threepetal bedstraw
Galium trifidum · Rubiaceae
threepetal bedstraw (Galium trifidum) is a perennial vine in the Rubiaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 3 and warmer, down to about -38°F.
At a glance
| Type | vine Derived |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 0.8 ft USDA |
| Light | part-shade USDA |
| Water need | high USDA |
| Growth rate | moderate USDA |
| Soil pH | 4.6–8 USDA |
| Bloom | June USDA |
| Flower color | White USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 3 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | climber Derived |
| Nursery availability | No Known Source USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It grows in partial shade. USDA rates it as having needs consistently moist ground. Its drought tolerance is rated none — it needs reliable moisture. It tolerates saturated, poorly drained ground well (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance high). It is recorded on soils from pH 4.6 to 8 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 3.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 0.8 ft, making it a low, mat-forming plant. It grows at a moderate rate.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of June. Flowers are white.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is green, fine in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is summer. USDA rates its lifespan as short, so plan on replacing or resowing it rather than treating it as permanent structure.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 16 to 55 inches of annual precipitation. It needs at least 80 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 8 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.
Propagating it
Seed is the only propagation method USDA lists. Division and cuttings are not listed as options. Seed needs cold stratification — a period of moist chilling — before it will germinate, so sow in autumn or chill it artificially before a spring sowing. Its seed spreads at a moderate rate. It does not spread vegetatively, so it will stay where you put it.
Resilience and wildlife
Its fire tolerance is rated none. Its growth form is recorded as single crown.
Role in a guild
Climber. In a layered planting this is it uses other plants or structures for vertical support rather than standing on its own. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Galium
- stickywilly Galium aparine
- rough bedstraw Galium asprellum
- northern bedstraw Galium boreale
- bluntleaf bedstraw Galium obtusum
Similar role and hardiness
- Oriental bittersweet Celastrus orbiculatus
- American bittersweet Celastrus scandens
- western white clematis Clematis ligusticifolia
- perennial pea Lathyrus latifolius
- flat pea Lathyrus sylvestris
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol GATR2, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, vegetative spread rate, Water need.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer, Type.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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