Galium nuttallii is a species of flowering plant in the coffee family known by the common names San Diego bedstraw and climbing bedstraw. It is native to the coast and coastal Peninsular and western Transverse Ranges of southern California and Baja California, where it is a member of chaparral and pine woodland plant communities. It is also found on the Channel Islands and on the mainland as far north as Santa Barbara CountyKew World Checklist of Selected Plant FamiliesBiota of North America ProgramCONABIO. 2009. Catálogo taxonómico de especies de México. 1. In Capital Nat. México. CONABIO, Mexico City.Ferris, Roxana Stinchfield. 1955. Contributions from the Dudley Herbarium 4(8): 338–340.
Description Galium nuttallii is a climbing perennial herb producing a woody base and sprawling with thin, hanging green to red branches up to 1.5 meters long. The stems have whorls of four tiny sharp-pointed leaves at intervals, each leaf under a centimeter long. The plant is dioecious, with male and female individuals bearing different flower types. Both flowers are reddish, and the female flower ovary turns into a berry.Gray, Asa. 1852. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge 3(5): 80, Galium nuttalliiTorrey, John & Asa Gray. 1841. Flora of North America 2(1): 21, Galium suffruticosumHickman, J. C. 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California 1–1400. University of California Press, Berkeley.Munz, P. A. 1974. Flora of Southern California 1–1086. University of California Press, Berkeley.
Subspecies Two subspecies are recognized as of May 2014:
Galium nuttallii subsp. insulare Ferris - southern Channel Islands of California Galium nuttallii subsp. nuttallii - mainland California and Baja California
See also California chaparral and woodlands California coastal sage and chaparral ecoregion California montane chaparral and woodlands
References
External links Jepson Manual Treatment — Galium nuttallii USDA Plants Profile; Galium nuttallii Galium nuttallii — CalPhoto gallery Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area: Climbing bedstraw University of California at Irvine, climbing bedstraw (in Orange Co and Los Angeles Co) Wildflowers in Santa Barbara, Galium nuttallii Gardening Europe Cavalera Preserve: native plants — in coastal North San Diego County.