Characteristic taste and smell.
Wild garlic is a popular wild spring vegetable, a perennial also known as a medicinal herb, which can also be collected in the forest in some regions. The harvest has rules that you must follow. If you are a fan of this characteristic leafy vegetable, plant a few stems in your garden, so you can pick them at any time.
In nature, it grows at the bottom of damp, half-shaded forests, along streams and meadows. The perennial bulbous plant can reach a height of about 20-50 cm. The ideal place for wild garlic in the garden is similar to the one in the forest: sunny to partial shade. The plant likes warm weather, but does not like direct sunlight. It needs soil rich in humus and nutrients. It tolerates wet soil well, but proper drainage is important. It also likes a mulch layer of autumn leaves or mature compost.
Its broad, sword-shaped leaves have a strong garlic smell. Its white flowers bloom in umbels from April to June. In the summer, the leaves wither and sprout again only the following year. The flowers and even the slightly peppery seeds are edible.
Under favorable conditions, wild garlic will multiply easily and create a carpet-like undergrowth. After flowering, you can propagate it yourself by dividing the stems, if simply dig up a few plants and transplant them elsewhere. The planting depth is approx. 15 cm, the distance between the plants should be 15-20 cm.
It is not very decorative in the garden, as it only turns green for a short time and then recedes, so it is worth combining with other plants, e.g. to combine with plantain lilies, ferns, false goat’s beard, so that there are no bare spots. If you want to propagate by sowing seeds, collect seeds in July and sow them directly in the garden. Germination of seeds takes a very long time.
It can be confused with the poisonous lily-of-the-valley!
Be careful that it can be confused with the lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis), its leaves are similar, although the lily-of-the-valley only emerges from the ground later, in May. However, it may happen that the seasons coincide and the two plants are present at the same time. Rub the leaves, the garlic smell of wild garlic is very characteristic, it can be felt from afar and the leaves stand individually.
Even the Romans and the Celts already trusted in the healing power of the plant. By the way, it got its name from the fact that the bears, waking up from their winter sleep, are said to be looking for the leaves of wild garlic to get the nutrients.
Wild garlic contains allicin. This organic sulfur compound is responsible for taste and smell. The leaves contain vitamin C, minerals, and trace elements, such as iron, magnesium, calcium and manganese. Their consumption has a beneficial effect on cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and heart health. They have antibiotic and detoxifying effects, stimulate digestion and improve appetite.
