Local Asparagus at a Farm Near You!

By Master Gardener Marianne McNiel

I love asparagus. As a child, I refused to eat this vegetable that my mother loved, but after years of trying she would be happy to hear that it is one of my favorite vegetables, along with those little cabbages called Brussels sprouts. I can usually find asparagus at a local farmers' market from late April into June. This year with the cold spring weather, you may not see it until well into May. Here are some interesting facts about this great cool-season vegetable.

Asparagus has been eaten as a vegetable and used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years.  It is thought to be native to Russia, the Mediterranean and British Isles.  It was first cultivated by the Romans, and the oldest surviving recipe book has a recipe with asparagus! It was brought to America by the early colonists, but it was not grown commercially until the 1850s.

Asparagus officinalis is a perennial vegetable and one of a few vegetables that are monocots or single seed leaf (cotyledon). Corn is also a monocot, but it is a grain and not a vegetable. Asparagus used to be classified as a member of the lily family along with onions and garlic. In 2003, the lily family was split and asparagus is now classified in its own family, Asparagaceae.  No matter how we classify it, it still tastes great steamed, grilled or stir-fried.

Green, purple and white asparagus are all grown in Pennsylvania. Purple asparagus spears are a newer variety and white spears are produced by removing light from the spears when they first appear. Our Pennsylvania farms produce about 500 acres of asparagus valued at $2.5 million dollars. However, Oceana County, Michigan claims to be the Asparagus Capital of the World and the National Asparagus Festival is held there every June.  Asparagus festivals are also held in several places in California. Presently, the United States is the largest importer of asparagus, but asparagus fresh from our local farm field is fresher and tastes best!

For a farmer, asparagus is an investment crop because the plants are not fully mature for 5 years, but the plants will last up to 20 years.  Asparagus crowns will rise up as they grow and exposed crowns will die. For this reason, asparagus is planted in trenches or furrows that are 6 to 8 inches deep. Mature asparagus plants are harvested for 6 to 7 weeks. The spears are cut when they are about 7 inches long and a diameter of at least 5/16 of an inch. Select spears at your farm stand or market with slight purple tips that are not wilted. Asparagus should be refrigerated immediately after harvest. You can keep asparagus fresh in your refrigerator in a moist towel or with the tips pointed up in a cup of cold water. Spears will last 7 to 14 days in your refrigerator.

Asparagus spears are loaded with nutrients.  They are a great source of fiber, folate and vitamins A, C, E and K.  What about that smell after eating asparagus? The smell is caused by our bodies converting asparagusic acid into sulfur-containing compounds. Scientists have recently learned that all individuals do not experience this strange odor after eating asparagus. It is in our genes to either process asparagus a certain way and to be able to detect the smell, the asparagus gene. So mind your mothers and eat that delicious local asparagus. Find out if you have the asparagus gene!

Sources:

Asparagus Production, Penn State Extension:http://extension.psu.edu/business/ag-alternatives/horticulture/vegetables/asparagus-production

Michigan Asparagus and Festival:

http://www.asparagus.org/

http://www.nationalasparagusfestival.org/

Asparagus and Urine Smell:

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/why-asparagus-makes-your-urine-smell-49961252/

Colorful Carrots!

By Miles Necker, Master Watershed Steward

I’m always up for trying to plant a few flowers or a vegetable or two. Though I never seem to be successful, it is nice to try. Growing up I have found myself to almost have a brown thumb (something I’m trying to correct hanging out with the Master Gardeners). The only thing I have managed to keep alive any length of time is a Christmas cactus, and that is simply because cacti are virtually impossible to kill. So this year when my family started planting their garden my mother asked if I wanted to use part of one of the raised beds I had installed, turning our small front lawn into a series of raised beds with barely enough room to mow between. I figured ‘why not?’ and so began to consider what I wanted to plant. I obviously wanted something easy to grow. The only other condition I had is I wanted to be able to eat whatever I planted. Personally I don’t like just having flowers everywhere, I prefer my plants to have a use (apologies to my youngest sister, who lives for picking flowers and filling our house with them).

After much thought I finally chose my vegetable: carrots! Not only does the British military use them to see at night (World War II joke), but they are just good to eat, overall. You can cook them, yank them out of the ground and eat them, caramelize them, and pretty much anything you could want to do! Perfect! I had picked my vegetable. But now to go about learning how to not kill them and still end up with luscious carrots for my next salad.

This was a moment I realized: I may be in over my head planting anything at all, but still I soldiered on. I decided to learn everything I could before planting, and what follows are the Carrot Planting Basics.

