Garlic Mustard
Alliaria petiolata
How to Identify Garlic Mustard
Garlic mustard is a biennial, meaning its lifecycle spans two years.
In the first and second years, the plant looks very different.
Recognizing these characteristics is important when
identifying and harvesting Garlic Mustard.
First Year
At this stage, the plant is a few inches tall. The leaves are kidney-shaped with
rounded teeth on the edges.​
Flower
In the spring of the second year, small, white flowers bloom. Each flower has 4 petals.
Second Year
The plant now reaches 1-3 ft. The leaves become heart-shaped, sharp-toothed, and alternate on the stem.​​​​​
Seed Pods
In the summer, long, skinny seed pods develop. They easily break off when disturbed.
The Worst Neighbor Ever
Garlic Mustard is one of those plants where once you know what it looks like, you suddenly see it EVERYWHERE. While this may be good news for foragers looking to snack, this is horrible news for the ecosystem. Unlike Dandelions, Garlic Mustard is a menace. The plant dominates woodland understories and prevents other native plants from growing. It does this by producing a chemical that suppresses mycorrhizal fungi living on the roots of other plants(1). Mycorrhizal fungi are important because they exchange crucial nutrients with the plant. To make things worse, no animals eat it, including deer (and deer eat everything). Garlic Mustard spreads quickly, engulfing large areas. ​
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In this TikTok, Alexis Nikole passionately discusses the wrath of Garlic Mustard and how foragers can help out their ecosystem and get a tasty snack.
An Important Food
Garlic Mustard is native to Europe, Western Asia, and Northwestern Africa. For 6,000 years people have been using the plant as a spice and for medicine(2). European settlers intentionally introduced Garlic Mustard to North America and by the 1800s it was a popular food plant in rural and impoverished communities(3). The young leaves provided crucial nourishment, especially in early spring when other greens have not sprouted(4).
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​Garlic Mustard's history in the United States tells of an important connection between foraging and the cultures and sovereignty of Black communities.
Black Herbalism
Enslaved Africans are responsible for a significant portion of North America's herbal knowledge. And yet, this fact is underacknowledged.
Herbal knowledge and traditions were brought from Africa and passed down through generations(5). Additionally, through collaboration with Indigenous communities and direct connection with the environment, enslaved Africans quickly acquired a vast array of knowledge of the plants of North America(5).​​
Roots for Sovereignty
The food provided to enslaved Africans was not nutritionally adequate on its own(6). Plantation owners usually expected their slaves to fend for themselves when it came to illnesses(7). Plants like Garlic Mustard helped to meet the needs that were greatly neglected(3). Furthermore, foraging helped to maintain cultural traditions(3). ​
Appropriation & Erasure
The herbal knowledge of slaves was often sought after by European settlers when Euro-American remedies failed or were too expensive(5). One South Carolina physician, Dr. Francis Porter, obtained many herbal remedies from enslaved women(7).
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Yet, settlers feared the empowerment and sovereignty slaves received from foraging medicine(5). Laws were established to rob slaves' connection to the land. For example, in the 18th century, several states made it a capital offense for enslaved Africans to learn about herbal medicine or work in apothecaries(5).​
Resources of the Southern Fields and Forests, Medical, Economical, and Agricultural
​Porcher, Francis Peyre, 1825-1895
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Anti-Foraging Laws
​Before the end of the Civil War, the American public had the right to forage on unfenced land in the United States(9). However, following emancipation, many southern states rapidly passed harsh restrictions on hunting, open grazing, and foraging in predominantly Black counties(10).
The goal was that by restricting the ability of Black communities to forage for vital resources, they would be forced back to the plantations(10). Privatization of land and 'no trespassing' laws spread throughout the US until the mid-1900s(108).
Watch the video below to learn more about how "no trespassing" laws have impacted Black communities in North America.
Photo Credit: Patrick Lentz
Hostilities
The United State's past still impacts the modern world. People who see foragers near their neighborhood or home often feel as though foragers have suspicious or dangerous intentions(11). This is especially targeted towards Black foragers.
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​Dr. Fuschia Hoover, author of "A Black Girl's Guide to Foraging," describes an experience when foraging for acorns in her predominantly-white neighborhood:
Building Community
Dr. Ashanté M. Reese, is an associate professor, anthropologist, and author of Black Food Geographies: Race, Food Access, and Self-Reliance in Washington, D.C. In her book, Dr. Reese explains that for many Black folks throughout history, self-reliance practices, including foraging, can be “a strategy, a manifesto for building communities that were not wholly reliant on white philanthropy or support.”
Harvesting Garlic Mustard
The whole plant is edible. The best way to harvest? Pull up the entire plant. ​​
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​In the case of garlic mustard, removing it can help to prevent it from spreading and harming the land. Garlic mustard is one of the few exceptions to the foraging rule on overharvesting.
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But timing is important. Harvest the plant before it begins to seed. It's easy to tell when the phase is started. From June to July the mature plant grows seed pods that are long and thin. Harvesting at this stage will unintentionally distribute the seeds. But for the remainder of garlic mustard’s life cycle, harvest away!
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Leaves
Leaves begin to taste more bitter as the plant matures so the timing of harvest is up to personal preference. You can harvest the young leaves of the first year plants or the leaves of the second year plants before they flower.
Roots
Pull up the entire plant.
Recipes
Now that we have our harvest, it is time to start cooking. Find out the flavors of each part of the plant and what dishes they taste great in. Then check out the recipes below.
While the leaves are the most flavorful, there's also nothing wrong with eating the leaves and stalks.
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Flavor: spicy & garlicy
Raw
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add to a salad, sandwich, etc.
Cooked
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stir fry
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blanch and add to a pesto​
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References
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Arrington, A. (2021). Urban foraging of five non-native plants in NYC: Balancing ecosystem services and invasive species management. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 58, 126896.
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Saul H, Madella M, Fischer A, Glykou A, Hartz S, et al. (2013) Phytoliths in Pottery Reveal the Use of Spice in European Prehistoric Cuisine. PLOS ONE 8(8): e70583. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0070583
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Buchanan, A. (2021, December 15). Plant of the month: Garlic mustard . JSTOR Daily . https://daily.jstor.org/plant-of-the-month-garlic-mustard/
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Tredici, P. (2020). Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast A Field Guide (Second edition.). Comstock Publishing Associates, an imprint of Cornell University Press.
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Morgan, A. (2020). Roots of African American herbalism: Herbal use by enslaved Africans. Herbal Academy. https://theherbalacademy.com/blog/african-american-herbalism-history/
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Sawers, B. (2015). Property Law as Labor Control in the Postbellum South. Law and History Review, 33(2), 351–376. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43670779
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Hamby, Erin Brooke, "The Roots of Healing: Archaeological and Historical Investigations of African-American Herbal Medicine. " PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 2004. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/4543
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Penniman, L. (2018). Farming while black. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing.
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Berger, B. R. (2022). Race to Property: Racial Distortions of Property Law, 1634 to Today. HeinOnline.
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Linnekin, B. J. (2018). Food law gone wild: the law of foraging. Fordham Urban Law Journal, 45(4), 995-1050.
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Clouse, C. (2022). The resurgence of urban foraging under COVID-19. Landscape Research, 47(3), 285-299.