Scientific Name: Galium aparine L.
Other Names: Catchweed, bedstraw, goose-grass, grip-grass, catch-grass.
Life Cycle: Annual
General Description: A semi-prostrate annual covered with short prickly hairs.
Seedlings: Hypocotyls are smooth, stout, and greenish purple. Cotyledons are egg-shaped on prominent petioles. Upper surface has short rough, short hairs. Young leaves are produced in whorls of 4 or more leaves that also have stiff, short hairs.
True Leaves and Stem: Leaves are sessile in whorls of 6-8 at nodes. Blades are lanceolate. Upper leaf surface is hairy, lower leaf surface has small spiny hairs. Stems are square with recurved prickles on the ridges and leaves.
Roots: Fiberous
Flower and Fruit: Flowers are white and produced in clusters near the axils of the whorls. Seeds are only 2-3mm in diameter and are covered in small hooks, but occasionally may be smooth.