# My Story about Ramps



## larry_stewart (Apr 13, 2015)

So, over the years I've heard so much about ramps.  Whether it was through this forum, cooking shows, food network...   I was almost a little embarrassed, since Im a vegetarian, and I had never even heard of them or seen them, let alone tried them.

Any time I went to the grocery stores, nothing.  local farmers markets, nothing. So being an avid gardener, I figured I'd find some seeds somewhere and try to grow them myself.   I did my research just to find out that they are typically found in the wild and are very very difficult to grow from seed.  

Luckily, I scored myself some seeds, cause I figured I'd give it a try.  I then saw the sowing instructions, and I was discouraged.

Sowing Instructions
Although ramp seeds can be sown anytime the soil is not frozen, late summer to early fall is usually considered the best time for seeding ramps. Fresh ramp seeds have a dormant, under-developed embryo. The seed requires a warm, moist period to break root dormancy and a subsequent cold period to break shoot dormancy. Some years there is enough warm weather after sowing in late summer or early fall to break root dormancy. The following winter cold breaks shoot dormancy and the plants emerge in spring. If there is not an adequate warm period after sowing, the seed will not germinate until the second spring. Thus, ramp seeds can take 6 to 18 months to germinate. Being able to provide adequate soil moisture and protection from wildlife are other key factors in determining where and when to sow seeds. Production from sowing seeds to root harvest can take 5 to 7 years. ( These were instructions I found online, but the ones included with my seeds instructed me to put them in the refrigerator for a few months , then take them out.  Soak warm them, soak them, spread them under the leaves in a shady are with specific trees ....)

Anyway, my patience to try ramps was wearing thin,so I looked further on the internet, and saw I can order a bunch of ramps that would be overnighted to me .  I was excited, I was finally going to get to try something that I had only heard about before.  I ordered them.  They arrived as promised.  When I opened the box, I saw the nicest, freshest ramps.  I was shocked they were in such good condition.  There were so many, I knew I wouldn't be able to eat them all before they spoiled, so I got this brilliant idea.  let me plant all the extras outside , in a shade area under the trees, in the leaves blah blah blah.  I figured what do I have to lose.

I went outside and did just that.  They looked good the first few days, then one after another they shriveled up and died.  needless to say I was disappointed, but at least I had the opportunity to try them.  They were good ( not great), but I only tried a few things  ( I don't remember exactly what I did cause it was last year).  I would love to have them more readily available so I can do more culinary experimenting with them.

So, for all you who stuck with through to read al the above crap, wondering what the point of my story was,  now that the snow finally melted, the landscapers did a spring clean up and blew way all the leaves from my property, I did my early spring stroll through my yard to get and idea of whats going on.  I see a bunch of small plants sprouting through the dirt.  I couldn't figure out what they were, since they were only up about an inch or so.  I didn't think much about it.  A few days later ( yesterday)  I did a second stroll and the plants were twice as big, and I was still curious as to what they were, then it hit me,  could it be ???   So I plucked off a leaf, smelled it, was kind of oniony.  Took a taste, and sure enough, it was a ramp.  All the ramps I planted survived ( and then some).  I would say there are over 5 dozen healthy young plants.  I was ( and still am) so excited.

Sorry I bored anyone who made it to this point   but I had to tell someone.

Larry


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## medtran49 (Apr 13, 2015)

Cool and Congrats on your sprouts!  I've always wanted to try ramps too but have never seen them in S Florida.  Guess I'll have to go the order route but I don't think I'll be as lucky as you to get them to grow down here.


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## Aunt Bea (Apr 13, 2015)

After all that I hope you enjoy them! 

We can get them at the local farmers market for a couple of weeks each spring.  To me they are kind of a cross between garlic and a scallion.  The only way I have ever eaten them is sauteed in olive oil with a couple of beaten eggs scrambled into them.  I'm curious to hear how you decide to fix them.


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## Addie (Apr 13, 2015)

Larry, you have  just turned into a successful farmer. Enjoy those ramps. I just hope they don't take over your whole property. Will they multiply on their own? Or are they a one season crop only?


