Do you have a fantasy of wandering through a woodland glade, with a perfume in the air? One that is faintly floral but mostly onion? Then you’d have enjoyed the wild garlic that I found blooming in the woods south of Bristol. The wild garlic in Bristol is at its best in May when you’ll find it on many a woodland walk around the city.
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Chew Valley Lake near Bristol
I was out for a short ramble and ended up near Chew Valley lake, south of Bristol. We parked the car in the small village of Compton Martin.
The lane walked up seemed vaguely familiar from a previous outing. As we walked into the woodland, we came across swathes of wild garlic in full bloom. The clouds of white got more intense as we walked further into the wood.
Apparently the wild garlic or Allium Ursinum is a bit of a thug in the undergrowth. The plant tends to take over woods where the native English bluebell might otherwise grow.
Food foragers delight
It’s a beloved of food foragers who pick the leaves for soups and salads. Try it in a similar way that you might use chives or spring onions.
As we walked I tasted a few of the flowers which tasted like chives but with a slightly sweet edge. When we got home I made a salad, scattering a few over the top for an added onion bite.
The flowers look very pretty too, although the onion smell is not quite what you expect in your living room. If you’d like a recipe for soup using the wild garlic there are many foodie sites that tell you how to use it.
If you’re searching for wild garlic in Bristol, you can find our woodland glade in full flower in the second half of May. Walk up the Coombe, opposite the Ring o’Bells pub in Compton Martin, just south of Chew Valley and Blagdon Lake.
At the top of the lane a path leads you into the woodland. I suspect that at any other time of year it would be just like any other leafy glade.
Read about more walks around Bristol
A bluebell wood in Bristol at Abbots Leigh
A walk in a bluebell wood – Prior’s Wood in Bristol
If you’d like to try a few more walks around Bristol, I can recommend
Looking for more walks around Bristol? We recommend Beyond Bristol: 24 Country Walks
Other fun things to do in Bristol
25 things to do in Bristol with your friends
20 free things to do in Bristol
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This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com
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Nicole @ ExpertExplorers.com
Friday 27th of August 2021
Oh my gosh, I was so surprised to stumble upon your post in Pinterest. When we lived in Bristol I used to go photograph the Bluebells every year at Prior's Wood, near Portbury. There was always so much wild garlic. I loved it! We used to make garlic butter with it, use it to top homemade pizza, and put it in our salads. Definitely such a fun find.
Bluebell wood in Bristol - Prior's wood near Porbury - video | Heather on her travels
Thursday 17th of May 2012
[...] canopy was heavier here. After a while the paths opened up showing a vista of a meadow with some onion scented wild garlic (the thugs of the wood) and then we joined an open path with a view towards the motorway and walked [...]
Everyday lovely - Flowers in the traffic in Bristol : Heather on her travels
Tuesday 2nd of June 2009
[...] Everyday Lovelies Wild Garlic in the woods near Bristol A carved owl down my street in Bristol A rainbow of spring flowers in [...]
Monna
Sunday 31st of May 2009
I actually imagined fairies hovering just above the wild garlic. These photos are magical, Heather. Thanks for sharing them with us via Everyday Lovely. It is amazing to me just how many things we take for granted and how, when we stop to see them from someone else's eyes, they seem quite wonderful. Bristol must be a lovely place to live!
jen laceda
Wednesday 27th of May 2009
Hmmm, how interesting! Flowers / flowering herbs are making a comeback in restaurants, I heard! :)