WILD GARLIC A FORAGER’S NOTEBOOK

FOOD • MEDICINE • FOLKLORE

COPYRIGHT © 2017 BY ROBIN HARFORD

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of this information contained herein.

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Wild garlic (Allium ursinum) is a plant of shady, damp woodlands,

fields and hedgerows.

Peter Wyse Jackson says it is found growing throughout Britain,

Ireland and Europe.

Its tiny white flowers and bright green leaves in some places form

a canopy beneath the trees and in other areas it’s quite scarce.

It is commonplace in ancient woods where it creates a flowering

carpet of star-like blossoms instead of the blue flooring of

bluebells.

The English naturalist William Turner in 1548 knew the plant as

ramsey, bucrammes (buck rammes) and rammes, and several places

in England share its name, such as Ramsbottom (meaning ‘Ramson

valley’) in Lancashire and Ramsey (meaning ‘Ramson island’) in

Essex and Huntingdonshire.

The name ramsons was a metaphor for bitterness in Irish folklore.

There was a saying in County Donegal: “As bitter as wild garlic”.

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How To Cook With Wild Garlic

Wild garlic is a less well-known table vegetable than its

domesticated relative, but it can be used the same as any herb or

green.

Finely chop or bruise the plant to use raw in salads and

sandwiches, or boil and mix with other vegetables to make into

soups and side dishes.

Gerard praised its distinctive taste: “The leaves of Ramsons be

stamped and eaten of divers in the Low-countries, with fish for a

sauce, even as we do eate greene-sauce made with sorrel. The same

leaves may very well be eaten in April and May with butter, of

such as are of a strong constitution, and laboring men.”

The plant was an important wild edible in ancient Ireland. Jackson

writes:

“Chopped leaves add interest to salads or can be added to flavour

other foods, such as stews, sauces, soup or soft cheeses and cottage

cheese. The leaves can also be made into a puree with nuts,

mustard leaves, olive oil and lemon juice to make a pesto that can

be used with pasta or added as flavouring to stews, burgers and

other meats.”

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Coitir tells us it was often gathered to eat raw or cooked in soup or

broth.

The leaves could be wrapped around lamb or fish and grilled for a

mild garlic flavour, as suggested by Houston and Milne (2008), or

chopped with butter and spread over French bread to make “wild

garlic bread”.

As recently as the 19th century in Ireland, wild garlic was used to

flavour butter instead of salt.

For a quick bite, the young leaves can be eaten with bread and

butter, and the flowers can be sprinkled on salads.

The wild herb was so highly valued in Ireland that, according to

the Old Irish Brehon laws, there was a fine for stealing it from

private land – the poacher would forfeit “two and a half milch

cows”.

One wonders how the penalty of two and a half cows was paid.

François Couplan wrote in his book Le Régal Végétal in 2009 that

bear (wild) garlic is one of the most widely consumed wild plants

in Europe since human history began. It has been picked by

individuals and families, sold in markets (including France and

Switzerland), and commercially marketed in cheeses, sauces and

condiments.

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In Eastern Europe, its harvested for the food industry. In Romania,

the leaves are eaten in spring salads dressed with oil and vinegar,

cooked like spinach or made into a sour soup ("ciorba"); in Serbia

and Bosnia, the leaves and bulbs are eaten ("srijemoé"); in Poland,

the leaves are fermented in lactic acid and cal led

"Kiszonyczosnekniedzwiedzi".

In Russia, wild garlic (A. ursinum) and a closely related species (A.

victorialis) are used as an ingredient known as cheremsha.

If you’re thinking about giving wild vegetables a go, why not grow

wild garlic in a shady part of the garden or allotment? The plant is

not well cultivated and the seeds are largely spread by ants.

Nevertheless, if you can encourage wild garlic to grow on your

doorstep, the leaf and bulb are highly nutritious.

The plant has a strong garlic smell that might not appeal to

everyone, but its mild flavour is more reminiscent of onions.

Wild food forager Richard Mabey recommends substituting spring

onion for wild garlic in salads.

He recalls an Italian chef in the Chilterns, England, who “makes a

flavoured olive oil by soaking ramson leaves in it”.

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Wild garlic makes a fine addition to omelettes, cream cheeses or

dips, sauces, and as a side vegetable to fish.

The bulbs, as well as leaves, can be chopped and cooked in

casseroles, and the leaf bulbils can be used like capers.

Wild garlic can be used for several more adventurous dishes, for

example: ‘ramsons risotto’, ‘bear garlic soup’, and ‘beartsiki’ – a

twist on the Greek tsatsiki.

If you don’t have time to deliver your own ramsons delight to the

table – don’t worry. Wild garlic leaves are simply delicious in

peanut butter sandwiches, according to late English ecologist

Oliver Rackham.

The juice of ramsons was once used as a household disinfectant.

The garlic-smelling leaves were used in Scotland to repel midges.

Nutrition of Wild Garlic

100g of wild garlic leaves contain 45mg of vitamin C and almost

5mg of beta carotene.

100g of wild garlic bulbs have 16mg of vitamin C and over 2mg of

protein.

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Folklore of Wild Garlic

The plant’s common name of ‘bear garlic’ is from the belief that

bears ate wild garlic to regain their strength after a long winter’s

slumber.

As one author says: “Plants of the bear contain the power of

renewal and purification. Specifically, they break up hardenings,

warm the body and make a person ‘as strong as a bear.”

The cloves of wild garlic were planted for good luck in the thatch

of Irish cottages; this custom was also thought to deter fairies.

The plant makes an appearance in Irish legends and poems. The

Mad Sweeney – a king of Country Antrim – exiled himself from

society and survived in the wild by eating plants, including wild

garlic.

