Thursday, May 16, 2002

Garlic Mustard Explosion?

Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata)

Can't find much in the news on invasive species today, so I'm making my own...

In my travels this spring around Quincy, Massachusetts, I've noticed that there seems to have been an massive expansion of Garlic mustard populations (Alliaria petiolata). I have to keep reminding my self that this species is a biennial, so if it's catching my eye everywhere because it's in flower, then the expansion actually occurred last season.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I actually entice my family to come over every year to pick it and keep it at bay. Here is my GARLIC MUSTARD INVITE: It’s back by “popular demand”…at least that sounds good. Next Sunday from 2-5pm anyone desperate enough - I mean adventurous enough to come out to our farmhouse to pick garlic mustard (that nasty invasive weed) gets our sincere appreciation. BUT WAIT, there’s more! Here are the Top 10 reasons! You get:
1. To enjoy the great outdoors
2. a patio cocktail hour as we watch our garlic mustard burn on the bonfire
3. All you can eat Garlic Porterhouse Steaks or garlic brats with garlic mashed potatoes of course
4. To blunder into lottery tickets hidden in the garlic mustard
5. To see your Kids under 18 years old ear $8.33/hour assuming they get the roots too 
6. Listen to the Brewers (hopefully) beat the Cubs
7. Discover early morel mushrooms (we’ve seen 2 so far!)
8. Pet our dog
9. To see that you efforts last year helped a ton – there’s actually less than last year!
10. See our kids run around picking one weed and saying “I helped!”
If this sounds like your perfect Sunday – come on out! If it doesn’t, then you read Tom Sawyer and that’s cool too! Let us know so we can plan food!

Jennifer Forman Orth said...

I can only imagine the comedy that ensues if you finish the day and there's still a missing lottery ticket or two ;-)