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## medtran49 (Apr 13, 2015)

Addie said:


> Larry, you have just turned into a successful farmer. Enjoy those ramps. I just hope they don't take over your whole property. Will they multiply on their own? Or are they a one season crop only?


 
Since they are mostly found wild, I'd have to say they'll grow on their own just fine.


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## tinlizzie (Apr 13, 2015)

Your story wasn't boring at all, Larry.  I've no experience with ramps, but my late husband, who grew up in Western North Carolina, once told me that some of the children in his school were made fun of because of their oniony breath.  It came from eating ramps growing wild in the countryside.  He said sometimes that was the main thing those children had for food.


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## larry_stewart (Apr 13, 2015)

medtran49 said:


> Since they are mostly found wild, I'd have to say they'll grow on their own just fine.



Yeah, and if they were able to survive the winter we just had ( colder snowier and longer than usual), then I'm guessing they are here for good.  Im not exactly sure how they reproduce, if its a bulb thing or flower thing.  I haven't looked it up yet, but there are definitely more now than I planted last year.


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## Janet H (Apr 13, 2015)

I Love ramps.  I lived in western NC for many years and the appearance of ramps every year was a greatly anticipated.  They grew wild in some locations and we would dig them or buy someone else's diggings at a road side stand. Having had cultivated ramps in recent years however has been disappointing.  They are much milder, tame.. even.  Still totally delicious though.

We sauteed they with potatoes and served them up for breakfast most often.  Ramps and wild mushrooms on a steak wasn't bad either although they appeared in different seasons so usually the mushrooms were store bought.

Wild ramps could be potent and seemed to seep out of your pores for a couple of days after eating 

Your experience gardening is inspiring and I was unaware they could be reasonably cultivated.  Where did you get the seeds?


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## Kayelle (Apr 13, 2015)

Very interesting read Larry! For some reason I was thinking fiddleheads when you said ramps, both I've never tasted. So Mr.Google told me ramps are wild leeks, and these are the images I found. ;-)
ramps Pictures


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## larry_stewart (Apr 13, 2015)

I love fiddleheads too.  Not that they have that unique of a taste, but definitely a conversation piece when cooking / eating them.  I come across them every now and then in higher end grocery stores or farmers markets.


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## Mad Cook (Apr 13, 2015)

larry_stewart said:


> So, over the years I've heard so much about ramps. Whether it was through this forum, cooking shows, food network... I was almost a little embarrassed, since Im a vegetarian, and I had never even heard of them or seen them, let alone tried them.
> 
> Any time I went to the grocery stores, nothing. local farmers markets, nothing. So being an avid gardener, I figured I'd find some seeds somewhere and try to grow them myself. I did my research just to find out that they are typically found in the wild and are very very difficult to grow from seed.
> 
> ...


Not boring at all. I had to look ramps up and discovered that they are what we call ramsons or wild garlic. I used to walk my dog in a wooded area near to my home and in the season the air was filled with the garlicky aroma.


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## taxlady (Apr 13, 2015)

I enjoyed that story. I hope you enjoy your new perennial crop.


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## medtran49 (Apr 13, 2015)

Not ramps but Craig picked up some beautiful spring onions with nice firm plump bulbs so guess we'll be doing something with those in next couple of days.  He also got some Dominican eggplant.


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## Aunt Bea (Apr 13, 2015)

Last year Rock posted about pickled ramps.  

I did a Google search and saw several recipes.  

It might be a good way to use an abundance of the little stinkers!


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## Addie (Apr 13, 2015)

Larry, that was a great story. It held my interest right until the very end.


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## Cooking Goddess (Apr 14, 2015)

Nice job, Farmer Larry! It sounds like you got a couple good suggestions on how to use them. Janet's potato and onions sounds especially good to me. However you fix them, enjoy. Right now, thanks to trendy chefs featuring ordinary foods, those ramps are probably going for $7 a pound at a boutique grocer.

