Wild Asparagus

Norm · May 20, 2011, 05:43:30 PM

Every year about this time the wild grown asparagus starts showing up in our area. Folks are known to jealously guard their favorite patches and I'm no different. I'm thinking about going out this fall and gps marking some new ones. :D

My favorite way to cook it is drizzled with butter and cooked over hardwood coals hot and fast.

LOGDOG · May 20, 2011, 05:54:13 PM

Mmmmmm ... that looks good. We love asparagus. Wife has been roasting it lately on a cookie sheet drizzled with olive oil and salted.

I haven't seen it wild since I moved to the South. Used to find it up in WI on a regular basis though.

treefarmer87 · May 20, 2011, 08:58:30 PM

IT LOOKS GOOD! LOGDOG the way your talking about is good too

it used to grow all over our farm. i havent seen any in years, since i was little

sandhills · May 21, 2011, 12:36:31 AM

You can't beat it! We've been picking it for about a week now around here and I'll even throw it in the microwave in a little water if I'm in a hurry, it's still good.

Patty · May 21, 2011, 09:45:27 AM

Personally I think the wild asparagus is tastier than the kinds we grow in our garden. Maybe it is the fact that we are harvesting it from the wild that makes it seem so good. Don't know....don't care.....I just know it is SO GOOD!!

LeeB · May 21, 2011, 02:11:10 PM

What is the natural range for it? I'm always interested in feeding myself on native foodstuffs. Never know when you might need this kind of knowledge. Any pictures of the plants?

Dan_Shade · May 21, 2011, 04:12:39 PM

I don't think asparagus is indiginous to the US.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asparagus

Brad_bb · May 21, 2011, 07:11:28 PM

It grows wild all over the place where I live and on my farm. It has probably spread from gardens and vegetable farms long ago. I've got more Asparagus than I can handle at the moment.

Best way is lightly coat with Olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt, and grill on high heat. Turn just as the bottom side starts to caramelize the sugars in the Asparagus(you start seeing some light brown in places).

I used to steam it, but didn't realize how much of the flavor you lose that way. Grilling is the only way to go!

thecfarm · May 22, 2011, 07:16:28 AM

Different region that for sure. Does not grow wild around here. In fact the grass can kill it here. I've never seen it out in the woods.

sandhills · May 22, 2011, 10:54:36 AM

Most patches around here are along fence lines or under trees, all the older folks say to start it you have to feed the seeds to a bird first.

Kinda makes sense if you look where it's growing. Funny story, ten or so years ago my aunt and uncle, along with 3 of our neighbors went out picking it, these people (except for 1) are all in their eighties now and have lived out in this country their entire lives, anyway apparently they didn't know what poison ivy looked like. They crawled through it all day picking asparagus and spent the next few days completely miserable, they did get 2 big coolers full of asparagus though ;D.

Patty · May 22, 2011, 04:49:26 PM

The wild asparagus in Iowa is mainly found in the roadside ditches along the fence lines. I have never seen it under trees and such, but out in full sunlight. I think Sandhills is correct in that it is spread by birds.

ibseeker · May 22, 2011, 08:34:27 PM

Here's an interesting note from the wiki article: Asparagus is a useful companion plant for tomatoes. The tomato plant repels the asparagus beetle, as do several other common companion plants of tomatoes. Meanwhile, asparagus may repel some harmful root nematodes that affect tomato plants.

trapper · May 22, 2011, 10:38:24 PM

I picked 2 icecream pails each threed fourts full from my yard thursday. Before I had so much in my yard I used to remove the dead tops from the wild aspargras to keep the spots secret.

