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WildBristol.uk - Discovering Wildlife in Bristol

53.) RUBIACEAE - Bedstraw family

RUBIACEAE - Bedstraw family

SHERARDIA L.

  • Sherardia arvensis L. (Field Madder) / General Frequent Frequent in disturbed dry grassy and cultivated places such as roadsides, grass banks, short open grassland, limestone hills, lawns, arable fields, on and at the bases of walls. Plants with "white flowers on open ground at the top of Strawberry Hill, Clevedon. A very tiny, unbranched state of this species is common in thin turf over rock on our downs and on the slopes of Mendip - exposed spots where the soil is poor and scanty." (White, 1912).

PHUOPSIS (Griseb.) Hook. f.

  • Phuopsis stylosa (Trin.) Benth. & Hook. f. ex B.D. Jacks. (Caucasian Crosswort) 1979 General Very Rare A very rare garden escape. Recorded on a railway track in Midsomer Norton in 1979 by D. Green and determined by E.J. Clement; more recently found on Waldegrave Road, Bath in 2014 by H.J. Crouch; and at Goblin Combe in 2019 by an AWT recorder and seen again in 2020s by ? [BSBI record].

[Is the 2019 record reliable? It shows on BSBI as well.]

ASPERULA L.

  • Asperula cynanchica L. ssp. cynanchica var. cynanchica (Squinancywort) - Grassland Scarce A rare plant, confined to dry, open, species-rich limestone grassland and hill pastures; most concentrated on the hills around Bath. It has been lost from a number of sites, probably due to mismanagement of its fragile habitat.

  • Asperula arvensis L. (Blue Woodruff) General Extinct A former alien "introduced from the East...Sparingly on made ground at St. Philip's, Bristol; yearly from 1900 to 1909; but in 1911 it appeared in larger quantity, a few of the plants having white flowers. Amongst oats near Winterbourne, 1902...Portishead Station-yard, 1904 to 1909; not more than half a dozen plants yearly. Eastern-in-Gordano, 1908; Miss Roper. Casual at Twerton, 1897-8; S.T. Dunn. In a clover-field near coombe Hay, 1902" (White, 1912); in a quarry at Twerton, Bath in 1915 by C.I. Sandwith; Avonmouth Docks in 1930 by C.I. Sandwith; Ashton Gate in 1938 by ? [BMAG]; occurring as a birdseed alien on a bank of Chew Valley Lake in 1988 by R.J. Higgins; and last encountered at ST57 in 1990s by ? [BSBI record].

GALIUM L.

  • Galium odoratum (L.) Scop. (Woodruff) / Woodland Uncommon Locally frequent in damp spots in ancient woodland and hedgebanks but also sometimes occurs as a garden escape.

  • Galium uliginosum L. (Fen Bedstraw) - Wetland Rare A rare plant of damp species-rich grassland, wet flood-prone pastures, marshland and on the banks of rhynes; mostly confined to the North Somerset Levels and Moors and around Chew Valley Lake. Elsewhere it occurs in very sporadic localities. It was historically more widespread and has declined since the turn of the century.

  • Galium palustre L. (Common Marsh-bedstraw) / Wetland Frequent Locally common in wet places besides rhynes, in bogs and marshy places, winter inundated grassland and wet open woodland; most concentrated around the North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Levels and Moors.

  • ssp. palustre Wetland Frequent The nominate subspecies and considered to me the more frequent plant with us. Told by its leaves measuring mostly less than 20 mm and its inflorescences which are cylindrical in outline.

  • ssp. elongatum (C. Presl) Arcang. (Great Marsh-bedstraw) - Wetland Rare Thought to be the rarer plant with us but it is probably overlooked. It is a much more robust plant with leaves mostly greater than 20 mm in length and inflorescences more conical in outline. Found in much the same habitats as ssp. palustre but avoids wet open woodland.

[According to Stace this is the more common plant.]

  • Galium verum L. (Lady's Bedstraw) / Grassland Common Common in dry species-rich grassland, pastures, grassy banks, roadsides, railway sidings, rocky outcrops, coastal cliffs and sand dunes; predominantly on calcareous soils.

  • var. verum Grassland Common The nominate plant with the same range and distribution as the species.

  • var. maritimum DC. (Lady's Bedstraw) Coasts Scarce A coastal plant, differing from the nominate variety by its dwarf procumbent habit and internodes being shorter than the leaves. "The dwarf, branched form of our seaside sand-dunes often corresponds to the var. maritimum." (White, 1912).

  • Galium verum x G. album = G. x *pomeranicum Retz. (G. verum x G. mollugo = G. x pomeranicum* Retz.) (Hybrid Yellow Bedstraw) - Grassland Rare A rare hybrid; found sparsely scattered over the region in grassy places near to or sometimes in absence of both parents. First recorded in our region "In roadside turf near the top of Belmont Hill, Failand; Miss Roper. Similarly on the grassy waste of Beggar's Bush Lane; C. Bucknall." (White, 1912).