The poem about the Hill of Howth, in north County Dublin,

mentions the herb: “the peak bright-knolled beyond all hills…full

of wild garlic and trees”.

In magic and ritual, wild garlic was thought to scare away

venomous creatures; as you’ll read later, this might explain why

Dioscorides thought it cured snake bites.

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A stranger custom told athletes to chew a piece of the plant before

a race to ensure victory; and a similar belief was held for men

going into battle.

In astrology, wild garlic was ruled by Mars and Neptune. If it was

planted at full moon, it was thought to grow like an onion with

only one bulb.

In early Christian traditions, wild garlic flowers were used to

decorate churches on the feast day of St Alphege (19 April). The

church must have overwhelmed its congregation with the smell.

Health Benefits Of Wild Garlic

Ancient Greek physician Dioscorides wrote in the 1st century that

garlic could cure the bites of snakes, although this remedy was

little mentioned in the works of early herbalists in Britain and

Ireland.

Early healers among the Celts, Teutonic tribes and ancient

Romans were familiar with the wild herb and called it herba

salutaris, meaning ‘healing herb’.

The Physicians of Myddfai, a group of herbalists first recorded

around the 13th century in Wales, used wild garlic as a healing

plant.

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Its medicinal value was believed to be diaphoretic (induced

sweating), diuretic (increased urine flow), expectorant (eased

breathing), stimulating and antiseptic.

A remedy was recorded by the Welsh physicians: “for a swelling of

the stomach. Take goats’ whey, and pound the herb called ramsons,

mixing together and straining. Let it be your only drink for three

days”.

John Gerard, English herbalist in the 16th century, wrote that wild

garlic was good for curing stones in the body.

His recommendation was carried into the Scottish Highlands and

Islands, where an infusion of the leaves was drunk for ‘gravel’ or

‘stone; the remedy was sometimes taken with brandy.

The plant was made into a poultice for infected wounds and an

infusion drunk as a blood tonic.

Wild garlic was greatly valued for its healing properties in Irish

folk medicine. It was eaten raw or boiled in milk and rubbed onto

skin as a remedy.

The herb was used to treat a host of illnesses: toothache, worms,

warts, corns, sores (specifically on the fingers), wounds, sore eyes,

toothache, coughs, colds, sore throats, chest and lung infections,

asthma, stomach aches, indigestion, kidney problems, measles,

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mumps, rheumatism, sciatica, tuberculosis; it was even used as a

blood purifier and to dissolve blood clots.

The vast range of diseases for which wild garlic was indicated in

Ireland made it regarded as a panacea. “’Nine diseases shiver before

the garlic’ is a County Sligo saying.

The herb was carried in people’s pockets to ward off flu during the

1918 pandemic in Ireland.

In other parts of the British Isles, the leaves of wild garlic were

worn under the soles of the feet to prevent people from catching

coughs and colds.

On the Isle of Man, the bulbs were pickled in brown sugar and

rum to be stored over winter as a cough-and-cold remedy.

Wild garlic was considered a good preventative in Irish folk

medicine to ward off coughs, colds and flu – a belief that was

shared in other parts of Britain.

A 17th-century proverb said eating leeks in March and ramsons in

May would keep the doctor away:

“Eat leeks in Lide March and ramsins in May

And all the year after physitians may play.

CN French, A Countryman’s Day Book (1929)

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In Ireland, wild garlic was sometimes employed as a veterinary

remedy for various ailments in horses and cattle, such as ringworm

in calves.

In County Westmeath, the herb was grown in fields for cows to

graze because of its beneficial effects; although some said it tainted

the flavour of butter.

As recently as 2001, there is a record of using wild garlic cloves –

inserted under the tail – to treat cattle diseases.

Modern Medicinal Uses of Wild Garlic

Wild garlic (A. ursinum) has many benefits over its domesticated

cousin (A. sativum).

It was recognised as “Plant of the Year” in 1992 by the Association

for the Protection and Research of European Medicinal Plants.

A. ursinum has higher quantities of the heart-friendly constituents

ajoene and adenosine, which help to lower blood pressure and

reduce blood cholesterol.

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Research by Professor Holger Kiesewetter at Homburg University

Clinic, Germany, found that one gram of wild garlic taken daily

can improve blood circulation.

Wild garlic is not only a heart protector and blood purifier, it also

cleanses and improves digestion, which is helpful to various

ailments from skin disorders to stomach problems, and it boosts

the body’s immune system.

The bruised plant releases a chemical called allicin that acts against

microorganisms. This supports its use in herbalism for coughs,

colds, flu and sore throats.

Present-day herbals also recommend wild garlic as a stomach

tonic, and for conditions that benefit from improved flow of bile

and increased urination; it can be used to relieve cramps and

tackle obesity.

As a healing herb, wild garlic can be drunk as a tea, taken as a

macerated oil (for example, in olive oil), or eaten raw in salads and

sandwiches.

Another advantage wild garlic has over cultivated garlic is that it’s

almost odourless when eaten; although the plant has a strong

aroma, its flavour is milder and won’t give you ‘garlic breath’.

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It’s even recommended for cats and dogs – the chopped leaves can

be mixed with pet food to prevent worms – and for horses – mixed

with fodder to repel flies.

Before rushing out to pick wild garlic in spring, however, do check

first with your doctor before using a herbal medicine to treat any

condition.

Toxicity, Contraindications and Side Effects of Wild Garlic

Some people are allergic to plants related to garlic and reported

side effects from taking wild garlic range from bad breath and

stomach upsets to allergic reactions.

Overindulgence in the herb might also cause flatulence and

heartburn.

Duke cautions that it may thin blood and therefore is not suitable

for people taking blood-thinning medication.

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