Garlic Mustard :-(

I have noticed an infestation this year of garlic mustard in my garden and areas of my yard that had bare spots last year.  If you are unfamiliar with garlic mustard, please see the following link:

http://www.nyis.info/index.php?action=invasive_detail&id=25

Per the link above, garlic mustard is an invasive plant originally introduced to the U.S. in the 1800s from Europe, probably for use as a spice.  

Take a look at the pictures in the link above.  If you encounter this, please be sure to pull it and dispose of it either by burning or bagging and disposing in the trash.  Do not put it in with the leaves that you would send to the DPW yard, as the seeds can survive composting and may wind up in the hummus or shredded wood that is available there.  

sounds awesome on a ham sandwich....

Garlic mustard is invasive, but I haven't seen it around here. I've seen some plants that look similar but wasn't garlic mustard--the smell is distinctive. Garlic mustard is fabulous in quiche. Great as pesto. I've cooked both. The pesto freezes well. Any food made needs to be eaten or frozen right away because the taste becomes bitter within hours.

Eta: when I cooked with it, for NJ Audubon volunteers, Meadows and More (a wild food forager) collected most of it for sale. It was a partnership.

Feta: I've seen weeds around here that look very much like garlic mustard, but upon breaking off a piece do not have that distinctive odor. I don't know what the weed is though.

Lots of garlic mustard in the Washington Park ravine.

I've had this weed for years, in both life stages pictured in the link, but pulled a bunch this weekend and did not notice a garlicky odor. I thought the low round-leafed version was ground ivy -- I would describe its scent as muskily mint-like -- and I certainly didn't realize the taller white-flowered version could be the same plant. I must be more thorough in my weeding!

Hmmmm. Maybe it IS garlic mustard. Too late in the year to cook with, I think...

wedjet said:

Lots of garlic mustard in the Washington Park ravine.

Invasion: Our property is at the bottom of the WP ravine at Ridgewood Road - hence these invasive "HERBS" - Garlic Mustard AND Wild Carrot (Queen Anne's Lace) - have invaded all of our planting beds, and are something I have been fighting for over 15 years - but have learned to work with.. (though frustrating).  Both are VERY aggressive.  

The only way to truly eradicate an infestation of this annoying herb combination is to remove all of the plants PLUS the soil and completely replace the soil (which I did 15 years ago and have since lost the battle yet again).   FYI, this GM/WC combination is all over the SM Reservation.  Our local furry wildlife (deer & rodents) carry the seeds and plants down the hill in their paws and hooves  as they follow the streams  - plus the birds bring them via "avian corridors" (they also sometimes use them in their nests). 

As a warning, I have noticed this annoying combo has now jumped from our stream ravine to properties to the North of the WP (street) - Plus this year it has now crossed Ridgewood Road to the East... I guess it liked all of the new crosswalk construction - oh, the irony.   So if your property is in Kendal Valley you probably will have it marching down the hill by the time the Zika Virus is local...yet another thing to look forward to.  

The Yearly War Plan - My personal guide to how to live with this stuff if you get invaded:  I have been pulling the plants out down to the roots on Memorial Day weekend (or the weekend after all of the Carrot Root has bloomed and started to fade). I then plant my flowering annuals and herbs... then mulching heavily... and then weed the smaller shoots of both plants every other week throughout the planting season.  By August they both loose their gusto until the next Spring.  If gone unchecked, the combo may choke some of your decorative bushes. 

"Preen Vegetable Garden Organic Weed Preventer" is readily available and can help manage the spread of these herbs for the current season after you remove the herb's greens.  Please don't use "Roundup" because it has glyphosate which is toxic - Google it and you may not sleep tonight.   

Aesthetically, I also select tall groupings of hardy perennial flowers, grasses and bulbs to bloom and reach above these "herbs" from March until the "Lace" is in full bloom. The QA Lace actually looks great with the Irises... so I have just learned to work with it. Think of it as an attractive but overbearing relative that unfortunately comes every year for the Holidays. 

As you may all know, you can check out the local list of what you should plant locally in NJ ... and what you may also be dealing with in your garden at www.npsnj.org  (click on "Plant Lists" and then "invasive species").  AND /OR join the Strike Team www.njisst.org to help identify NEW invasive plants coming our way.