Pass Up The Ramp Bulbs - 2020

Ramps, also known as Wild Leeks, the more the years pass, the fewer Ramps I want to harvest and that's not because I'm getting old. Its because of my deep concern over how they may soon be endangered. Don’t get me wrong, I love their flavor and general over all health giving benefits. And I believe we all have the right to wild harvest in our own fields and woods. However, I’m not sure any more if it’s about the over-harvesting their bulbs, as much as it’s about – the large number of humans harvesting their … bulbs. 
The latter I believe is the big deal. 



Over the last 15 to 20 years, my plant walks and talks have always tried to illuminate the need for us to be custodians of our plant world. And now, more than ever. Clearly, the writing is on the wall and in our face - climate changes, species extinction, COVID breaking and entering our existence.

And so when it comes to Ramp harvesting, I don’t believe they will withstand our constant consumption of them much longer, unless we change the way we harvest them.

No longer can we harvest them in the same way grandpa did, where their bulbs were freely harvested. We can no longer do this. And on this note, I’ve seen only one local business in our county begin to sell Ramps without bulbs. Yeah, go – Catskill Regional Harvest !!! Owned and operated by Nicole E. Day Gray. Thank you Nicole. https://www.facebook.com/nicoleeday


A little bit about Ramps:
Geographically speaking, Ramps have been a choice spring pot-herb not only because of its flavor but also for its nutritional and detoxing effects. The green leaves have 3 to 4 times more Selenium and flavanoids, both powerful anti-oxidants over the bulbs and are no less potent in flavor than its bulbs. 



One traditional use was to juice the leaves and use as ear-drops for earaches. This mirrors a similar use my mom did for us when I was a child for the same problem but instead, she’d crush a Garlic bulb, simmer for a ½ hour in a little Olive Oil and put one or two cooled drops in both my ears. This did help. And only about 10 years ago, a study reported in the Herbal Gram journal, a Mark Blumenthal publication on everything to do with herbal research revealed that a blend of herbs, one which included crushed Garlic and in addition, St. John’s Wort flowers, Calendula flowers and Mullein flowers was as and in some cases, more affective for childhood ear infections then was the typical anti-biotic used for the same. 



Another traditional Ramp use was as an emetic, which means, help’s one vomit. This is also true for Garlic. Really. I had read over the years about how Garlic was a good emetic but I never experienced it myself. Though through a story shared with me where a friend of a friend, who juiced Garlic and Ginger to take internally as a winter cold preventive remedy. The recipe called for ¼ teaspoon of this juice, to be taken 2 to 3 time’s a day. Well, this friend of a friend thought if a little is good for you, then a lot more is better. He soon found out that more is not better and so after taking … one tablespoon of this remedy proceeded to vomit his stomach contents. Not what he really wanted to happen but fortunate for him, not a serious lesson. 

This story brings me to an important point about wild foods. As a matter of fact, its about all wild foods in general. And it’s around the concept that “if it’s good for you, then more is better”. Wild foods and most especially spring wild foods are incredibly potent generators of dense nutrition. Nutrition that most folks are not used to consuming.

What happens if one eats too much at once? One may feel horribly nauseated, may vomit, have diarrhea, and feel dizzy. We think oh my goodness, we’ve poisoned ourselves. Not that we can’t be allergic to a wild food or choose the wrong plant (more on this next), but more likely we ate a wee bit too much on our first few meals. Less is more when it comes to wild spring greens and this is especially true all year long of wild foods if you’ve never eaten a wild food before. 



One last thing that is a big matter around wild harvesting and it is this: wild harvesting does come with some risks. We can avoid these risks by identifying Ramps or any other wild plant with 100% accuracy. There are sometimes poisonous look-a-likes and in this case, Ramps do have a poisonous look-a-like that grows right next to them and for a short time these poison look-a-likes look close to what a store bought Leek might look like if wild, in its early stages. And the name of the plant is False Hellebore, scientific name Veratrum viride. If mistaken and eaten, this is a highly poisonous plant cooked or raw. To the untrained eye, it looks like a store bought Leek but only for just a few days. One easiest way to determine if you are harvesting a wild Ramp is to simply smell it. If it smells like onions? Ya’ got a Ramp. If it doesn’t smell like onion smell? Put it back in the ground.



Here’s a story that demonstrates what can happen if one hap-hazzardly identifies a wild edible. This did happen to someone local who mis-identified the poisonous look-a-like False Hellebore, in its young stage thinking it was a Ramp. One, since he was inexperienced, he should have had an experienced person with him. Two, he should have brought an identification book with him and three, he should have at least confirmed his harvest with an experienced person. He did none of those. And then he even cooked and ate False Hellebore even though they didn’t smell or taste like onions and he said tasted awful. He was lucky. He only lost one kidney and he fortunately lived.

This tidbit about Ramps and False Hellebore is important. Its not small issue. They truly do not resemble each other if you’re not familiar with them. Take an experienced person with you to accurately I.D. Please.



Barring these practical precautions, Ramp popularity has grown over the years so much so that they can be purchased at markets, roadside farm-stands and restaurants from Quebec to the Appalachia’s. Bought over the Internet and shipped fresh to your door. There are even southern festivals dedicated solely for the Ramp season and Ramp eating.

All this demand brings such great concern for many around Ramps future viability. Especially when one considers the ratio of supply and demand at these current times. I personally believe that this wild edible can end up in short supply, and become endangered quite quickly if we’re not observant and careful.

