These Wild Mustard plants are amazing! I really enjoying seeing their strong green leaves in the spring and fall. They are among some of the first plants to bloom here in the early spring. As wild plants they are very resilient to pests! We enjoy the greens in many dishes including Saag (indian creamed spinach), stir fries, chilis and stews. These plants provide an abundance of seeds which can be easily collected, cleaned and used to season your food and also medicinally.

Wild Mustard – Brassica kaber

Life cycle: Annual / Ease of propagation: Easy / Hardiness zone: 5-9

I have a great affinity for mustard plants after having spent time with the feral population of wild Mustard here in Southern Oregon. These plants are quite hardy and in this climate they continue growing right through the winter under the snow and through the frosts. The Mustards that had self sown in the previous summer/fall slowly grow their large leaves and then begin blooming in the spring providing abundant firework displays of brilliant yellows, right along side the dandelion blooms, when not much else is blooming. Among the first flowers of the season, they are greatly appreciated by the pollinators.

Brassica kaber is similar to Brassica rapa, but Brassica kaber’s leaf growth patter is more dense and the leaves have petioles, or leaf stems, where Brassica rapa’s do not. This population of Mustard is quite resilient, as most weeds are, and I have not witnessed any signs of aphid predation or disease. The wild Mustard is suitable to all soil types and these particular seeds were collected from plants thriving in heavy clay soil.

What attracted me to this wild Mustard was their abundant source of dark mustard seeds. Surprising to me the seeds are both sizeable and quite peppery! I appreciate the condiment in my cooking. It was not too difficult to collect a sizeable amount of seeds once the plants had gone to seed and dried. I watched for the first signs of seed pods cracking open and harvested all the dried or nearly dried branches into a bin to cure. Following that the pods were crushed and chaff was screened and then winnowed off of the seeds producing a beautiful range of rust to dark brown/black mustard seeds.

As far as the leaves go, they are sturdy, healthy and dark green and are sure to provide ample minerals and nutrients into your diet. I enjoy the leaves cooked in stews and sauteed greens.

Mustard seeds and leaves, when applied externally produce heat that can help reduce inflammation, especially with regards to the lungs, as in pneumonia and bronchitis. Bruised mustard seeds can be added to a foot bath to help fight off colds or headaches.

There are many more medicinal uses of Mustard seed and leaves, too many to list here.

“The Mohicans bound the bruised leaves of the black mustard in place to relieve both toothaches and headaches. Other tribes found that grinding the dark hot seeds of the same species into powder, then sniffing this into the nostrils, helped dry up head colds. Mustard seeds were also ground by our early ancestors in this New World and made into a paste by mixing them with something such as bear lard, hog fat, mutton tallow, beef lard, or a similar domestic shortening. This was applied and bound where its heat could do the most good for such ailments as lumbago rheumatism and bad strains.”

– Bradford Angier, Field Guide to Medicinal Wild Plants

“It relieves congestion of various organs by drawing the blood to the surface, as in head affections, and is of service in the alleviation of neuralgia and other pains and spasms.”

– Maud Grieve, A Modern Herbal

Sowing Instructions

Direct sow seeds ¼- ½ inch deep in late winter / early spring (or late summer for fall crop) and keep soil moist until germination occurs.

References

• The Wild Wisdom of Weeds, Katrina Blair
• A Modern Herbal, Maud Grieve
• https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Sinapis+arvensis

You may already have some variety of wild mustard growing near you or in your garden already! If you don't, you might consider purchasing wild mustard seed from our shop:

Wild Mustard Seeds are available for STEEM, SBD and USD

View our entire Seeds of Abundance seed catalog at Homesteaders Co-op

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