If you have been waiting on the larger ramps, you may order them now. They are growing quickly. This current size is shown below. The next shipments will be going out on 4-13.
The order page is located here. Wild Ramp Order Form.
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The picture you see below is the current size of the ramp plants. This size (average) is what we will be shipping out during the week of 4-6-15. Most local folk prefer them this size, but a lot of culinary folks prefer the larger leafier ramps. If you want big leafy ramps, check back next weekend for a new photo and you can see if they are large enough for you. If you want the smaller ones (as shown below) please order now and your ramps will be shipped out the week of 4-6. If you want larger ones, please wait another week or two before you place your order.
Click here to be redirected to the ramp order page.
The cold snap this week slowed the growth of the ramps down a little bit, so we have another week of bulbs. If you haven’t ordered yet, you still have time. You would primarily use these ramp bulbs for planting. I hope it warms up a bit this week so they can finally get some green tops on them!
The order form is located here; Ramp Bulbs Order Form
ramp bulbs for planting
By now I hope several of you that have bought bulbs have had time to get them in the ground. The second round of orders should be arriving to everyone tomorrow or Wednesday. (Make sure you water them heavily after planting!)
The next orders of ramp bulbs will be shipping out on Monday 3-23-2015 and Tuesday 3-24-2015. If you want to plant some bulbs, please get your orders in before then. Some of the bulbs have started poking their heads above the ground, so I expect that in two weeks you will be ordering what you have been waiting on for so long….
This is an older picture, but we will be there in a couple of weeks. I know I can’t wait to get some of these in my belly along with some fried potatoes and bacon. Delicious!
Soon….very soon!
For now though, they’re still just bulbs. If you are interested in the bulbs, the order page with qty and pricing information is located here: Ramp Bulbs for sale.
You asked for it, you got it.
Ramp bulbs are now for sale.
This is the current size of the bulbs. The perfect size for transplanting into your own bed or starting your own patch. The won’t stay this way for long, so please head on over to the ramp bulb order form page and get them while you can!
Greetings and Happy New Year once again to all of my fellow ramps connoisseurs.
I hope that the past year was good to you and I hope that 2015 is an even better year for you.
I have a question I would like to ask you today.
(PSSST… We’ve got a facebook page now. Give us a like. See it over there on the right? ———>)
Would you be interested in purchasing ramp bulbs before the official ramp season is underway? Ramp bulbs are easy to plant and a great way to get a head start on growing your own bumper crop, or just growing some so you will be able to pluck them fresh out of the ground, flower pot, or unique raised bed ramp garden that you create. (I’ve seen some really nice raised bed gardens that are just begging to have a few dozen ramps planted in them.)
Of course the ramp bulbs would be shipped complete with roots for transplanting, and would look very similar to this:
The bulbs are small because they shrink during the winter months, but quickly swell again as the sunlight warms the ground and the green leaves make their way to the sky.
So before I go out into the cold and begin harvesting bulbs, I would like to know if there is any interest in them. If you think you would like some, please leave me a comment in the space provided below. This in no way commits you to buying them if I sell them, but it gives me an idea as to whether or not it would be a worthwhile endeavor on my part.
How should I plant and grow these ramp bulbs?
For best growing results mimic how and where the ramps grow in the wild. In the wild Ramps grow in shaded areas (usually under trees) with an abundance of moisture and soil rich in organic matter. Look carefully around your gardening area for a tree that will provide a moist soil with lots of shade. Organic matter such as leaves should be abundantly added. Ramps grow naturally under a forest canopy of beech, birch, sugar maple, and/or poplar. Other forest trees under which ramps will grow include buckeye, linden (basswood), hickory, and oak. A forested area with any of these trees present provides an ideal location for planting a ramp crop. Areas that host trillium, tooth wort, nettle, black cohos, ginseng, bloodroot, trout lily, bell wort, and may apple should be suitable for growing ramps. If there is not a wooded area available to grow ramps, a shade structure can be erected over the planting site.
Hardwood leaves provide the best mulch for ramps. Poor results have been obtained with pine bark and commercial mulches and they should be avoided. The effects of mulching are numerous: decaying organic matter provides essential elements like nitrogen, much needed moisture is retained within the mulched area, and the mulch acts as an insulator to protect the plants in sub-zero temperatures. In addition, mulching helps to suppress weeds as well as protect newly sown seeds, seedlings, and ramp bulbs from wildlife.
