UKC

You know, the stuff with round seeds that cling to anything, and you can't get it out of the garden. What do you call it?

Ladies Bedstraw?
Sticky Jack (Durham)
Stick Bob (Alnwick)

Y.

In reply to Yrmenlaf: A weed.

Or Stickyweed if your 10 years old and like to sneak strands of it onto you older brother.

In reply to Yrmenlaf: Satan's balls- how dare they stick to me!

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

Always been stickywillie to me.

In reply to Mike C:

no idea why though

In reply to Yrmenlaf: Is it recommended by Anthony Worral Thompson?

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

Sticky Willie! - (from my mother who was from Western Scotland, if you're interested in areas)

In reply to fimm:

Ah! My Mum was from Dumfries & I think I got that name from her. Perhaps this should be on the local words thread?

In reply to Yrmenlaf: eating small quantities is said, by some, to be a good natural cure for a sore throat...never tried it myself

In reply to Mike C: rob calls it sticky willie and he's welsh. i just call it goosegrass (yorkshire)

In reply to Removed User:

It is related to a plant called madder, whose root is good for dying things in the red / orange / pink range of colours

Y.

In reply to Yrmenlaf: Sticky buds. You can get it out of your garden - you just need to keep pulling the stuff up and stop it getting to seed.

In reply to Jon Dittman:
sticky buds to Breconians.

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

Is Cleavers the same plant, or a different one?

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

Goosegrass, Cleavers, Hayriff Galium aparine L. 112, H40

CLEAVERS/CLAVERS/CLIVERS Cornwall to Border
GOOSEGRASS Dor, Som, Wilts, Glos, Suff, Norf, Che, Yks, Cumb, Lanark
HAYRIFF Dev to Yks

Local names
BEGGAR LICE Wilts, Hants, Glos, Bucks, Nhants
BEGGAR WEED Notts
BLOOD-TONGUE Che, Nthum, Scot
BOBBY BUTTONS Som
BURWEED Bucks, Herts, Notts
BURHEAD Notts
CATCH GRASS Che
CATCHWEED Som
CLADEN Dor
CLAPPED POUCH Som
CLEGGERS Yks
CLETHEREN/CLIDDEN/CLIDE/CLIMB Som
CLINGING SWEETHEARTS Wilts
CLING RASCAL Dev
CLITCHE BUTTONS Dev
CLY Som
CLYDEN Dor
DEVIL'S GARTER N Ire
DOCTOR'S LOVE, DONKEYS Som
GARBHLUS Donegal
GENTLEMEN'S TORMENTORS Suff
GOOSEBILL Som
GOOSE CLEAVERS Lanark
GOOSE SHEAR Som
GOOSETONGUE Som, Che
GOOSEWEED Som
GOSLING GRASS Oxf, Nhants
GOSLING SCROTCH Ess, Norf, Cam
GRIPGRASS Nthum
GULL GRASS Glos, Here
GYE Suff, Norf
HEDGEHOGS Som
HUGGY ME CLOSE Dor
JACK AT THE HEDGE Ire
JACK RUN THE DYKE Nthum
KISSES Som
KISS ME QUICK Dor, Som, Wilts
LIZZIE RUN THE HEDGE Nthum
LOVE/LOVE-MAN Som
LOVER'S KISSES Som
LOVER'S KNOTS Wilts
MUTTON CHOPS Dor
PIGTAIL Notts
PIN BURR Beds
RABBIE-RINNIE-HEDGE Ayr
ROBIN-RUN-THE-DYKE Cumb, Nthum
SCRATH GRASS Herts
SCRATCHWEED Cam, Hunts, Nhants, Lincs, Yks
SCURVY-GRASS Ches, Yks
SNARES Yks
SOLDIER'S BUTTONS Cumb
STICK-A-BACK Che, Lanc, Cumb
STICK-BUTTONS, STICK DONKEY Som
STICKLEBACK Che
STICKYBACK Cumb
STICKY BILLY N Ire
SWEETHEARTS Dor, Som, Wilts, Oxf, Yks
TETHER-GRASS Nthum
TONGUE-BLUIDERS Nthum, Berw
TRAVELLER'S COMFORT/TRAVELLER'S EASE Wilts
TURKEY-FOOD Som
WILLY-RUN-THE-HEDGE Ire

(from The Englishman's Flora by Geoffrey Grigson)

Call it STICKY WILLIE here.

In reply to streapadair:

So not a definitive list then....

But thanks: that is really good and just the information I was after. Did I miss something on line?

Y.

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

No, it wasn't a copy&paste, more a crib&tap.

I think you would enjoy the Grigson book, full of plant-lore, legends and folk remedies, as well as local names, a real labour of love.

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

Stickwillie here in aberdeenshire for sure

iv always wondered if its came about due to William Duke of Cumberland (ie, butcher Cumberland who won against the Jacobites at Culloden)
After he defeated the Jacobites the English named a flower after him, Sweet William, of the Dianthus family. I read somewhere that the Scots named a weed after him in revenge, it was called Stinkin Willie.
I just wonder that with the passage of time and a kind of chinese whisper affect, that has become 'stickywillie'?

its a theory which is probably waaaaaaaay off base but then i really dont have to do much thinking as a gardener anymore so i have time to ponder these questions in life lol

In reply to Bonesaw:
cleavers has no unpleasant smell, so it is unlikely to refer to this plant in particular. Nice story though, and I'm sure that somewhere it is based in fact.

Sxx

In reply to Yrmenlaf:

Burweed.

In reply to Sarah G:

Stinking Willie is Ragwort Senecio jacobaea which apart from being poisonous does give off an evil smell when crushed. As mentioned, the name refers to the Duke of Cumberland.

In reply to streapadair:

No way!!!
brilliant cheers mate, and to think i spent 4 hours last week pulling ragwort from my sisters fields in the blazing sunshine!

horses and ragwort really dont go well...