Wild Garlic: The Return of a Familiar Scent

My first encounter with wild garlic came shortly after I took up running. Along the Downs Link near Henfield, I caught a scent unlike anything I’d known - pungent, wild, and weirdly fresh. For weeks it drifted in and out along the path, then vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, and I forgot all about it.

It wasn’t until the following year, when that same unmistakable scent returned, that curiosity finally got the better of me and I was introduced to this wonderfully versatile plant. What I love most is its fleeting nature, here one moment, gone the next, hiding, waiting to be rediscovered.

I’m fortunate that my mum has a slightly untamed corner of her garden where it thrives (to my delight, if not entirely hers). I pick my wild garlic there, although I’ve been firmly warned never to plant it in my own garden due to its invasive nature!

Used for centuries for its medicinal qualities, wild garlic is rich in vitamins A and C, along with minerals such as iron, magnesium and manganese. It supports heart health, aids digestion and has anti-inflammatory properties. In the kitchen, it’s incredibly adaptable and can be used anywhere you’d use onions, leeks or garlic. Stir it through warm new potatoes (Jersey Royals are perfect at this time of year), bake it into scones, or stir it into a risotto. Blend with extra virgin olive oil and freeze in ice trays to enjoy its flavour year-round. You could also try it as a pesto.

In season from early March to late May, its leaves are best before flowering, though the flowers and seeds remain delicious additions to salads and stir-fries.

Wild garlic reminds us to pause and be thankful that we live in such a beautiful part of the country. It’s an opportunity to engage our senses; to watch, to listen, and to breathe deeply, allowing scent to stir memory. Each time I smell it, I’m transported back to those early runs, when it first stopped me in my tracks.