Where does Wild Garlic grow and what parts are used?

Grows wild in Britain and Northern Europe. Similar actions to garlic. Perennial. Forms large colonies in shady damp humus-rich soil, in deciduous woods and forests, with the aroma travelling far. Pure white charming flowers. Whole herb is used. Main action is on the intestine. Vascular effect is much less marked than with garlic, but it still has an effect.

What does Wild Garlic look like?

Deep green flat, paper-thin, sword shaped, glossy leaves that grow straight from the ground. Flowers have six sharp white petals and grow in a round cluster. It grows up to 30cm tall.

April to June, clusters of flowers grow, in clusters of 3, forming 3 nectaries, within a 3-chambered ovary, to be collected in 6 stamens.

Small black seeds are enclosed in a black capsule that opens in June/July. Ants can sometimes be seen carrying these little pellets and seeding them. The seeds usually take 14 months to germinate. They multiply through underground runner and via insect seed spread. In June, it will disappear until next year, building its strength for the next harvest.

When’s best to gather Wild Garlic?

Spring, before it flowers, ideally. Use it fresh. March to May is the best time to gather. Once it flowers the taste of the leaves changes and they are less tasty and have a harsher flavour.

Is Wild Garlic safe?

Careful not to mistake it for Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis), Cuckoo pint / Lord and Ladies (Arum maculatum) – both are toxic, neither of them smell like wild garlic. The key to identification is the smell. So always smell it first, before picking an eating. Don’t eat it 2 weeks before operations. Don’t use if you have a blood clotting problem or on medical for bleeding disorders.

What can you make with Wild Garlic?

Food: It can be eaten raw in salads, blended as a pesto or soup, added to risottos. The flowers are milder flavour than the leaf, and can be eaten, or used as a garnish. When heated the herb loses its strong flavour and tastes relatively mild. Wild garlic butter. Added to omelettes, it’s delicious. Can be added to cream cheese.

“Eat leeks in Lide [March] and ramsins in May And all the year after physicians may play”
C.N. French. A Countryman’s Day Book, 1929 – a seventeenth century saying

Health benefit:

Vinegar: Antioxidant and antiseptic, powerful immune support. Fill a jar with leaves, cover with apple cider vinegar. Leave sealed for 2 weeks, strain off liquid. Use 1 tsp three times daily, or transfer to a dropper bottle and use a pipette full every half hour for coughs. Vinegar can be used topically and internally: It aids healing of chronic skin rashes, by working with the blood, and healing from within. It contains high levels of mustard oil glycosides that stimulate digestive juices. It has a bactericidal effect on bowel flora, without destroying bacteria necessary for good digestion. So therefore it’s perfect for use after a course of antibiotics. It re-establishes digestive balance. Before foreign travel, it can act as a preventative course of treatment for digestive complaints. Anecdotally, it can be helpful for IBS, gastroenteritis, colic and flatulence

Poultice: for boils and minor cuts – mash leaves into a paste and place directly on the affected area. Re-apply a few times a day. It’s it antibacterial and antifungal.

How Wild Garlic was used historically

In the Scottish Highlands, ramson poultices were applied to infected wounds and an infusion was used to strengthen the blood. The strong smelling leaves were used in Scotland to repel midges. The bulbs would be pickled on the Isle of Man in Spring, in dark brown sugar and rum, and brought out in winter as a remedy against coughs and colds. In Ireland, the plant was considered a panacea to treat a wide range of ailments “Nine diseases shiver before the garlic” is a Sligo saying. Where it was used for treating coughs and colds, indigestion, toothache, as well as boils and infected sores. Many people in Ireland during the flu pandemic of 1918 carried ramsons in their pocket to ward off infection.

More resources

References:

Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allium_ursinum

‘Complete Earth Medicine Handbook’ by Susanne Fishcer-Rizzi

‘Domestic Alchemist’ by Pip Waller

‘Handmade Apothecary’ by Vicky Chown and Kim Walker

‘Hatfield’s Herbal: The Secret History of British Plants’ by Gabrielle Hatfield

‘Hedgerow Medicine’ by Julie Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal

‘Weeds in the Heart’ by Nathaniel Hughes and Fiona Owen

‘Weiss’s Herbal Medicine’ by Rudolf Fritz Weiss