Alan’s TTIM Stories #66

We have traditional events that bring the community together: holiday tree lighting, 4^th of July fireworks, Halloween Trick or Treating, Memorial Day barbeques, and Easter egg hunts. Add to the list – Spring Forest Plant Pulling.

A dangerous living organism lurks in the forest. Communities organize to thwart this menace, not with torches and pitchforks, but with trowels and garbage bags. We know to avoid poison ivy and stinging nettles. Another problem may go unnoticed with its vibrant green leaves and petite white flowers. It is not dangerous to touch, it’s even edible. I am writing about the scrouge know as garlic mustard.

The best example of an invasive plant goes to the winner – kudzu, “the vine that ate the South.” Originally from Japan and China, brought to America as ornamental plant and a solution to soil erosion. No one imagined its evil intention to take over the country, covering roadsides, choking fields, climbing utility poles, with the aim of world domination.

Now turn our attention to a local villain – garlic mustard. Alliaria petiolata, a native of Europe was discovered here in 1868. Globalization has pros and cons. This understory invasive is the center of attention for nature lovers in the temperate North. Crush leaves for a smell of garlic discovering the origin of the name. The noxious invader creates a monoculture, producing chemicals that weaken the ability of native plants to grow.

Invasive plants eradication events have become a regular spring community happening across the East and Midwest before the plants have an opportunity to go to seed.

U.S. Forest Service:
“In an effort to fight the spread of this invasive species, the Monongahela, along with several partners, hosts an annual Garlic Mustard Challenge to increase public awareness about the threat of non-native invasive species and to achieve boots-on-the-ground results. Last year, elementary school students in Grant County, West Virginia, removed more than 13,000 pounds of garlic mustard from the Monongahela.”

There’s more:

• The Centerville-Washington (Ohio)Park District hosts an annual garlic mustard challenge each spring.
• Hawthorn Hollow Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum near Kenosha, Wisconsin, in late April, Annual Garlic Mustard Pull Party.
• Borough of Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, Garlic Mustard Pull Event in early May.
• Garlic Mustard Pull on Roan Mountain, adjacent to the Appalachian Trail in eastern Tennessee in late April.

One method of eradication is consumption. A green addition to your diet improves your health and the health of native wildlands. Recipe: sauté with avocado oil, cooked with butter and sesame seeds, or create a pesto with olive oil, regular garlic, parmesan, lemon juice, chopped nuts, with salt and pepper.

Adding non-native plants to the western hemisphere can be contrary to the idea of biodiversity when the unwanted invaders create ecological dominance. So, enjoy a new rite of spring, pull up a garlic mustard plant, and bon appétit.

Sources:
Lake Erie Islands Conservancy
U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service
Centerville-Washington (Ohio) Park District
Friends of Patapsco Valley and Heritage Greenway
Maryland Native Plant Society
National Invasive Species Information Center
The Nature Conservancy
Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Photo:  Licensed under the Creative CommonsAttribution 4.0 International / Robert Flogaus-Faust

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Discover previous Stories at: www.alanvandervoort.com/blogs/503 Follow announcements of Alan’s TTIM Stories at Facebook.com/alan.vandervoort or Instagram & Threads vandervoort_author, with all available posts at www.alanvandervoort.com. Novels by the author include: Sandhills – A Novel and Key Largo Summer, found at Booklocker.com and other online booksellers.