Tamara Harbar
Going Green
The garlic mustard is here.
It’s a pretty plant, up to one metre high, with delicate white flowers made of four petals forming a cross. But what it does to other plant life, birds and insects is anything but pretty.
This non-native invasive plant appeared in my backyard two years ago, standing timidly against the back fence, as if unsure of its welcome. Those early arrivals were actually scouting a new location. This spring, they’ve scooched over to my back steps and even my front steps.
Staking out new territory is what this edible herb has been doing best ever since European settlers brought it to North America. A spreading rate of 6,400 square kilometres per year and seeds that stay viable for five years or more make it easy.
By releasing a toxin that kills mycorrhiza, garlic mustard roots also knock out the competition. Mycorrhiza is an important soil micro-organism that transfers water and nutrients to Sugar Maple seedlings. Sugar Maples then feed insects that, in turn, feed forest birds.
Without mycorrhizae literally at the root of it all, the food chain crumbles, along with the ecological functions starved plants, birds and insects would normally provide. Garlic mustard then takes over, as it’s doing in the Don Valley and the Huron Forest Fringe running parallel to Lake Huron, crowding out trilliums, trout lilies, and wood poppies and asters.
Unfortunately, wildlife won’t eat garlic mustard. It’s toxic to butterflies. Deer avoid the garlic-scented greens.
So it’s up to us. For humans, garlic mustard is a healthy, handy food packed with vitamins and minerals and a pleasant-to-people flavour. It was worth transporting here by long-gone pioneers and it’s worth harvesting today.
In the spring, when leaves are tender and tasty, we can help the environment and ourselves by weeding it, then eating it. I love the spring salad.
Weeding
• Avoid pulling, which disturbs soil; garlic mustard thrives in disturbed soil.
• Cut plants close to the ground after flowering. This kills the taproot. Check for re-growth; cut again, if necessary.
• Cut isolated plants, called satellites, before tackling larger clusters, to avoid further spread.
• Clear one area completely. One plant left behind can spread 150-850 seeds.
• Do NOT compost. Bag cut stems, leaves, flowers, and seeds.
• Do NOT cultivate this plant. Instead, harvest and cut “volunteers” in your yard, or wild forage in unsprayed fields, forested areas, etc.
Eating
Spring salad: Toss unsprayed, washed garlic mustard leaves with equal amounts of other salad greens (dandelion, romaine lettuce, spinach). Add salad veggies, as desired. Garnish with fresh, chopped oregano and chives. Season to taste with salt, pepper, olive oil, vinegar and/or lemon juice.
Garlic mustard pesto: Season unsprayed, washed leaves to taste with any combination of garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Add pine nuts or walnuts, grated parmesan cheese and a small amount of olive oil. Blend all ingredients, adjusting seasonings as desired. Spread on breads or add to pastas, salads or soups.
Other options
• Saute, steam, boil or stir fry leaves with other veggies.
• Collect roots as a substitute for horseradish. See the recipe at www.foodunderfoot.com/ tag/garlic-mustard.
• Substitute garlic mustard seeds for mustard seeds.
Web Peeks of the Week
To identify garlic mustard (aka Alliaria petiolata) and for more control tips, see www.biodiversityeducation.ca/bean/files/GarlicMustardFactSheet.pdf.
For recipes and harvesting tips, see www.ma-eppc.org/morerecipes.html.
