wild garlic

[william#]

how many of you got to munch on this early spring jem this year ?
i have to say it was my first time this year and i have to admit to stuffing my pockets and munching on this delight all the way home


oops sorry mods i just realised posted in wrong topic area
appologies

[jamesoconnor]

i had a good munch on it to this spring!! quite tasty isn't it! ive also found a place in the wood i use where theres loads of pignuts and wood sorrell. excellent as its only 5 minutes from where i live and i think im the only one who practises bushcraft or uses it much.

regards
james :D

[running bare]

yep. cant beat the taste fresh from mother nature :D

[scruff]

wrap a few young leaves round some gutted whole mackerel and give it a steam....it tastes even better! >stomach grumbles<

[william#]

how long is the season for wild garlic ?

[Ed]

The leaves sprout up and blanket the woodland here around March, and they are normally still around into June.

Ed

[scruff]

younger leaves are less potent than older ones.

they're also good as an alternative to onions in stir frys.

i think they were really getting going around here about mid april.

[Spacemonkey]

Anyone living near the Purbecks, Dorset should pay a visit as the place is covered with the stuff. You should be safe from vampires there at this time of year.

[Swissnic]

I've just moved back to the UK after living for 5 years in Switzerland. Wild Garlic leaves is a big delicacy over there. Every season, loads of different dishs appear on restaurant menus - my favourite was Ravioli stuffed with Wild Garlic Leaves and served with a creamy butter sauce.

The leaves also are great in salads!

One other thing - every season a couple of people died from eating the mature wild garlic plant/leaves. Apparently as it matures it becomes poisonous. Please correct me if this is wrong, as I was told this but havent varified it.

Cheers, Nic.

[Rebel]

One other thing - every season a couple of people died from eating the mature wild garlic plant/leaves. Apparently as it matures it becomes poisonous. Please correct me if this is wrong, as I was told this but havent varified it.
Cheers, Nic.

I've never heard that before. Doesn't sound right to me but maybe somebody else has something to say on the matter.

[william#]

maybe it can be mistaken for another plant that is toxic and that is what causes the deaths - if any .
for intance the young cuckoo plant vaguely looks similar - though that would not explain the poisening in late season .
any more details you can provide would be very useful

[Swissnic]

I did a bit of research for you chaps... :D

Wild Garlic (Allium ursinum L.) or as I knew it "Bärlauch" in German (Bears Garlic) is best when picked from a non-flowering plant. After the plant flowers, the leaves are not so good... (This is where I got the mature plant bit).

Below is a quote from Spice Pages (http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Alli_urs.html) on the Poisoning rumours I had heard...


Since bear's garlic has become so popular, many people have tried to collect the plant in the wild. Several cases of poisoning have been reported in the last years, as there are a few toxic plants with roughly similar leaves, particularly lily of the valley (Convallaria majus, Convallariaceae/Asparaginales) and autumn crocus (meadow saffron, naked ladies, Colchicum autumnale, Colchicaceae/Liliales). Both plants do not show even traces of garlic odour, and similarities are in the best case superficial, or even non-existent.

Lily of the valley contains cardioactive glycosides with physiological effects similar to digitalis, but their concentration in the leaves is comparatively small, and, as a consequence, live-threatening conditions due to poisoning occur but rarely. The situation is different with autumn crocus: All plant parts are rich in colchicine, a highly toxic alkaloid. Colchicine poisoning takes lethal course very often. Autumn crocus flowers have also been confused with saffron flowers by the inexperienced.

Hope this clears up the confusion I might have caused!

Also contains a nice tip about not cooking it with too high a heat! I did not know that! ;o)))

N.

[william#]

no that was good info and thankyou for looking it up and sharing
thanks !!!!

[Shambling Shaman]

Got a load of wild garlic can it be dried? or preserved?

[Jumbalaya]

Hi Folks,

Picked up on a couple of things in the thread re. ramsons [Allium ursinum].

The leaf of ramsons may be mistaken for lily-of-the-valley which is poisonous. However, if you crush the leaves of LoV there is no smell of garlic.

As for long-term storage, I am currently experimenting with deep freezing pureed ramsons leaves. Not sure how long the flavour might last but certainly on re-thawing puree after a few weeks the taste/flavour is still there. My hope is that I can stockpile samples for folks to try later in the year when the plant is out of season.

Marcus

[locum76]

i got bladdered last night with a bunch of mates at my cottage. on a late evening ramble down by the river almond, we found a an old fire (which we managed to ressurect) bang in the middle a huge patch of wild garlic. the combined smell of woodsmoke and garlic when we discovered this lovely little scene was bleedin marvelous. and made up for a rained off barbecue earlier in the day.

i munched a fair few stems while we were there.

as for preserving it - just freeze it dry like you would do with herbs etc. you cant use the defrosted leaves in salads because they go mushy but they'd still be great for flavouring soups and stews.

[hilltop]

wrap a few young leaves round some gutted whole mackerel and give it a steam....it tastes even better! >stomach grumbles<
sounds good, i like to stuff a few leaves insinde a small trout then wrap it in dock leaves,