[The infraspecific hybrid Galium verum var. / ssp. maritimum x G. album = G. x pomeranicum / nothosubsp. hillardiae (Druce) P.D. Sell. may occur.]

  • Galium album Mill. (G. mollugo L. (ssp. erectum Syme and ssp. mollugo are uncertain?) (Hedge Bedstraw) / General Common Common along country lanes, hedgebanks, grassland, amungst scrub, and along woodland rides and clearings. It is also sometimes included in 'wildflower' seed mixes where unusually robust forms of unknown origin are encountered. Galium album was formerly split into two species or subspecies - mollugo and erectum, the former being the common plant. G. erectum is said to flower several weeks earlier and be "of smaller stature, seldom exceeding two feet. The longer stems may have one or more spreading-erect branches in the lower half, while smaller specimens are simply and narrowly pyramidal. The lanceolate or linear-oblong leaves, as well as the panicle branches and pedicels, are all ascending. Corolla larger than in Mollugo, with less distinct apiculi." (White, 1912).

"The Yellow and Hedge Bedstraws are especially associated with the wayside strips of turf that border many of our upland roads upon oolite or limestone, where the width from fence to fence is (by old statute) greater than the traffic requires. These roadside wastes are choice features of the country wherever they remain, being usually sprinkled with all the representative flowers and grasses of the localities. Unluckily, of late years a decentralised rural government has thought fit to mow and trim these flowery edgings in many districts, presumably with a view to formality and tidiness. No doubt employment is thereby provided, and the rates are increased; but many of us will consider our country roads to be more attractive, as well as more economical, in their natural condition. Moreover, there have been instances in which the sole county station for a rare plant has been entirely destroyed by this mistaken action of a parochial council. It is difficult to reconcile oneself to the idea that the loss and damage here depicted are inevitable and beyond control." (White, 1912).

[Max Bog in 1970 by I.F. Gravestock

G. erectum has been recorded "Abundant on a sandstone bank in the Frome Valley within a mile of Iron Acton...In a rough pasture at Dunkerton (near the tulip-fields), June, 1906...Miss Livett. In rich pastures under Claverton Down; Fl. Bathon...there is at least one marked distinguishing feature - it flowers quite three weeks before its near relative. At Iron Acton the plant was in full fruit before Mollugo began to flower. G. erectum is of smaller stature, seldom exceeding two feet. The longer stems may have one or more spreading-erect branches in the lower half, while smaller specimens are simply and narrowly pyramidal. The lanceolate or linear-oblong leaves, as well as the panicle branches and pedicels, are all ascending. Corolla larger than in Mollugo, with less distinct apiculi." (White, 1912).]

  • Galium pumilum Murray (ssp. pumilum) (Slender Bedstraw) Grassland Very Rare Only known from species-rich calcareous grassland on Dolbury Warren and Sandford Hill where it was last sighted in 2003 by M. Evans.

[Is it still present?]

[7 records 1983 22/06/1983 ST458588 Dolebury Warren (DW) North of pine Clump D6 Hale Mr H.John 4263 1985 Summer 1985 ST453589 Dolebury Warren (DW), grassland Higgins - Rupert 45 1988 1988 ST448588 Dolebury Warren Sw Higgins, Mr R., Lawrence, Ms D. 2000 mid-May 2000 ST448588 Dolebury Warren AWT Reserve, unimproved grassland on main S-facing slope, U2 Avon Wildlife Trust - - 8 2000 Summer 2000 ST448588 Dolebury Warren (U2, unimproved grassland including amphitheatre) Higgins Mr. R. Rupert 45 2003 19/08/2003 ST431590 Sandford Hill (field on plateau) Evans - Martin 362 2003 18/08/2003 ST427589 Sandford Hill (east of quarry) Evans - Martin 362]

  • Galium saxatile L. (Heath Bedstraw) / Grassland Scarce Scattered over the region in acidic grassland, heaths and limestone heaths over the Mendips. It has declined since the turn of the century. A record of note was made on Clifton Downs amongst a patch of Harebell on leached limestone in 2022 by D. Peters. It had not been recorded on the Downs since 1988.

  • Galium aparine L. ssp. aparine) (Cleavers) / General Very Common Very common and ubiquitous in hedgerows, lane-sides, brownfield sites and cultivated places. First recorded locally from St Anne's Wood, Brislington in 1834 by Bristol Antiquarian G.W. Braikenridge. The practice of ripping pieces from a hedge and sticking them onto an unsuspecting person's back without them realising, has long been a prank and still survives today. White (1912) recalls having seen stems reach "12 feet long". Cleavers has many other common names but Goose-grass, Sticky Willy, Catchweed and Robin-run-the-hedge are among the most used. Riddelsdell (1948) lists Beggar lice, Clites, Cliver, Gull Glass and Hairiff as local names to Gloucestershire.

