Each spring, Pennsylvania forests begin to green as ramps or wild leeks (Allium tricoccum) dot the understory. One to three broad leaves emerge from each underground bulb to take advantage of the extra sunlight that slips through the empty canopy before leafing out. The air in a ramp patch is pungent, a mix of garlic and onion, and a sign that it’s time to harvest the edible bulbs and leaves.
Eaten fresh, straight from the ground, or prepared, ramps add a flavor that keep harvesters coming back year after year. In the Appalachian Mountains, locals collect and sell ramps on the side of the road for a few dollars a mess, the number of ramps that fit in a brown lunch bag or grocery bag.
Ramps are an important cultural food, particularly in rural Appalachia. Those interested in celebrating the plant can easily find a ramp dinner or festival most weekends during the harvesting season. In typical years, popular ramp events like the annual Mason Dixon Ramp Festival in Mount Morris, PA draws large crowds of people eager to experience Appalachian culture.
The atmosphere is vibrant with live Appalachian music, the sweet and pungent smell of ramp-inspired festival foods, and the buzz of conversation. Vendors sell savory ramp products like ramp burgers, ramp butter, and deep-fried ramps, as well as sweet ramp candies and chocolate covered ramps- for better or worse. If you’re lucky, you might even get to sample ramp wine out of a communion cup (ahh, the days before COVID).
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