Cleavers

Also called “Velcro weed”, “sticky weed” or “catchweed” (or a dozen other names) cleavers are an abundant edible plant that is extremely rich in vitamin C.

You have probably seen just how abundant these plants are and how unique they look, so let’s learn more about them:

Plant Profile:

Scientific Name: Galium aparine

Preferred Habitat: Disturbed soil, edges of forests, meadows, and shady areas, garden beds

Edible Parts: Leaves and stems

Distribution: Naturalized in almost every part of North America (other than the coldest regions of the North), much of South America, Native to Europe and Asia, found throughout the Old World.
(Sorry no map this time!)

Harvest Season: Early spring through early summer.

Key Identifiers: Velcro-like leaves and stems that “stick” to you, stemless leaves that are arranged radially (in a whorl) around a square stem with small hairs/prickles, small white flowers in the late spring.

Toxic Look-Alikes: There are many related species similar to cleavers, but to our knowledge none are toxic! Most are found worldwide but, in the U.S., I haven’t personally found any look alikes.

Nutrition/Medicinal Benefits:

• Diuretic

• Anti spasmatic

• Anti-inflammatory

• Early studies suggest that cleavers may have significant cancer-fighting properties (although we don’t have conclusive results yet!)

• Clears out lymphatic system

• Detoxifier

• Heals skin ailments (rashes, bug bites, burns, wounds, stings)

• High in vitamin C

How to Use

Cleavers are best taken as an infusion, a tea, or a vinegar since all of these will give you the most amount of nutritional value possible.

Cleavers have a refreshing and mild flavor (in a similar way that cucumbers and cilantro do) that tastes like…well…green.

While not impressive in flavor, the health benefits of consuming the plant are definitely worth it!

The little clinging hairs have an odd texture that some might find unpleasant, but as an infusion, tea, or vinegar you won’t get any of that.

For a simple infusion, put cleavers and cold water in a mason jar overnight with a little bit of mint to taste and enjoy in the morning!

For a vinegar, put cleavers into a jar and pour apple cider vinegar over the plants until it covers everything. Let steep for at least 4 weeks and it should keep for several months!

Cleavers are a highly medicinal plant that is used for cleansing and detoxifying.

This comes from their ability to move water through your lymphatic system (part of your waste disposal system!) which not only reduces inflammation, but also helps with congestion, and cleans out any nasty stuff that has been sitting in your body!

An odd fact I learned while researching for this article is that cleavers are distantly related to coffee plants (they are in the same family). People occasionally save the seed pods, roast them, and use them like coffee but with a miniscule caffeine content. (There is very little at all).

I have never tried this myself, but I have read that it tastes pretty much just like coffee. Here is a recipe from a blog for making it.

Also, the seed pods are ready in late summer to early fall!

Habitat

Cleavers grow all over the place. I find them on the edges of forests, in fields on farms, in my garden, or in parks!

Generally regarded as noxious weeds, they are very easy to find and identify. As I mentioned earlier, they have small thin leaves in a “whorled” arrangement around a square stem.

They also have a lot of sticky, Velcro-like hairs that cling to clothing, skin, or hair.

At this point I normally try to recommend cultivated varieties but to my knowledge there really aren’t any accessible to the average gardener!

Seeing as they are so prolific and common, foraging them is your best option!

Make sure to follow proper safety measures when foraging any wild food!

Thanks for reading, please share this newsletter on social media if you got some value out of it!