Black Mustard (Brassica nigra)
Anyone heading north on the 101 through Gaviota after winter rains should be familiar with the bright yellow hillsides bordering the highway. Beautiful as it may be, it's easy to see that this plant can easily dominate large patches of land.Black mustard (named for its black seeds, not the bright yellow flowers, of course) quickly establishes itself in disturbed areas (such as post-fire or bulldozing). Once established, these thick stands of plants growing up to six feet tall easily crowd out any other plant life.
Large monocultures of black mustard are common throughout the San Marcos Foothills Preserve, crowding out native grasslands that so many of our native animals rely on,
Black mustard (named for its black seeds, not the bright yellow flowers, of course) quickly establishes itself in disturbed areas (such as post-fire or bulldozing). Once established, these thick stands of plants growing up to six feet tall easily crowd out any other plant life.
Fields of dead mustard provide a good source of fuel for wildfires (and are frankly an eyesore after their short lived flowering phase).
As an annual plant, black mustard quickly dries out and drops its seeds at the end of the rainy season. These huge stands of dead plant material present a much greater fuel load for wildfires as opposed to our native grasslands.
It is difficult to eradicate black mustard. Even after removing black mustard, it can easily grow back from seed deposits in the soil. However, once native plants are reestablished in an area, our plants can choke out black mustard and prevent it from growing. Channel Islands Restoration is working to eradicate black mustard in critical habitat areas by systematically removing black mustard stands and quickly planting natives in its place.
Fun fact: the flowers are edible and actually taste like spicy mustard. Maybe add them as a nice garnish to a salad?
