Garlic Mustard

Green is starting to pop up everywhere. One of my favorite early spring activities is taking my kids on a hunt for green. We find new leaves, young stems, buds, and moss. But what I really want to find is something mostly other nature lovers want to avoid.

The dreaded garlic mustard.

If you don’t know what garlic mustard is, you are just like I was just a few years ago. But since I learned about it, I saw it. Everywhere. You will too!

Essentially, this is an invasive species. An aggressive one. It takes over woodland areas quickly and cause great harm to the natural ecosystem.

But there is hope. Despite it being aggressive and abundant, it is quite easy to identify and easier to eradicate. Now, it is a tedious task, but even kindergarteners can find, pull, and dispose of this dreaded invader.

And I should know. Not trying to brag, but my class is the defending champion of thr Southeastern Wisconsin’s Invasive Species Consortium’s 2020 Garlic Mustard Pullathon. Last year, we pulled over a ton of garlic mustard. This year, we plan in defending it to the best of our ability.

But even if we lose, we win. And so does nature.

So check out garlic mustard and other invasive species that might be damaging your local natural areas. Learn, but most importantly help.

And if you’re in the giving mood, support our 2021 Kindergarten Team at Mr. Dargatz’s Nature Kindergarten- 2020 Defending Champions!! (sewisc.org) . We (and Mother Nature) thank you!