  • Galium spurium L. (ssp. spurium) var. echinospermum (Wallr.) Hayek (False Cleavers) 1932 General Extinct "An inconstant weed of cultivation...It is of slender habit and low stature, to be readily distinguished from G. aparine by its small greenish flowers and fruit not more than half the size...Abundant on made ground in St. Philip's Marsh, Bristol, June, 1904. The year following there was a much smaller quantity, and after that the plant as not seen again...Casual near Twerton,1897; S.T. Dunn" (White, 1912 [as G. vaillantii]); at Kingswood in 1932 by C.I. Sandwith (Sandwith, 1932 [as G. spurium var. vaillantii]); "Pucklechurch, cornfields, Withering" (Riddelsdell, 1948); Avonmouth in 1937 by ? [BMAG]; Avonmouth Docks in 1938 by ? [BMAG]; and last seen there in 1959 by ? [BMAG].

[On NBN as var. vaillantii (DC.) Kostel. Confused by why what seems to be the same record by Withering under G. tricornutum in White is also mentioned under this in Riddelsdell - investigate!]

  • Galium murale (L.) All. (Small Cleavers / Goosegrass) - Bishopston Rupert Higgins General Very Rare A rare but increasing introduction from the Mediterranean which is easily overlooked on account of its tiny stature and pretty nondescript nature. Found at the bases of walls, on pavements, between cobbles, and on urban lanes where it is probably introduced with gravel and other substrates. Recorded on Gloucester Road, Redland, Bristol in 2019; Bishopston in 2020; and Bradley Stoke in 2022 by R.J. Higgins; at Bath in 2020s by ? [BSBI record]; at the bottom of a lane off Maple Road, Bishopston; and at the base of a wall on Trym Road, Westbury-on-Trym in 2025 by D. Peters.

  • Galium tricornutum Dandy (Corn Cleavers) 1906 General Extinct A former colonist of cornfields, tips and working yards: "Waste ground, St. Philip's, Bristol, 1904. About an old colliery heap near Kingswood, 1880 to 1886. Cornfields at Pucklechurch; Swayne in Withering. Charlton. Stapleton and Horfield; Herb. Stephens. By Stapleton Road Gas Works, 1911. Cornfield between Horfield Common and Filton Meads, abundant in 1883 and 1885 on land that has now gone out of cultivation. Still among crops by the field-path from Filton Meads to Brentry and Charlton. Plentiful in stubble on Ivory Hill north of the Badminton railway, Sept. 1906. Between Alveston and Gaunt's Earthcott, 1908. Cornfields at Stover, north of Yate...Near the Tan-pits, Failand; D. Williams. Cultivations between Stockwood and Keynsham, 1886 to 1900. Barley-fields between Stanton Drew and Knowl Hill; and between Corston and Burnet; D. Fry. Houndstreet; Miss Roper. With peas and vetches near Clutton, 1887. Field of green fodder at Wraxall, 1906. Weston-in-Gordano; C. Bucknall...Arable fields on Lansdown, noticed there during many years by the Rev. L. Blomefield and others: last seen by me near the Glenville Monument in 1900. Batheaston; T.F. Inman in Fl. Som. Claverton Down; Fl. Bathon. Combe Hay. Twerton; S.T. Dunn" (White, 1912 [as C. tricorne]); Avonmouth Docks in 1954 by ? [BMAG]; and last encountered here in 1962 by ? [BMAG]. White (1912) also gives the names Rough Corn Bedstraw and Three-flowered Goose-grass and Riddelsdell (1948) gives Rough-fruited Cleavers as an alternative. It is referred to in old texts as Gallium tricorne which is now treated as a synonym of G. verrucosum (Southern Cleavers). It's not impossible that some records may refer to the latter which differs in having "leaves with forward-directed marginal prickles" (Stace, 2021).

[Maybe just mention first and last record.]

  • Galium parisiense L. var. leiocarpum Tausch (Wall Bedstraw) - Bishopston Rupert Higgins General Very Rare A rare but increasing casual, found on pavements and at the bases of walls; mostly from around Bristol. First recorded from Montpelier in 2012 by C. & M.A.R. Kitchen; Alongside the Floating Harbour between Castle Park and Passage Street Bridge in 2012 by J.P. Martin; Monk Road, Bishopston and St Andrews in 2017 by R.J. Higgins; Castle Park in 2019 by J. Mortin; Berkeley Road, Bishopston and Ashley Down in 2020 by R.J. Higgins; Portishead in 2020s by ?; ST56J in 2020s by ?; and ST68U in 2020s by ? [BSBI records].