I would rather plant my ramp bulbs in the woods.
That’s a great idea also! To plant under a forested canopy, rake back the leaves on the forest floor, removing any unwanted weeds, tree sprouts, or roots. If the soil is not naturally high in organic matter, incorporate organic materials such as composted leaves and other decaying plant material from the forest. Loosen the soil and rake to prepare a fine bed. Sow bulbs about 1/2 to 1 inch a part pressing them gently into the soil. Cover bulbs with several inches of leaves to retain moisture in the soil and to protect the bulbs from the wildlife. When using artificial shade, ensure that you till plenty of organic matter into the soil prior to sowing your bulbs.
This has been a wonderful new product for us and we are nearly out. We only have a few bottles of ramp seasoning left, so if you want some you had better act fast. A super huge thank you to all that have ordered the ramp seasoning. I do have one favor to ask of you…if you bought some and you like it, please facebook it or twitter it for me? I would love to be able to clear out the rest of my inventory for fall.
Thank you guys so much.
UPDATE: SOLD OUT!!
A little goes a long way!
Poke Salad, Poke Greens, Poke Salat, Poke Weed
Since there is not much going on around here while wild ramps are out of season (seeds should be available soon!), so I thought I would make a quick post about another favorite food of us mountain folk.
Pokeweeds, also known as poke, pokebush, pokeberry, pokeroot, polk salad, polk salat, and inkberry is another spring tradition around these parts.
As this plant can be toxic if not prepared correctly, precautions must be taken to ensure it is fit for consumption.
Young pokeweed leaves can be boiled three times to reduce the toxin, discarding the water after each boiling. The result is known as poke salit, or Poke salad, and is occasionally available commercially.
Many authorities advise against eating pokeweed even after thrice boiling, as traces of the toxin may still remain.
For many decades, Poke salad has been a spring favorite West Virginia cuisine, despite campaigns by doctors who believed pokeweed remained toxic even after being boiled.
My Granny and I have been eating this stuff for years, and I bet her Granny used to eat it also. It tastes a lot like spinach. I like taking a heaping spoonful, putting it in a bowl, giving it a good dose of salt and pepper, and then smothering it with vinegar. Tasty!
Here is a snippet of an article I found online with some useful information:
Pokeweed is a perennial herb that is native to North America, South America, East Asia, and New Zealand. It was introduced to European settlers by Native American Indians. Now you can find pokeweed cultivated in Europe and throughout the world.
This plant grows from 1 ft.-10 ft. tall. All parts of the plant are poisonous to cattle, horses, swine, and humans if eaten raw; the roots being the most poisonous. Swine are able to pull up the roots (even though they grow deep) and eat that part of the plant but it usually kills them. The pokeweed plant contains several toxins as well as histamines.
Birds eat the berries and because the berries are swallowed whole the birds aren’t harmed. Then when the birds do what comes naturally to them, new plants will spring up in the meadows and fields.
There are many uses for the pokeweed plant such as the juice from the berries are used in crimson dyes and in the earlier days of America, ink was made from the berry juice. People who work with natural fibers now will use pokeweed berry juice to dye the fabrics they create. The food industry still uses the pokeweed berries to make red food coloring.
The berries and dried roots are used in herbal remedies even today. Research shows that pokeweed contains compounds that seem to enhance the immune system. Young pokeweed shoots contain low levels of toxins and were used by Native Americans and European settlers as food.
Research has shown that the pokeweed has anti-cancer properties in animal studies. More research needs to done on humans to see if the same results will prove to be a positive step in cancer treatment. Pokeweed has an antiviral protein (PAP) that is believed when used in certain formulas may be useful against cancer cells that depend upon hormones for their growth; such as the cells from breast, ovarian, and prostate cancer.
There are many claims that supplements made from the pokeweed and taken internally will help treat rheumatoid arthritis, joint inflammation, breast abscesses, and a host of other conditions.
If you have never picked poke salad, take someone who is familiar with the plant. They will also tell you how to pick and prepare it.
Most people will wash the leaves, put in boiling water for 5 min., then pour off the water, and repeat this 2 or 3 times. After the last boiling they will squeeze excess water from the leaves. Pour a little oil in the skillet, put the poke salad in the hot oil, then add eggs as many as you like, salt, and pepper to taste.
If you’ve never eaten poke salad, always taste cautiously to make sure there is no allergy. Probably less than 1% of the world would be allergic to pokeweed and it would only be important if you were in that group.
