I’m a very furry individual, I have been known to fatten up ahead of winter, and my mood in the mornings has often been described as grizzly. It’s probably no surprise then that whenever I catch a waft of Allium Ursinum while walking through woodland, I can’t help but spend a moment trying to track it down.

Often referred to as Wild Garlic or Bear’s Garlic, due to the brown bear’s appetite for this plant, it has been used throughout history as an ingredient in the kitchen and it’s easy to get creative with. I’m no chef, but I’m planning to experiment a little and see if I can use the leaves to make a Wild Garlic version of the Greek dish, stuffed vine leaves.

Flowers of Wild Garlic look like a sparkler on bonfire night

But be ever so careful when identifying this plant, as its appearance when young is very similar to the poisonous plant Lilly of the Valley which, if imbibed, can leave you in a very sorry state! The best way to identify Wild Garlic is to find mature plants, which start to have noticeable differences between its poisonous lookalike. Primarily, the flowers of Wild Garlic look like a sparkler on bonfire night, whereas Lily of the Valley has bell shaped flowers.

Another good way to check if it’s the right plant is to crush the leaves with your fingers and smell for that garlic aroma. But make sure that the lingering smell of a previously correctly identified plant isn’t masking the lack of odour on subsequent identifications. My advice is to find the correct plant and harvest only from that source to reduce the risk of an accidental poisoning. But please please don’t pick any of the plant if you’re not 100% sure you’ve correctly identified it.

If you’re not 100% sure that what you’re picking is safe for human consumption, don’t pick it. If you’re prone to food allergies, or pregnant, always seek medical advice before consuming anything foraged in the wild.