Alliaria petiolata
| Alliaria petiolata | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Life Cycle: | Biennial |
| Height: | 3' |
| Width: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Mid Spring-Early Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Alliaria petiolata (common name: garlic mustard)
Propagation: Seed - sow outdoors in situ either in spring or autumn.
Cultivation: Prefers a damp rich alluvial soil[1][2]. Succeeds in damp shady places where few other herbs will grow[3].
A good woodland edge plant, it also grows well in the bottom of hedgerows[4] and will self-sow freely in suitable conditions[3].
On a calm day the plant emits a strong smell of garlic. This is especially pronounced if the leaves are bruised[5].
This species is an important food source for the orange-tip butterfly[3].
Range: Most of Europe, including Britain, south to N. Africa and east to W. Asia and the Himalayas.
Habitat: Damp hedgerows, edges of woods and other shady places, preferring basic soils[1][6][7][8].
Edibility: Young leaves - raw or cooked as a potherb or as a flavouring in cooked foods[9][10][11][12][13][14][8]. A mild garlic and mustard flavour, the leaves are also believed to strengthen the digestive system[8]. They can be finely chopped and added to salads[1][15]. The leaves are available very early in the year and provide a very acceptable flavouring for salads in the winter[K].
Flowers and young seed pods - raw[13]. A mild, garlic-like flavour[K].
Medicinal: Garlic mustard has been little used in herbal medicine[16]. The leaves and stems are antiasthmatic, antiscorbutic, antiseptic, deobstruent, diaphoretic, vermifuge and vulnerary[9][1]. The leaves have been taken internally to promote sweating and to treat bronchitis, asthma and eczema[9]. Externally, they have been used as an antiseptic poultice on ulcers etc[9], and are effective in relieving the itching caused by bites and stings[8]. The leaves and stems are harvested before the plant comes into flower and they can be dried for later use[3].
The roots are chopped up small and then heated in oil to make an ointment to rub on the chest in order to bring relief from bronchitis[5].
The juice of the plant has an inhibitory effect on Bacillus pyocyaneum and on gram-negative bacteria of the typhoid-paratyphoid-enteritis group[17].
The seeds have been used as a snuff to excite sneezing[9].
Usage: A yellow dye is obtained from the whole plant[1].
Pollinators: Bees, flies, lepidoptera, self
Habit: Biennial
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Seed Ripens: Early Summer-Late Summer
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: A. officinalis. Erysimum alliaria. Sisymbrium alliaria.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Chiej, Roberto. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald, 1984.
- ↑ de Bray, Lys. The Wild Garden.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ Baines, Chris. Making a Wildlife Garden.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Genders, Roy. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale, 1994.
- ↑ Triska, Jan. Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn, 1975.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Phillips, Roger. Herbs. Pan Books, 1990.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Mabey, Richard. Food for Free. Collins, 1974.
- ↑ Launert, Edmund. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn, 1981.
- ↑ Loewenfeld, Claire and Philippa Back. Britain's Wild Larder. David and Charles.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Elias, Thomas. A Field Guide to North American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.
- ↑ Sowerby, John. The Useful Plants of Great Britain. 1862.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Stuart, Malcolm. The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism. Orbis Publishing, 1979.
- ↑ Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.