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Acton open-space manager demonstrates turning invasive garlic mustard into pesto, urges safe harvesting
Summary
Ian Bergman, Acton’s open space and trails manager, harvested garlic mustard on town land and demonstrated an on-air recipe for garlic mustard pesto, while advising residents to avoid roadside harvesting, use iNaturalist for identification, and contact conservation@actonma.gov for tours or volunteer help.
Acton open-space and trails manager Ian Bergman demonstrated how residents can harvest and cook garlic mustard, an invasive spring plant that he said arrived with early European settlers, while urging safety and proper identification.
"It is a very difficult invasive species to manage, but one of the really fun things you can do is you can eat it," Bergman said on the local program Acton Focus, describing garlic mustard’s garlicky, bitter flavor and its rapid spread across conservation lands.
Bergman harvested specimens the morning of the program near Acton Town Hall — at 468 Main Street, Red House Pocket Park — and led host Vivian Copinger Burchell through making garlic mustard pesto. He outlined recipe measures used on-air: roughly 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup nuts (pine nuts or almonds), two cloves of garlic (optional), about 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, and juice from about half a lemon added after blending.
The demonstration doubled as a foraging and stewardship briefing. Bergman advised harvesters to avoid roadside and other polluted sites — "roads, driveways, rain ditches" — because vehicle oil, road salt and runoff can contaminate wild plants. He recommended town conservation lands and the Acton Arboretum as safer collection sites and suggested using the iNaturalist app to verify plant ID or foraging with an experienced picker.
On identification, Bergman said garlic mustard produces a basal rosette in its first year and a taller, flowering stalk in its second year; identifying features include toothed leaf edges and a characteristic root. He cautioned that pieces of root left in the soil can re-sprout, and that older plants can taste more bitter.
After blending, the hosts tasted the pesto on pasta and discussed seasoning adjustments: more oil or salt if the lemon is dominant, or a small amount of garlic if additional kick is desired. Bergman noted the plant contains vitamin C and can be eaten raw when properly cleaned or cooked if older plants are more fibrous.
For long-term control, Bergman said repeated removal is necessary: "it takes about two to three years to really remove the whole seed bank," and he recommended freezing harvested leaves for year-round use rather than letting seed pods set. He invited residents to contact conservation@actonma.gov to arrange tours or volunteer removal efforts and floated the idea of a community garlic mustard pesto contest.
The segment combined a cooking demonstration with practical guidance on identifying, harvesting and helping manage an invasive plant that is widespread on Acton’s conservation properties. For more information or to request a site tour, Bergman provided the town conservation address on air.
