Garlic Mustard

Garlic Mustard

Alliaria petiolata

Information Sheet (PDF)

Watch List - Eradication Recommended

General    

Family: Brassicaceae (Mustard Family)

Introduced from Europe

Watch List-Eradication Recommended

Common names

Garlic mustard, hedge garlic, sauce-alone, jack-by-the-hedge, poor man’s mustard, jack-in-the- bush, garlic root, garlicwort, mustard root

Habitat

Found in forests, along creek banks, and disturbed sites. Likes moist, shaded areas

Lifecycle

  • Biennial

Growth form

  • Herbaceous forb

Plant

Vegetation

  • Plant 1-4 ft tall. First year plant is a low growing basal group of leaves (rosette) 
  • Young leaves heart shaped, older leaves triangular and toothed. 1-3 in long and 1-4 in wide

Roots

  • Slender “S” shaped taproot

Flower

  • April-June
  • White, four-petaled 1/2 wide
  • In groups at end of stems

Seed

  • Seedpod (silique) 1-2 ½ in long 
  • Small black seeds may remain viable for up to 7 years

Reproduction

  • Seed 

Similar Species

  • Horehound

Impacts 

  • Can crowd out native species and form large monocultures

Habitat and Distribution

  • General requirements: Shady, somewhat moist habitat
  • Distribution: Limited in certain areas throughout Colorado and in Jefferson County

Control

Biological

  • None

Chemical

Cultural

  • Prevention - Promote healthy desirable plant growth
  • Removal – In the spring prior to flower formation. Must be repeated as new plants germinate Bag and dispose of plants after buds are formed

Mechanical

  • Burning - N/A
  • Grazing - N/A
  • Mowing - N/A


Use all chemicals according to the manufacturer’s label. No specific recommendation or endorsement is made or implied by listing methods or products.

King County, WA - Garlic Mustard

Minnesota Dept. of Ag

USAD - Plants Profile for Garlic Mustard