Brad_bb · May 23, 2011, 01:23:21 AM

No the seeds don't need to go through a bird first. I've grown them from seed directly from the plant. Asparagus plants are either male or female. The Female plant will product orange berries. Wait until end of season as the berries start to dry out. The dry berry contains 4 or so small black seeds. Collect the berries and spend about an hour with a tweezers to separate the seeds from the dry berry, and you can get small bag full.

sandhills · May 23, 2011, 03:05:38 AM

Thanks Brad bb I'll have to try that, It's hard to get it started around here, and we always have patches that we miss and mature out here but they never seem to get bigger.

Kansas · May 23, 2011, 06:01:40 AM

I looked around yesterday and couldn't find any. I never have seen it here, except around an old abandoned farmstead. Not sure if that was wild or if they had a patch planted years ago. Did discover the wild strawberries are starting to ripen.

iffy · May 23, 2011, 03:53:30 PM

Hey Kansas, you got wild rasberries over your way? I have a lot of bushes on my place over here by JC, but since the berries are no bigger than the end of your pinkie finger, it takes awhile. Of course wild rasberries seem to like the same terrain copperheads do. I get to pick them and my wife makes the jelly.

WDH · May 23, 2011, 08:06:40 PM

I never had copperhead jelly. It may be tasty, but it does not sound good

.

Kansas · May 23, 2011, 08:25:15 PM

I never have found any wild raspberries. Blackberries, elderberries, grapes, plums, yes. There are paw paws around that were planted years ago. Talked to someone today who said they know there used to be some wild asparagus not too far from here. Guess I never really looked for it. Might be getting a bit late in the season, although the asparagus plants at work are throwing a few spears yet.

iffy · May 24, 2011, 09:05:58 AM

Quote from: WDH on May 23, 2011, 08:06:40 PM
I never had copperhead jelly. It may be tasty, but it does not sound good .

Has a little bite to it! ;D

WDH · May 24, 2011, 07:46:43 PM

:D :D.

groomer_guy · May 26, 2011, 12:58:50 PM

Quote from: thecfarm on May 22, 2011, 07:16:28 AM
Different region that for sure. Does not grow wild around here. In fact the grass can kill it here. I've never seen it out in the woods.

I agree too. Never seen it around here, only in the gardens

sandhills · April 11, 2012, 10:44:06 AM

Picked the first of it yesterday, we were moving some bulls so didn't have much time just grabbed a few shoots and ate 'em along the way

. Not to sure what our recently turned to freezing at night weather will do to it so I better get it while I can!

Patty · April 14, 2012, 02:13:42 PM

There is big competition to get to the wild asparagus in this area. Just when you think you found your own private stash, some one will pick it before you can get back to it. :( We go out on the gator on Sundays while they are in church and try to beat them to the little patches along the road. I need to mark them with the gps so I can remember where each one is. :D

trapper · April 16, 2012, 10:00:17 PM

Picked a bread bag full from around the yard tonight. Picked everything I could because forcast is to freeze tonight.

sandhills · May 06, 2012, 10:36:45 AM

Still finding it here, our weather turned cooler after my last post and the shoots have kept coming up, I've never seen it last this long but we don't have springs like this very often either.

Norm · May 06, 2012, 10:50:39 AM

We picked this batch yesterday out of the roadside.

Going to do some on the grill this evening.

LOGDOG · May 06, 2012, 10:56:22 AM

I'm curious if the rest of you do the snap method on the asparagus stalks to snap them where the tender part gets stiff prior to cooking? We do, unless I'm doing a really big batch. Then I'll do a few, see where the sweet spot is and line the rest up and whack them in one go.

barbender · May 06, 2012, 01:31:23 PM

Hello, my name is Burt and I am addicted to wild asparagus

my wife thinks I have issues, I can spot a stalk driving by at 60 mph. Ham and asparagus omelets are a delight seldom matched on this cursed earth, I love it grilled as well. It grows wild around here, it likes sandy, acidic soil. You see it along fence rows a lot, in ditches, and around old homesteads. In fact, sometimes I'll be out trampin in the woods and come across a plant, I'll look some more and usually find an old root cellar and other remains of an old homestead.