nitrogen and phosphorus content, and prefers soils with

552-418: The same family as coffee. The fruits of cleavers have often been dried and roasted, and then used as a coffee substitute which contains less caffeine. Poultices and washes made from cleavers were traditionally used to treat a variety of skin ailments, light wounds and burns. As a pulp, it has been used to relieve venomous bites and stings. To make a poultice, the entire plant is used, and applied directly to

576-458: Was discovered that the inactivation of only two genes in one species of annual plant leads to its conversion into a perennial plant . Researchers deactivated the SOC1 and FUL genes (which control flowering time) of Arabidopsis thaliana . This switch established phenotypes common in perennial plants, such as wood formation. Poultices "Poultice" may also refer to a porous solid filled with

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