For such as invisible little green , wild mustards have quite the floor . Relatives of this little weed gave rise to all the cruciferous vegetable like kale , sugar , cauliflower , and Brassica oleracea gongylodes . It ’s been take all over the worldly concern for food , naturalized and considered invasive , and then wipe out by Farmer who fear it will inhibit grass output and potentially poison Bos taurus . It ’s a write up of delicate ecosystems .
Description
There are many species of wild Indian mustard throughout the old and new worlds . Alliaria petiolatais the garlic table mustard skunk , nominate Alliaria after alliums because of its garlicky or horseradish flavour .
It is a biennial plant appearing just as a low cluster of humble prevarication leaves the first year and developing flowers the second class . In its second class , it produce to about 40 in magniloquent and produces bunch of cross - wrought white-hot flowers . They give room to pods incorporate M of mustard greens seeds .
History
Native to Europe , garlic mustard mourning band could be the oldest cultivated spicery crop in the region go steady back to between 4100 - 3750 B.C.E. It grows wild near houses and hedgerows , and masses use it to bring flavor to dish antenna . When crushed all portion of the plant emit a strong garlic - like odor and nip . They ate it as a seed of vitamin A and C , and they used it to do by symptom of gangrene and ulceration .
Naturally , when settlers headed across the sea they bring Alliaria petiolata with them to implant as a food for thought and practice of medicine . alas , its story in the Americas is less than zesty . There are no natural predators of garlic mustard in North America . In fact , compound produced in the flower prove toxic to some native butterfly stroke species .
Garlic mustard is allelopathic , meaning that it suppresses the growth of nearby grass and herbs decimate native rivalry . It ’s not what you want to discover in your pasture , cows have been roll in the hay to get sick after eating too much mustard weed . Scientists are searching for a method of biologic control condition to keep it from invade grassland and eatage .
Mustard Uses and Characteristics :
As A Food
Traditionally throughout its native range , which almost sweep the entire ancient world , it ’s a staple green . untested leaves are eat on raw or cooked . They tot a slight gall and flavor visibility to salads when bare-assed , and taste similar to a risque collard when cook .
The cross - molded white flowers are bring to wines and acetum to give them a kick . The seeds of the mustard greens family are where the mod condiment leaf mustard come from . They are crush and add up to spice and acetum to create the xanthous sandwich spread .
