Transformational Gardening

Garlic Mustard (Jack-by-the-Hedge) (Alliaria petiolata) (Previously: Alliaria officinalis)

Identification

Description:
1st year biennial plant grows as a rosette of long-stalked basal leaves that tend to be kidney-shaped or roundish with rounded and unevenly spaced & sized teeth and significant lobes curling behind the leaf stalk. 2nd year plant sprouts round flower stalk and grows 1 to 3 feet tall. Alternate, coarsely and sharp-toothed leaves. Lower leaves heart-shaped. Upper leaves more triangular with pointy tips. Long, shallowly-channeled, hairy, redish-green leaf stalks. Leaves smell like garlic when crushed. Slender white taproot with “S” shape just below base of the stem. Flowers 3/8 to 1/2 inch with four thin white petals. Blooms in April to June. Fruit: Many-seeded, narrow pod (1 to 2-1/2 inches). Habitat: Waste places and woods. Invasive: do not spread seeds. Mustard family (Brassicaceae).

Local Images:
http://www.transformationalgardening.com/forage/plants/alliaria-petiolata-images.html.

Look Similar Plants (New Hampshire):
Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule): Opposite leaves with crinkled surface. Leaf side: 2-4 round teeth. Square stem.
Violet (Viola sp.): Leaves arise from nodes along subterranean stem. No white taproot below a rosette.
White Avens (Geum canadense): Mostly 3-parted leaves. Flowers: 5 white petals. Much shorter petioles.
Common Nipplewort (Lapsana communis): Triangular leaves, hairy stem. Seedling: few teeth, just bumps.
Ground Ivy (Glechoma hederacea): Regular spaced and size teeth. Opposite leaves. Square stem.

Taxonomy Classification:

Kingdom	Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision	Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division	Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class	Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass	Dilleniidae
Order	Capparales
Family	Brassicaceae – Mustard family
Genus	Alliaria Heist. ex Fabr. – alliaria
Species	Alliaria petiolata (M. Bieb.) Cavara & Grande – garlic mustard

Food Uses

Flowering Shoot: Pick just before the flower buds open (Thayer) or the pre-bud stalk (Kallas). Pick much more stalk and fewer/no leaves. Use bend test. Stalks can be used raw. Shoot can be boiled, steamed or put in soup. First year leaves or mature leaves are bitter, but may be used sparingly for seasoning. Flower buds can be used for seasoning. Harvest in mid-Spring. After plant flowers, lower cooked leaves may be less bitter.

Medicinal Uses

Leaves used externally as poultice on ulcers and for itching (stings/bites). Harvest before flowering and dry for later use. To treat bronchitis, rub oil on chest that has been heated with chopped roots.

Other Uses

Web Page Links

Online Videos

References

1		Native American Ethnobotany by Daniel E. Moerman Timber Press, c1998 ISBN: 0881924539
2		Medicinal and Other Uses of North American Plants: A Historical Survey with Special Reference to Eastern Indian Tribes by Charlotte Erichsen-Brown Dover Publications, c1989 ISBN: 048625951X
3		Peterson Field Guide for Edible Wild Plants of Eastern/Central North America by Lee Allen Peterson Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (c1999) ISBN: 039592622X

Web site created in June 2009. Some pages still under construction. The 2009 gardening exerpeinces and the 2009 foraging experiences are up-to-date. The rest of the links will be added gradually. Sorry for the inconvenience.