I've never eaten them, but could I tell a story about smelling them?  On my drive to and from work as a newlywed, one route I could take was a parkway connecting two Cleveland Metroparks. Every spring, after the snows melted and the ground would begin to warm, I could smell what I thought was wild spring onions. My Mom had a small plot of them in the garden, so I knew the smell was probably coming from something that looked like a small cluster of chives. When Himself and I drove through the area, we stopped to look for those onions. Nothing but a meadow full of taller sprouts that resembled Lily of the Valley greenery. Imagine my surprise ages later when I heard about the trendy "new" spring vegetable and saw a picture of...Lily of the Valley? Nope, ramps.


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## CWS4322 (Apr 14, 2015)

larry_stewart said:


> I love fiddleheads too. Not that they have that unique of a taste, but definitely a conversation piece when cooking / eating them. I come across them every now and then in higher end grocery stores or farmers markets.


 An easy way to clean the "paper" off fiddleheads is to rub them in a dish towel. The other thing, is that although you will see recipes to sauté them, they should be boiled (10-12 minutes) first and then sautéed (or steam them for about 20 minutes first). We have fiddleheads at the farm. I just like them sautéed, but I did see a recipe Thai recipe using fiddleheads that I'm thinking of trying this year (http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Fern-Curry-with-Shrimp). Re: ramps--waiting for them to come up. Ramps are also called wild leeks. I like to pickle the bulbs  and make a roasted pesto out of the greens (roast the greens and then make them into pesto). I am hoping that the morel mushrooms come back...last year, it was May 25-26.


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## Cooking Goddess (Apr 15, 2015)

*Larry*, I noticed a book when I was at the library today that might interest you. IF you can find it at the library, that is, unless you intend to do more canning. They had two interesting recipes using the bulb and the leaves from ramps. The first was "Pickled Ramp Bulbs" and the second was "Ramp Greens Kimchi".

If you're interested, the book is "preserving by the pint" and the author is Marisa McClellan.


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 15, 2015)

I had to google too and after a pictures of wheelchairs going into buildings , I found wild leeks.....


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## Addie (Apr 15, 2015)

Kayelle said:


> Very interesting read Larry! For some reason I was thinking fiddleheads when you said ramps, both I've never tasted. So Mr.Google told me ramps are wild leeks, and these are the images I found. ;-)
> ramps Pictures



I love fiddleheads. But their season is so short. You have to be right up there and mark your calendar when you get it in December of when you start to see them in the grocery store.


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## CWS4322 (Apr 15, 2015)

I'm checking for fiddleheads now (well, starting Sunday). We have them in the bush at the farm. They are in the stores...we also can get them frozen, New Brunswick is well-known for fiddleheads.


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## Aunt Bea (Apr 15, 2015)

This spring pizza sounds pretty tasty!

Seasonal Ontario Food: Pizza with Asparagus, Fiddleheads, Mushrooms & Ramps


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## taxlady (Apr 15, 2015)

Aunt Bea said:


> This spring pizza sounds pretty tasty!
> 
> Seasonal Ontario Food: Pizza with Asparagus, Fiddleheads, Mushrooms & Ramps


That does sound good.


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## Aunt Bea (Apr 15, 2015)

taxlady said:


> That does sound good.



I think it could be a fun way to forage throughout the year.  Limit the prepared items to the dough, sauce and cheese then see what small quantities of things you can forage for toppings and maybe a salad.  If you don't find any goodies to top your pizza with you can still have a plain cheese pizza when you return home from your expedition.


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## CWS4322 (Apr 15, 2015)

Aunt Bea said:


> This spring pizza sounds pretty tasty!
> 
> Seasonal Ontario Food: Pizza with Asparagus, Fiddleheads, Mushrooms & Ramps


If I could time having asparagus, fiddleheads, morels, and ramps at the same time, topped with homemade sheep's milk moz., that pizza would be $1000 pizza!


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## larry_stewart (Apr 15, 2015)

Thats not only a pizza , but a conversation piece.  Id love to be able to find all those ingredients at the same time to try it.  For me ( now) getting the fiddle heads would be the challenge.


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## medtran49 (Apr 16, 2015)

If anybody wants to shell out the "dough" (haha) to make this pizza, look here

Oregon Mushrooms LLC

PF and I both have bought there, as mentioned in another thread, and they are a good, reliable vendor.


