Uprooted

Kristine and I went to the garlic mustard pulling workday at Marshall Park this morning. Along with a couple of Parks Dept. people and about half a dozen other voluteers, we scoured the area near the parking lot for rosettes of the tangy invader.



It was chilly out there. A few people wore winter parkas with the hoods up all morning. Kristine came home with numb feet. In spite of the cold, it was neat to spend some time with others who have a close acquantace with some of our local wildlands, comparing notes about what was happening at our favorite parks, and talking about the wildflowers and birds we hoped to see in the next few weeks. Surprisingly, Kristine and I were the only people from nearby. Everyone else had come from the south side of Ann Arbor. That's dedication.

One woman said she came because she was waging "a personal war on garlic mustard." I'm not that passionate about it, but I do see how it can take over the woods quickly, and would like to prevent that to the extent it's possible. The stuff is encroaching on my yard, too, though I try to pull up all I see. I'm holding the line.

We did bag some of what what we pulled and brought it home to try eating. We'll try it as a salad green tomorrow. Watch this space for results.

Tag: Nature