Wild garlic
Extra care neededWild garlic leaves are flat, parallel-veined, and smell of garlic.
Toxic · do not eat
Lords-and-ladies.
Arum maculatum
Also found as Cuckoopint · Wild arum
A woodland arum with glossy arrow-shaped leaves and a spike of orange-red berries, often growing among wild garlic.
Sources checked 27 September 2026 · Specialist field review pending
Toxic. Keep out of food and tea.
Poison help Contains calcium oxalate crystals that burn the mouth and throat. Leaves grow among wild garlic and have been gathered by mistake.
Where it grows
Tracked records and known growing zone
- Verified records
- 25,823
- People who recorded it
- 10,071
- Most records (northern hemisphere)
- Mar–May
- Records span
- 1966–2026
| January | 512 |
|---|---|
| February | 2239 |
| March | 4977 |
| April | 9111 |
| May | 3188 |
| June | 711 |
| July | 2135 |
| August | 2349 |
| September | 467 |
| October | 70 |
| November | 6 |
| December | 58 |
Research-grade iNaturalist records, snapshot Aug 27, 2026. The growing zone combines areas where different people have repeatedly verified it. Records show where people looked and found it, not current abundance or permission to gather.
01 / Learn to see
Field marks
- 01
Glossy, arrow-shaped leaves with net veins, sometimes spotted dark.
- 02
A pale hooded spathe around a purple-brown spike in spring.
- 03
A spike of orange-red berries in late summer.
These are study prompts, not a complete identification key. Confirm the full plant with a regional flora and an experienced local identifier.
02 / Resolve the differences
Look closely. Compare.
Common sorrel
Culinary referenceSorrel is also arrow-shaped but thin and sour, not glossy and net-veined.
Selected comparisons only. Other lookalikes may occur locally.
03 / Meet the place
Habitat & season
Range context
Native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia.
Watch the plant stage
Hazard exists at every growth stage.
Stage guidance is not a local forecast. Check your climate, elevation and a regional source; no month-shift formula is used here.
04 / Gather with care
Observe. Leave intact.
Do not eat, brew, taste or collect for the pantry.
Care for the patch
Leave berries for birds, but keep children away.
Preparation & storage essentials05 / Follow the evidence
Sources & review
- Wikipedia · Arum maculatumBotanical description, range and documented use
- iNaturalist · Arum maculatumTaxonomy and verified observation records
Checked 27 September 2026. Original editorial synthesis; source institutions have not reviewed or endorsed this guide. Independent botanical field review is pending. Photos illustrate specimens; they do not certify the identity of a plant you find.
Suggest a correction