| Alliaria petiolata | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Brassicales |
| Family: | Brassicaceae |
| Genus: | Alliaria |
| Species: | A. petiolata
|
| Binomial name | |
| Alliaria petiolata | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Alliaria petiolata, or garlic mustard, is a biennial flowering plant in the mustard family (Brassicaceae). It is native to Europe, western and central Asia, north-western Africa, Morocco, Iberia and the British Isles, north to northern Scandinavia,[2] and east to northern Pakistan and Xinjiang in western China.[1]
In the first year of growth, plants form clumps of round, slightly wrinkled leaves, that when crushed smell like garlic. The plants flower in spring of the next year, producing cross-shaped white flowers in dense clusters. As the flowering stems bloom they elongate into a spike-like shape. When flowering is complete, plants produce upright fruits that release seeds in mid-summer. Plants are often found growing along the margins of hedges, giving rise to the old British folk name of jack-by-the-hedge. Other common names include: garlic mustard,[3] garlic root, hedge garlic, sauce-alone, jack-in-the-bush, penny hedge and poor man's mustard. The genus name Alliaria, "resembling Allium", refers to the garlic-like odour of the crushed foliage. All parts of the plant, including the roots, have this smell.
- ^ a b "Alliaria petiolata (M.Bieb.) Cavara & Grande | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". powo.science.kew.org. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
- ^ "Flora Europaea". Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
- ^ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2014.