wild garlic

Allium ursinum
 
(Not recorded on the Nature's Calendar survey)

Facts

Why not download our wild garlic fact sheet and delicious wild garlic recipe?

wild garlic fact sheet

               Wild garlic and ricotta gnocchi

• White, starry flowers with pointed petals
  
  
• Up to 20 flowers in a cluster at the top of the stalk 
     
• Grows up to 45cm tall
  
  
• Can form dense carpets, filling the air with the scent of garlic
   

Where found

Deciduous woodlands and hedge banks, in moist soil.
 

When to look for

• Leaves in March
  
  
• Flowers April-June

Fabulous wild garlic facts

• Also called Ramsons
  
  
• Young leaves can be added to soups, sauces and salads
  
  
• The Latin name ‘ursinum’ refers to the brown bear’s taste for the bulbs. They are also a favourite with wild boars
  
  
• Used traditionally throughout Europe as a spring tonic due to its blood-purifying properties, it is also thought to lower cholesterol
  
  
• The leaves were once boiled and the resulting liqid used as a disinfectant
  
  
• A good indicator of ancient woodland