Galium ciliare subsp. ciliare

Mount Clear, ACT

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Identification history

Galium ciliare subsp. ciliare	21 Jan 2018	MichaelMulvaney
Galium sp.	14 Jan 2018	BettyDonWood
Galium ciliare subsp. ciliare	8 Jan 2018	KenT

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7 comments

BettyDonWood wrote:

14 Jan 2018

The Plantnet key is not very helpful, branching at whether the ovary is hairless or hairy. If it is hairless, it could be Galium ciliare, though the flower stalks do not really look long enough. If the ovary is hairy, it might be Galium leiocarpum.

KenT wrote:

14 Jan 2018

Yes, these Galium species are a real pain. I looked through and compared the very detailed descriptions in Thompson (2009). A revision of Asperula and Galium (Rubieae: Rubiaceae) in Australia. Muelleria 27(1): 36-112. The differences I focussed on was that for Galium ciliare the leaves are elliptic to subrotund, cymes variably exceeding whorls when mature; primary peduncle 2–20 mm long and corolla pale yellow or cream. For Galium leiocarpum the leaves are elliptic, narrow-obovate to oblanceolate, or weakly spathulate cymes mostly not exceeding whorls when mature; primary peduncle 2–5 mm long, to 12 mm in complex lower cymes and corolla greenish or greenish-cream. I’m not sure if individually these differences are that strong but taken together they probably support this being Galium ciliare rather than Galium leiocarpum. I’ve added an additional image of the leaves looking downward to give a better idea of the shape.

BettyDonWood wrote:

14 Jan 2018

The easiest way to tell them apart is on the ovary and seeds. There is too much overlap in the characters you mention.

JackieMiles wrote:

20 Jan 2018

Yep, I would call that Galium ciliare without a moment's hesitation or looking any closer at it if I saw it in the field, just based on the erect habit (most of the other species tend to sprawl more) and the near circular leaf shape. I've compared it with my photos of ciliare and it's an excellent match. Don't have any photos of leiocarpum, a deficiency I'll have to address!

KenT wrote:

21 Jan 2018

I've just realised that this species is showing as being exotic, PlantNET shows it as native.

BettyDonWood wrote:

21 Jan 2018

Fixed.

BettyDonWood wrote:

21 Jan 2018

Fixed.

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