[Perhaps don't need to mention records as there are enough to map it out.]

CRUCIATA Mill.

  • Cruciata laevipes Opiz (Crosswort) / General Scarce Scattered over the region in hedgebanks, road verges, amongst scrub, woodland edge and in lush grassland. It has notably declined since the turn of the century and it is almost absent from Bristol but records of particular note were made around Goldenhill in 2025 by D. Peters where it is historically mentioned from the area 190 years prior by H.O. Stephens in 1835! - back when the area was a rural landscape.

RUBIA L.

  • Rubia peregrina L. (Wild Madder) / Woodland Uncommon Locally frequent in open woodland, amongst scrub, in hedgerows and on Carboniferous limestone cliffs in the south-western portion of the region. It is particularly prominant in the Avon Gorge where it was first discovered in 1633 when "Mr. George Bowles found it growing wilde on Saint Vincents Rock" (Gerard, 1633).

[also Rubia tinctoria needs checking.]

List:

  • Sherardia arvensis L. (Field Madder) / General
  • Phuopsis stylosa (Trin.) Benth. & Hook. f. ex B.D. Jacks. (Caucasian Crosswort) 1979 General
  • Asperula cynanchica L. ssp. cynanchica (var. cynanchica? - Stace) (Squinancywort) - Grassland
  • Asperula arvensis L. (Blue Woodruff) General
  • Galium odoratum (L.) Scop. (Woodruff) / Woodland
  • Galium uliginosum L. (Fen Bedstraw) - Wetland
  • Galium palustre L. ssp. palustre (Common Marsh-bedstraw) / Wetland
  • Galium palustre L. ssp. elongatum (C. Presl) Arcang. (Common Marsh-bedstraw) - Wetland
  • Galium verum L. (var. verum - Stace, NBN) (Lady's Bedstraw) / Grassland
  • Galium verum L. var. maritimum DC. (Lady's Bedstraw) Coasts
  • Galium verum x G. album = G. x pomeranicum Retz. (Stace) Galium verum var. / ssp. maritimum x G. album = G. x pomeranicum / nothosubsp. hillardiae (Druce) P.D. Sell. (Stace) Galium verum x G. mollugo = G. x pomeranicum Retz. (NBN) (Hybrid Yellow Bedstraw) - Grassland
  • Galium album Mill. (Stace) Galium mollugo L. (ssp. erectum Syme and ssp. mollugo are uncertain? - Stace) (NBN) (Hedge Bedstraw) / General
  • Galium pumilum Murray (Stace) Galium pumilum Murray ssp. pumilum (NBN) (Slender Bedstraw) Grassland
  • Galium saxatile L. (Heath Bedstraw) / Grassland
  • Galium aparine L. (ssp. aparine - Stace, NBN) (Cleavers) / General
  • Galium spurium L. (ssp. spurium - Kew var. echinospermum (Wallr.) Hayek? - Stace, var. vaillantii (DC.) Kostel. - NBN) (False Cleavers) 1932 General
  • Galium murale (L.) All. (Small Cleavers / Goosegrass) - Bishopston Rupert Higgins General
  • Galium tricornutum Dandy (Corn Cleavers) 1906 General
  • Galium parisiense L. var. leiocarpum Tausch (Wall Bedstraw) - Bishopston Rupert Higgins General
  • Cruciata laevipes Opiz (Crosswort) / General
  • Rubia peregrina L. (Wild Madder) / Woodland

Species to add:

  • Galium verum L. var. maritimum DC. (Lady's Bedstraw) /
  • Galium murale (L.) All. (Small Cleavers / Goosegrass) - Bishopston Rupert Higgins /
  • Galium parisiense L. var. leiocarpum Tausch (Wall Bedstraw) - Bishopston Rupert Higgins /

Brilliant quote by White (1912) [add to roadsides section]:

"The Yellow and Hedge Bedstraws are especially associated with the wayside strips of turf that border many of our upland roads upon oolite or limestone, where the width from fence to fence is (by old statute) greater than the traffic requires. These roadside wastes are choice features of the country wherever they remain, being usually sprinkled with all the representative flowers and grasses of the localities. Unluckily, of late years a decentralised rural government has thought fit to mow and trim these flowery edgings in many districts, presumably with a view to formality and tidiness. No doubt employment is thereby provided, and the rates are increased; but many of us will consider our country roads to be more attractive, as well as more economical, in their natural condition. Moreover, there have been instances in which the sole county station for a rare plant has been entirely destroyed by this mistaken action of a parochial council. It is difficult to reconcile oneself to the idea that the loss and damage here depicted are inevitable and beyond control".