Wild Garlic

Allium vineale

Wild Garlic is an aggressive perennial grassy weed that is also known as Field Garlic or by its scientific name, Allium vineale. Aromatically enough, the smell of this lawn weed can be confused with Wild Onion.

Identify

Bulbous

Wild Garlic can be identified as a perennial grassy weed that has slender, hollow cylindrical leaves occurring on the flowering stem up to half the height of the plant. White bulbs develop underground—they're flattened on one side and enclosed by a papery-like membrane. Wild Garlic also features greenish-white flowers that are small and growing on short stems. This lawn weed has a distinctive garlic odor when crushed and may be confused with Wild Onion.

Life Cycle

This lawn weed often grows in fields of small grains, pastures and lawns. Wild Garlic thrives throughout most parts of North America, with the exception of the Southwest and Rocky Mountain areas. These perennial grassy weeds can germinate and spread from seeds, but they also produce a root structure (tubers, bulbs or corms) that can birth new weeds from your lawn's surface (using stolons) or from underground (using rhizomes). Perennial grassy weeds live two or more years and have a deeper root structure that can give rise to new weeds—even if you no longer see the weeds in your lawn.

Control

Wild Garlic is an aggressive grassy weed that is unaffected by most cultural control methods, such as hand-pulling lawn weeds or proper watering and mowing. For effective weed removal, professionally selected and applied weed control treatments are your best bet for eradication.