When do you harvest wild garlic? When freshly harvested and immediately processed in the kitchen, the wild garlic leaves have the best taste. In principle, dishes with a subtle note of wild garlic can be refined right into the summer.
When is the optimal harvest time for wild garlic?
The best harvest time for wild garlic is between March and April, before the plant flowers. After flowering, the leaves become more fibrous and less tasty, but are not poisonous. You can recognize wild garlic by the garlic-like smell of the leaves.
The best harvest time for wild garlic: When does wild garlic grow and how long should it be harvested?
We read again and again that wild garlic can no longer be consumed after flowering. The plant does not become poisonous after the white flowers have bloomed. What is true, however, is that the leaves become increasingly fibrous after flowering and no longer taste quite as good. The best time to harvest wild garlic is from March to April. The exact time when the leaves appear on the forest floor and the wild garlic blossom depends on the respective regional climate and weather conditions. If you like to eat capers, it is also worth paying close attention to the wild garlic locations, as the buds that have not yet bloomed can be pickled like capers.
Harvesting and storing wild garlic
When harvesting wild garlic, you should always be very concentrated. In your own garden, the risk of confusion with poisonous plants is lower when wild garlic is specifically planted than when collecting wild garlic in the forest. Wild garlic can be identified by the fact that its leaves give off a garlic-like smell when rubbed between the fingers. To make the wild garlic last a little better until you use it, you can put it in a small plastic bag and knot it when it is inflated. This protects the leaves from being compressed and also retains their moisture better.
Tips & Tricks
The best harvest time for wild garlic is spring. In order to use the plant in the kitchen well into the summer, parts of the wild garlic can be dried and pickled.
