The 13th Annual Garlic Mustard Weed Out Day is a time for Ann Arbor citizens of all ages to get back to nature and come together for a day of fun and camaraderie! The stewardship workdays are scheduled for May 7, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., with a barbeque potluck to follow.

For 2011, Natural Area Preservation (NAP) has chosen 10 Ann Arbor nature areas and parks that are in need of removal of the invasive plant garlic mustard.

Many Ann Arbor citizens welcome the spring by planting flowers and vegetable gardens in their backyards. With the beauty of a backyard garden also comes the frustration of controlling weeds, such as dandelion and garlic mustard, which seem to make an appearance every spring.

At NAP workdays, controlling garlic mustard in the woodlands and parks of Ann Arbor is not very different than weeding your own backyard garden! Volunteers are invited to spend the morning of May 7 hand-pulling garlic mustard in the woodlands of Ann Arbor. NAP staff will be on site to assist in plant identification and to provide tools, snacks, and water.

With the help of volunteers, NAP is able to continue its fight against this invasive plant that often crowds out the growth of native plants and beautiful spring wildflowers.

“Dedicating a whole day to the removal of garlic mustard is not only beneficial to the nature areas, but it also enables volunteers to leave our workdays with a greater ecological awareness and desire to continue getting their hands dirty for a good cause,” said Christine Chessler, the Workday Coordinator at NAP.

Volunteers can choose to help out at a park close to their home, or possibly a new nature area they have yet to explore! The 10 nature areas and parks that NAP will be removing garlic mustard from are: Bird Hills, Bluffs, Cedar Bend, Dolph, Hannah, Huron Hills Golf Course Woods, Huron Parkway, Leslie Woods, Marshall and Miller.

Since many sites have multiple entrances, NAP has assigned one specific volunteer meeting location to each workday site. Visit www.a2gov.org/NAP for meeting locations and other workday details.

To reward the volunteers for their day of service, NAP will host a barbeque and potluck, from 2-4 p.m. at the Leslie Science and Nature Center in the Project Grow gardens.

“Garlic mustard is actually quite edible, and we hope to provide a few dishes cooked with this invasive plant at the potluck,” said Chessler.

All ages are welcome and bringing a potluck item to share is encouraged. Those interested in attending the potluck can RSVP to nap@a2gov.org or call 734-794-6627.

Christine Chessler is Workday Coordinator for Natural Area Preservation, with the City of Ann Arbor. She can be reached at outreach@a2gov.org . Visit www.a2gov.org/NAP for more information about native plants, city natural areas, and volunteering in city parks.