By Alyssa Kobylarek, MNA intern
At first glance, garlic mustard looks like any other native flower. It has tiny, white flowers that sit atop a bed of green leaves along the forest floor. Passersby may not realize that this plant is one of the worst invaders of forests in the American Northeast and Midwest that was brought to America for food and medicinal uses from Europe and Asia in the 1800s.
Garlic mustard is an invasive herb that has spread throughout much of the United States over the past century. It can be identified as young plants by the garlic odor that is released when the leaves are crushed. The flowers develop on an unbranched stalk and they have four small white petals in a symmetrical arrangement.
Garlic mustard is usually found in undergrowth of disturbed woodlots and forest edges. It spreads fast and easily dominates the undergrowth of some forests, pushing native plants back and reducing diversity among native species. Garlic mustard can form in a dense blanket on the understory. This can kill off native plants that grow there because it controls the light, water and nutrients that are available. Plants most affected by garlic mustard are herbaceous species that grow in similar moist soil in the spring and early summer.
Garlic mustard has been tied to the decrease in native herbaceous species in forested areas. It also releases chemicals that hinder the growth of other plant species and inhibits the growth of grasses and herbs. Other areas of the ecosystem could be affected due to the change in the vegetation. Altering the plant diversity can change leaf litter availability for creatures that survive in them, insects could be affected due to the loss in diversity of egg-laying substrate and plants, and it could prevent tree seedlings from growing.
Deer and other herbivores eat the garlic mustard, but they only remove about two percent of the leaf area. Manual removal of the plant is an effective method for eliminating the species and preventing it from spreading. Many volunteer days at MNA this spring are dedicated to helping remove and prevent garlic mustard in MNA sanctuaries. Take a look at some upcoming dates to get involved and visit www.michigannature.org/events for more dates and information!
- Wednesday, April 30: Join MNA at the Riley-Shurte Nature Sanctuary (Cass County, near Cassopolis) to help keep the woods free of garlic mustard.
- Friday, May 2: Help pull garlic mustard in the forest at Lyle and Mary Rizor Nature Sanctuary (Livingston County, near Hartland).
- Saturday, May 3: Join volunteers to pull garlic mustard in the wooded paradise at Powell Memorial Nature Sanctuary (Lenawee County, near Hudson).
- Monday, May 5: MNA will host a garlic mustard pull at the popular Dowagiac Woods Nature Sanctuary (Cass County, near Dowagiac).
- Monday, May 5: Enjoy the beautiful woods, Wolf Creek, and spring wildflowers as we pull garlic mustard at Frances Broehl Memorial No. 1 (Lenawee County, near Onsted).