Black Mustard

Black Mustard

Brassica nigra

There are three species of mustard that are used to make mustard, the condiment.  Mild white mustard is made from Sinapis hirta, yellow mustard is Brassica junca, and hot black mustard is made from this plant, Brassica nigra.  If you memorize this, then you will know more about mustard that 99.9% of the world and can really impress people at parties. :-)

I've never had black mustard, it's more of a middle eastern mustard, but I might try it.  There is plenty of this stuff growing around.  It's not native to Indiana but seems to do quite well in disturbed areas. It's a large plant that is quite noticeable along some roadsides.



 It can grow in large colonies



The seed pods are less than an inch long and grow close to the stem

The lower leaves are larger than the upper leaves