Stephen Albert
Wild garlic is a perennial plant that grows from bulbils. There are several species of wild garlic. Wild garlic is sometimes cultivated as an ornamental but can be hard to control as it spreads.
Descriptions and Life Cycle:
- Plants grow to 3 feet tall.
- Plant grows from a cluster of bulbs covered with papery sheath.
- Stems are stiff and erect; leaves grow from lower half of stems.
- Leaves of some species are hollow and round with a pointed tip; other species leaves are entire and elliptical.
- Basal sheath encircles stems.
- Umbel of 6 to 20 whitish-green flowers on some species; others produce aerial bulbils rather than flowers.
- Form underground bulbs that overwinter.
- Blooms late spring to early summer.
- Reproduces from seeds, dropped aerial bulbils, and bulbs.
- Tolerates almost any soil.
Root System: Wild garlic grows from narrow underground bulbs. Bulbs store nutrients and can generate new plants even after several seasons underground.
Organic Control:
- Remove the plant including all underground bulbs.
- Cover area cleared of wild garlic with thick mulch of black plastic or cardboard for a full growing season.
Range: Eastern and central United States except northern areas, and Pacific Northwest into northern California.
Botanical Name: Allium ursinum (shown above, also called ramsons), Allium vineale
Four Quick Ways to Control Weeds:
- Weed early. Control weeds in the first month after they germinate.
- Weed often. Hand weed every two weeks through the season.
- Weed by hand when the soil is wet (best to get roots).
- Use a hoe if the soil is dry. Decapitate weeds before they flower and drop seed.
