Drift bedstraw
| Drift bedstraw | ||||||||||||
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Drift bedstraw ( Galium pumilum ) |
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| Galium pumilum | ||||||||||||
| Murray |
The drift bedstraw ( Galium pumilum ), also known as heather bedstraw , low bedstraw or ornamental bedstraw , is a member of the red family (Rubiaceae) that is widespread in Central Europe.
description
The drift bedstraw is a perennial , herbaceous plant that usually reaches heights of between 15 and 25 cm, sometimes up to 50 cm. The stiff, smooth stem grows prostrate or ascending and is hardly reddened in the lower part. The plant grows loose grass and has only a few, non-flowering shoots. When dry, the plant turns greenish-brown. The foliage leaves at the bottom are dried up at the time of flowering, the upper, non-shiny leaves are attached to seven to eight whorls on the stem. They have a narrow, lanceolate shape and are often curved like a sickle. They are usually 8 to 12 times as long as they are wide. The inflorescence is loose and narrow pyramidal with upright growing, 1 to 1.5 mm long pedicels. The white, four-lobed crown reaches widths of about 2.5 to 4 mm. The fruit is usually 1 mm long, rounded and smooth to papillae.
The drift bedstraw flowers mainly in the months of June to August.
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 88.
Distribution and location requirements
The area of the heather bedstraw is limited to Europe. In Germany, the species is widespread in the central area and in the south and is usually found frequently, while it is practically absent in the north. In Austria it occurs sparsely or frequently in all federal states. It is also commonly found in Switzerland.
The heather bedstraw grows in silicate grasslands and sparse forests. It prefers fresh, lime-poor, humus-rich and sandy loam soils. It is an acidification indicator. In Central Europe it is a character species of the Violion caninae association, but also occurs in societies of the Mesobromion or Molinion association, more rarely in the Quercion roboris association.
Systematics
The heather bedstraw is closely related to Sterner's bedstraw ( Galium sterneri Ehrend. ) And the Swedish bedstraw ( Galium suecicum (Sterner) Ehrend. ), Which some authors put as subspecies of Galium pumilum . In the heather bedstraw, however, the fruits are smooth and blunt-grained, but in the two other species they are pointed-grained. All three types also have different chromosome numbers.
literature
- Henning Haeupler , Thomas Muer: picture atlas of the fern and flowering plants of Germany (= the fern and flowering plants of Germany. Volume 2). Published by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. Ulmer, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8001-3364-4 .
- Wolfgang Adler, Karl Oswald, Raimund Fischer: Excursion flora of Austria. Ed .: Manfred A. Fischer . Ulmer, Stuttgart / Vienna 1994, ISBN 3-8001-3461-6 .
- August Binz , Christian Heitz: School and excursion flora for Switzerland , Schwabe & Co. AG, Basel, 1986, ISBN 3-7965-0832-4
- Erich Oberdorfer : Plant-sociological excursion flora , Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart, 1990, ISBN 3-8001-3454-3
- Christian August Friedrich Garcke : Illustrierte Flora , 1972, Paul Parey publishing house, ISBN 3-489-68034-0
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Erich Oberdorfer : Plant-sociological excursion flora for Germany and neighboring areas . With the collaboration of Angelika Schwabe and Theo Müller. 8th, heavily revised and expanded edition. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart (Hohenheim) 2001, ISBN 3-8001-3131-5 , pp. 767 .
- ↑ Rafaël Govaerts (ed.): Galium pumilum. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved June 4, 2020.
Web links
- Galium pumilum Murray s. str., heather bedstraw. In: FloraWeb.de.
- Drift bedstraw . In: BiolFlor, the database of biological-ecological characteristics of the flora of Germany.
- Galium pumilum Murray In: Info Flora , the national data and information center for Swiss flora . Retrieved January 29, 2016.
- Distribution in the northern hemisphere according to: Eric Hultén , Magnus Fries: Atlas of North European vascular plants 1986, ISBN 3-87429-263-0
- Thomas Meyer: Bedstraw data sheet with identification key and photos at Flora-de: Flora von Deutschland (old name of the website: Flowers in Swabia )
