6. Galium circaezans Michx. (forest bedstraw, licorice bedstraw)

G. circaezans var. hypomalacum Fernald

Pl. 547 g, h; Map 2540

Plants perennial. Stems 20–50 cm long, erect or ascending, sometimes from a spreading base, unbranched or few- to several-branched from the base, glabrous or moderately to densely pubescent on and between the angles with fine, straight, soft, spreading to somewhat upward-curved hairs. Leaves 4 per node, spreading in orientation. Leaf blades 5–42 mm long, 2–22 mm wide, elliptic to ovate or lanceolate, angled to a bluntly (and sometimes broadly) or less commonly sharply pointed tip, angled to somewhat rounded at the base, the undersurface with impressed, linear glands (appearing as small streaks or lines), otherwise glabrous or with short, fine to stiff, straight hairs along and often also between the veins, the venation palmate with 3 veins (the midvein and 2 finer lateral veins) visible, the margins with short, stiff, prickly hairs and flat. Inflorescences terminal and sometimes also axillary from the upper leaves, not pendant, positioned over the leaves, consisting of small panicles (1–4 cm long) with mostly 1–3 branch points or reduced and appearing as unbranched spikes, the branches very short to relatively long, mostly spreading. Flowers relatively few to more numerous, sessile. Corollas 1.0–1.5 mm long, 4-lobed, pale green. Fruits 2–3 mm long, 3.5–4.0 mm wide, the surface densely pubescent with short (ca. 1 mm long), hooked hairs. 2n=22. May–July.

Scattered to common nearly throughout the state (eastern U.S. west to Minnesota, Nebraska, and texas; Canada). Mesic to dry upland forests, ledges of bluffs, margins of sinkhole ponds, glades, upland prairies, savannas, banks of streams, and occasionally bottomland forests; also pastures and roadsides.

In many species of Galium that bear hooked hairs on the fruits, these hairs are developed and easily seen on the ovaries of the flowers. However, in G. circaezans, these hairs are hardly developed and not readily visible at flowering, so they can easily be overlooked. They enlarge rapidly as the fruits develop. Steyermark recognized two varieties of this species in Missouri, var. circaezans and var. hypomalacum, and noted that most of the Missouri plants fall into the latter group. These varieties were distinguished by patterns of pubescence and leaf size, and Steyermark himself discussed the extensive intergradation and difficulties in how to distinguish them, their lack of geographic or ecological separation, and their lack of recognition by some previous authors. They are not accepted in the present treatment.