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## larry_stewart (Apr 16, 2015)

medtran49 said:


> If anybody wants to shell out the "dough" (haha) to make this pizza, look here
> 
> Oregon Mushrooms LLC
> 
> PF and I both have bought there, as mentioned in another thread, and they are a good, reliable vendor.



Ill definitely try it.  
Ill just have to wait till I get back from Mississippi.
I don't want to order the stuff and have it sitting outside my front door rotting while Im away


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 16, 2015)

medtran49 said:


> If anybody wants to shell out the "dough" (haha) to make this pizza, look here
> 
> Oregon Mushrooms LLC
> 
> PF and I both have bought there, as mentioned in another thread, and they are a good, reliable vendor.



Except their ramps are trimmed of greenery and frozen, they have all the ingredients.  I have never had a problem with purchases from Oregon Mushrooms, wonderful online experience.


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## Andy M. (Apr 16, 2015)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Except their ramps are trimmed of greenery and frozen, they have all the ingredients.  I have never had a problem with purchases from Oregon Mushrooms, wonderful online experience.



I've bought dried porcini from the and they are great.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 16, 2015)

I just came across this list of ramp recipes. Larry, I don't remember whether you do eggs or dairy, but I'm sure you can adjust these if you don't: http://www.seriouseats.com/2015/04/ramp-scallion-spring-recipes.html


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## larry_stewart (Apr 16, 2015)

GotGarlic said:


> I just came across this list of ramp recipes. Larry, I don't remember whether you do eggs or dairy, but I'm sure you can adjust these if you don't: 15 Recipes to Celebrate Ramps | Serious Eats



I do eat eggs and dairy, so should be no problem at all thanks for the link


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## CWS4322 (Apr 16, 2015)

Just a note re: wild asparagus--genetically, wild asparagus and cultivated are the same--if you don't have access to "wild" asparagus, I wouldn't spend the money on ordering it, I'd go with cultivated or getting it at a local "pick your own" farm. Often strawberry pick-your-own also have asparagus. 


I prefer wild--but that is because there is an emotional attachment to the memories of stalking the wild asparagus with my dad, mom, brothers, and extended family. And the season coincided with the opening of walleye season in the spring.


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## Mad Cook (Apr 16, 2015)

CWS4322 said:


> Just a note re: wild asparagus--genetically, wild asparagus and cultivated are the same--if you don't have access to "wild" asparagus, I wouldn't spend the money on ordering it, I'd go with cultivated or getting it at a local "pick your own" farm. Often strawberry pick-your-own also have asparagus.
> 
> 
> I prefer wild--but that is because there is an emotional attachment to the memories of stalking the wild asparagus with my dad, mom, brothers, and extended family. And the season coincided with the opening of walleye season in the spring.


I love asparagus but the season here is very short so I'm extravagant and eat as much of it as I can. The stuff that flies in from Peru for the rest of the year just doesn't hold a candle to the home grown stuff. Like some wine, I don't think asparagus travels well.

I tried growing some once. Gave up after 3 years when I was still only getting the fern. My last-but-one cat is buried where the asparagus bed was. 

My secret vice is asparagus steamed over a pot of spaghetti, then cut into small lengths and tossed with lots of butter and a little garlic into the drained pasta.


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## larry_stewart (Apr 16, 2015)

CWS4322 said:


> Just a note re: wild asparagus--genetically, wild asparagus and cultivated are the same--if you don't have access to "wild" asparagus, I wouldn't spend the money on ordering it, I'd go with cultivated or getting it at a local "pick your own" farm. Often strawberry pick-your-own also have asparagus.



Ive got some asparagus in the garden. Just poking their heads up ( saw the first one today).  Hopefully they will still be coming up after I get back from Mississippi.  Last year I had to move them.  Not realizing how deep their roots go, so Im not sure what Im gonna get this year.

But, out east there is an " Asparagus tractor".  They park the tractor ( bright green)  on the side of the road, with bunches of asparagus for sale.  They use the honor system.  There is a cash box out there.  Take a bunch of asparagus and leave your money in the box.  Kinda cool that something like that still exists where I am.


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