Garlic mustard

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Garlic mustard

Garlic mustard

Garlic mustard pods

Garlic mustard flowers

Garlic mustard leaves

Garlic mustard

Morphology

Stem

Erect, unbranched or few-branched from base, glabrous or with few simple hairs.

Leaves

Alternate, simple; basal leaves stalked, upper leaves sessile; stalks .2 to 2.4 inches long; lower blades kidney-shaped, 2.4 to 4 inches long; stem leaves triangular to heart-shaped, 1.2 to 3.2 inches long and wide, progressively smaller upwards; margins coarsely toothed; tips pointed.

Inflorescence

Racemes, terminal or sometimes in leaf axils.

Flower

About 1/3 inch across; sepals 4, oblong-elliptic, 1/8 to 1/6 inch long, ascending, shed soon after flower opens; petals 4, spatulate, 1/12 to 1/4 inch long, white; stalks short, stout; stamens 6.

Fruit

Pods, linear, 1 to 2.5 inches long, spreading, nearly straight, 4-angled when dry; seeds nearly cylindric, 1/10 to 1/8 inch long, black, ridged.

Ecology

Habitat

Moist woods, roadsides, flood plains, cultivated fields, gardens, waste area; disturbed, mostly shaded sites; calcareous soils.

Distribution

East 1/3 of Kansas.

Reproduction

By seeds.

Practical Information

Forage Value

Livestock will seldom eat garlic mustard due to its odor. Cattle that have grazed it will produce milk with a garlic flavor.

Uses

In Europe, it was used as a garlic substitute, in salads or cooked as a potherb. It was also used medicinally to treat asthma. Ground-foraging birds eat the seeds.

Additional Notes