Asper Grass

One of my vivid memories of summer-time visits to my Grampa Bacon’s in New Hampshire is asparagus. He nurtured an enormous bed of the quirky vegetable. Folks came from all over the Lakes Region to enjoy his succulent stalks. Not surprisingly, it was my Mom’s favorite vegetable and one of mine, as well. As a young lad, I pronounced the name as “asper grass”, which stuck for quite a while. In addition to the edible stalks, I marveled at the wispy, fairy fans that sprayed from the stalk, if not harvested in a timely fashion.

Figure 1   Young Asparagus shoots

Most folks have never seen an asparagus patch. It starts as a seemingly barren area in the garden. Then, without tillage or planting seed (it’s a perennial plant), the tiny thin heads push their way up through the soil, gaining girth as they climb. When the stalks are about 8” to 12” tall, they are cut at the base, to yield the familiar form. Harvest must be done daily, as the stalks turn woody. The plant, a relative of the Lily, will send up new stalks to replace those cut. If left uncut, the stalk will grow to a height of 5 feet or so, and fan out into a fine, fairy-like fern with poisonous berries at the tips. At the end of the season, all shoots are allowed to fern out and turn yellow, and are cut during the winter months.

Figure 2   Asparagus after "ferning out"

The name comes from the common European name “Sparrow Grass”. Like many fruits and vegetables in the US, it is non-native; brought to New England by British Colonists, and thrived in the salty coastal soils. “White” asparagus is not a separate variety, but is produced by covering the young shoots with a box, which prevents photosynthesis. Germany is the largest consumer of the white crop.

Some folks avoid this luscious vegetable due to its effects on urine – producing both a color and aromatic change. Interestingly, it seems only a select minority are able to smell the pungent aromatic by-product. While the raw berries are poisonous to humans, they were processed into a medicinal compound in Medieval times, said to cure fatigue.

Most of the US enjoys asparagus year-round, with production in New England, Michigan and California, though most is imported from China and South America. So, read up and then fill up on this tasty veggie. Or not.