Ramp Challenge – Under Harvest
You see, the variables are great in how people view Ramp stands. All is in the eye of the beholder. It’s relative. It’s personal. And it’s sensitive. Especially sensitive if there’s a cash crop and mouth’s to feed. We all have choices in this mish mash and as we keep a subtle eye on our wild fields of Ramps or other wild delicate medicinal and edibles. We can make a difference. All it takes is a keen observation and a new practice – ‘to-under-harvest’. Can we do that?

So I continue to ask year after year - please consider the Ramps, no matter how full your woodland hills look like - please consider harvesting without bulbs. Harvest just the leaves. HARVEST LEAVES WELL ABOVE SOIL LEVEL. And maybe even harvest as we see the animals graze – one leaf, instead of both leaves. I could be over compensating here, but I think not. (2017 – apparently, I’m not. See UpS To Be Endangered list. Ramps are on it now.)



Take The Ramp Challenge and Under Harvest
To everyone: those who harvest Wild Ramps, those of you who know someone who does the harvesting, to those who sell Ramps, Ramp Chef’s or who sell over the internet or at farm stands, please consider and ask others to consider the following suggestions I make here. The below may just allow Ramps for many future generations.

Suggestions are followed by statistics and supportive evidence (*).

Consider This …
1) Consider this: Invest in Ramps
Leave at least 95% of the plants for adequate self-propagation. For instance, for every group cluster of say 10 plants, remove only one or two single plants. Why? (*) It takes 2 to 3 years for a Leek seed to germinate and up to 6 years to fully mature before it produces seeds!

2) Consider this: Rotate harvesting stands.
Have at least 5 or more harvesting sites and visit only one of them each year. (*) It takes at least 2.5 years for a stand to fully recover from one single harvester. FYI: In Quebec Canada, permits are given for Leek harvesting. Only 5 Leeks per person are allowed !

3) Consider this: Keep their life force in the ground.
Leave their bulb root in the earth. Cut only the green leaves at an inch ABOVE soil level! (And take note, animals that eat Leeks do the same. Often, you’ll find some leaves only partially eaten.) (*) It has been observed that by keeping the bulb root in the ground, it will allow the plant to continue to grow for future seasons. Supportive studies show that when harvesting a stand of Leeks, if one picks as little as 5% – 15% (this is including the root bulb), this act of pulling the bulb too stresses the stand to go below ‘an equilibrium level’. This means that the stand 
then functions at a substandard level and can take several additional years to recover to normal. And, that is so long as the stand goes untouched for the next few years (3 to 5 yrs.), where no other forager takes from that same stand for those 3 to 5 years. Avoid at all costs taking the bulb. This will not only benefit you by providing you with many harvesting years to come, but Leek families and animals well.

4) Consider this: Before harvesting, look over the area to see if another was there… and if there was, walk away. Find another untouched location.

5) Consider: Think less is more.
Share these ideas with children in ‘ethical wild crafting’, and, ‘to-under-harvest. 
Ask merchants, restaurants, farmers markets and wholesalers for bulb-less plants. Insist on this year after year. Only take a few bulbs for personal use. Those who harvest huge amounts, leave the bulbs. Or just go for a forest walk and leave harvesting for another time as we don’t always have to get something from the Nature that surrounds us.

Catskill Native Nursery has a point … 
Diane Greenberg of Catskill Native Nursery propagates and sells wild foods and medicinals. Here’s what she thinks about Ramp harvesting practices: “people think they are harvesting sustainably by only taking a portion of a patch. What they don’t consider is 4 or 5 other people are doing the same thing to the same patch and soon an area that was covered in leeks is reduced to a very small population. Over the years, I have seen a few areas in Ulster that were once abundant in leeks disappear completely. Mostly these were patches along public trails or easily seen while driving along a back road. People have bragged to me about filling up the back of a truck with leeks and selling them …” and “People do not understand how long it takes for these plants to grow and that by harvesting mature bulbs they are destroying what is needed to insure future generations of ramps … I hope in time people will see the big picture of the damage they are doing in the name of “free food”. Visit Diane Greenberg’s website here: greenwitch@catskillnativenursery.com


RECIPE:
Delicious Potato Wild Leek Soup
by Marguerite 
2 lbs Potatoes, with skin
2 oz Leek Greens
Place both in a pot of boiling water. Cook till potatoes are done. Save water to side
Place half of potatoes and leeks in a blender
Add 3 tablespoons of Butter
½ cup Heavy Cream or Coconut Milk
½ tsp. Salt 
Blenderize well

Do the same for the remaining potatoes and leeks.
If you want the soup to be thinner, add some of the left over potato water. 

So, consider under-harvesting, do Pass Up Ramp Bulbs and every now and then, and definitely go for a woodland walk to just simply just to enjoy the green world. 



Blessings on this cold spring day.

ABOUT: 
Marguerite Uhlmann-Bower, R.N., Herbalist Educator, Earth Skills Guide and Wild-Crafter, training and workshops in Cultivating Cognitive Agility with our Plant and Tree Allies, and plant foraging that considers plants have rights. Combining her nursing background and herbal training and experience, she brings outdoor oriented workshops back in to everyday people’s lives. The basic purpose is that plants do so much better when humans become interested in them. And we want them to.