Stats

Lifespan

Annual

Size

Small

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Temperate grassland

Range

North America

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Spines

Status

Rare

About

This small plant grows in the dry grasslands of the south-central United States. Its stems are covered in tiny, hooked hairs that allow it to cling firmly to passing animals.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Gentianales

Family

Rubiaceae

Genus

Galium

Species

Galium virgatum