Carrots are best planted just as spring begins to ‘spring’, around right now (mid-April). If you plant them much later you end up with shriveled carrots due to overexposure to heat. Plant them too early and the same thing happens due to not enough heat. So, they like to be planted when it is still cool, before the last frost date.

As far as soil goes, it is best to put them in loose, near neutral soil, as is common in a raised bed. If you’re going to plant them in the ground around your house make sure to break the soil up as they prefer a more aerated soil. If you’re going to fertilize your glorious taproots, it is best to use a 1-2-2 ratio fertilizer that is high in potassium, though they should do fine on their own.

Once you have your fertilizer and soils all sorted out, it’s time to plant the carrots. Dig a trench about ¼”. If you want multiple rows make sure their about 1’ apart from one another. It is very important to make sure that the soil around the carrots does not crust. To avoid this, make sure to keep slightly moist or cover the seeds with fine compost.

Throughout the growing season make sure to keep the soil around the carrots moist, but be absolutely sure to not overwater them as it can lead to nasty bloated carrots. If you start to notice the orange tops of the root poking out of the soil, cover it up. If left, the top will turn green and you can no longer eat it… it will affect the taste.

As soon as your carrots reach about finger sized you can start harvesting them if you wish. While it is perfectly fine to let them grow into gargantuan taproots of glory, the smaller carrots will tend to be juicier and more tender. If you mulch the soil well you can even keep carrots in the ground close to winter. Out of the ground they are best stored in a moist environment that is near freezing temperature.

Following the above directions, I am sure someone even like me can pull off growing carrots, and I’m going to try. As I write this I am glancing over at the seeds I’m going to be planting this weekend and dreaming of the delicious caramelized carrots I will be eating in the future.

Don’t have time or space to grow your own?  Support Your Farmer!

LEHIGH: Bleiler’s Produce Patch in Breinigsville

NORTHAMPTON: Ray of Sun Farm in Easton

BERKS:  Old Earth Farm in Oley Valley

BUCKS: Palovchak’s Produce in Doylestown

Manure: Spring is in the Air

By Master Gardener Sue Kowalchuk

While the appearance of robins is often cited as the harbinger of spring, I would argue that the application of manure on the farm fields is the true indication that spring is around the corner.  During this year’s unrelenting cold and snowy winter in eastern Pa, it was the sight of brown on the white, rolling fields that comforted me that winter was coming to end.

Although manure is a commonly used soil amendment, the type used, the amount, and the timing of the application are critical factors in ensuring that it will be effective and safe.  Both fresh and composted cattle, poultry, and horse manure are typically utilized on farms and/or in home gardens. Application can improve soil health and structure, as well as provide nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K); essential nutrients for plant growth. The amount of N, P, and K contained in each type of manure varies.  The best type to use will depend upon availability, percent of each nutrient in the specific manure and nutrient needs of the plants being grown. Consequently, soil testing to determine deficiencies and manure testing to determine nutrient content are good practices to guarantee success.  The amount applied is also important. Too little will result in insufficient nutrients, too much could leach into the groundwater, rivers, or streams and/or negatively impact plant growth.

Fresh manure of all types has a higher nitrogen content, with poultry having the highest. Some caution, however, is advised if choosing to apply fresh manure.  Not only can fresh manure contain weed seeds (horse manure is the worse offender), but pathogens, such as e.coli, or salmonella can be present.  In addition, the higher nitrogen levels can burn or kill plants. For these reasons, it is recommended that it be applied no later than 3 months before planting, and up to 4 months for crops that come in contact with the soil. For the home gardener, the safest practice is to apply in the fall, or consider composted manure.

Composted manure has been aged for several months and could also be mixed with other organic materials such as animal bedding. The overall levels of some nutrients are lower, but the heat generated in the compost pile and length of time exposed greatly reduces the likelihood of weed seed and pathogens.  This makes it a good choice for use later in the spring.

Using manure is a good way to improve soil health and increase plant yields while simultaneously “ recycling” animal waste.  Paying attention to type, amount and timing will provide you with the desired results and enable you to enjoy a bountiful harvest. That is, as long as the bugs, fungus, etc. are under control, but that is another story for another blog.

If you happen to notice the appearance of brown on the white snow or muddy fields, or a less than pleasant odor while driving past the farms, remember that it is a sign of spring and local fresh fruits and vegetables are almost around the corner.

Resources

http://cru.cahe.wsu.edu/CEPublications/pnw0533/pnw0533.pdf

http://web.extension.illinois.edu/cfiv/homeowners/000513.html

http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/fruit-vegetable/using-manure-and-compost/ 

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/mg/gardennotes/242.html