Garlic Mustard Project
Garlic Mustard Invasion |
Step 1: Identifying Garlic Mustard
Garlic mustard has a biennial life-cycle, which means that it takes two years for a plant to produce seeds and die. It germinates in February-April, then grows as a small juvenile plant (called a rosette) through the summer, fall, and winter (staying green all winter, even underneath snow).
In its second spring, it flowers (April –May) and sets seeds in June. The adult plants then die by August. If you are sampling in the spring, you will likely see both young seedlings and the larger second year plants. The adult plants are the easier to find, and should be very obvious from March to June as they bolt and make clusters of small white flowers.
 
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Juvenile plants are slightly more difficult. They have round or heart-shaped, thin, bright green leaves. There are a couple of other common plants that can be confused with garlic mustard. If you are in doubt, crush a few leaves between your fingers: garlic mustard leaves will release a mild to strong garlic odor.
 
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Step 2: The Experiments
Now that you have identified a garlic mustard population, if you or your school, club, or nature center is interested in participating in the experiments, please email jmui@inhs.illinois.edu or spost@inhs.illinois.edu to get started.
Collecting Soil and Plant Samples
Experiment 1: Does Garlic Mustard lower soil quality for native plants?
Experiment 2: Does Garlic Mustard produce chemicals that inhibit native seed germination?
Download a PDF version of the Garlic Mustard Project