Garlic Mustard

Alliaria petiolata

Plant Data

Order:

Brassicales

Family:

Brassicaceae (Cabbage)

Flowering Months:

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Flowers:

Tiny 4 white petals with yellow centres.

Fruit:

Long, thin, slender pod which arches upwards and contains numerous seeds. The seed pods have 4 blunt edges.

Leaves:

The light green, stalked leaves are variable in shape from round to kidney or heart-shaped. Their margins are irregularly wavy.

Maximum Size:

100cm tall.

Foraging Notes:

The flowers and young leaves are edible raw and make a good salad ingredient. As the name implies, the taste is half way between garlic and mustard. The flowers, roots and seeds can be eaten too.
Never consume a wild plant unless you are 100% certain that it is safe to eat and you know that you have identified it correctly.

Aroma:

The whole plant smells of half mustard and half garlic, hence the reason why it is called Garlic Mustard.

Other Names:

Garlic Root, Garlicwort, Hedge Garlic, Jack-by-the-hedge, Jack-in-the-bush, Mustard Root, Penny Hedge, Poor Man's Mustard, Sauce-alone, Skyut.

Habitats:

Hedgerows, woodland.