Red ramps are a rare species of wild onion with a strong, onion-like flavor and garlic-like scent; its scarcity is caused by over-harvesting during the 17th-century smallpox outbreak. The smell of one of these vegetables cooking in a skillet is said to draw the attention of nearby bigfoot. Red ramps are very nutritious, can heal any ailment, and prevent disease.

Wild red ramps can be found in the eastern United States and eastern Canada. More specifically, the plant grows best in shady, damp, deciduous forests with rich soil. For Americans attempting to grow them in a shade structure, they grow most favorably in zones 3 - 8.

Physical Traits and Growth Requirements

Light green leaves with a smooth, broad surface breaks through the ground as soon as snow melts in the spring; unlike allium tricoccum (common ramps), the leaves’ stems are a bright red instead of a deep purple. The stem thickens farther down the plant, pales in color, and resembles a scallion; common ramps have a bright white bulb with pale roots, whereas red ramps have bright red bulbs with burgundy roots.

This vegetable is an annual plant, flowering and producing seeds once before dying. It can be harvested for consumption a couple months after breaking ground, and will flower after three months. Red ramps have a purple bloom (unlike common ramps, which have white blooms), of which seeds can be easily harvested, dried, and stored. However, the plant’s leaves and roots become very bitter and even more offensively odorous once it has flowered; at this stage, it is usually avoided for use in cuisine, though its medical effectiveness is unhindered.

Red ramps can be sown anytime before or after the ground has thawed, but most plant them during the late summer or early fall; this is because the seeds require moisture and warm temperatures to break root dormancy and cold temperatures to break shoot dormancy, preparing them to grow fully in the spring. If the seed is not planted in nutrient-rich, moist soil or protected from wildlife, it will be unable to germinate. Red ramps are a very difficult plant to grow, for they are very delicate and easily affected by weather, soil quality, and access to water/nutrients. If the plant gets too much or too little of anything, it will perish. The vegetation is thought to have only survived so long due to human persistence and gardening, though few members of the species are currently left (most of which can be found in the Mesophytic forests of OH, IN, KY, MI, & WV).

Healing Properties

Red ramps have long been considered to be a magical vegetable with incredible healing powers. People have consumed the ramp for a multitude of reasons and in a variety of ways: eaten with other vegetables as a preventative for winter and spring ailments, juiced and poured into the ear for earaches, boiled in water and drank to cure any stomach malady, smelled to chase away a headache, rubbed on skin to prevent the spread of illnesses, and eaten raw in larger quantities to clean out the bowels or treat parasitic infestations. The nutrient-packed onion boosted immune systems, bolstered health, and helped those in the past live longer lives.

The red ramp was useful in preventing more deadly illnesses－like cholera or smallpox. During local epidemics or scares in the 17th century (and even throughout the 19 th century), the plant was heavily harvested and consumed, almost to extinction. Nevertheless, the plant was not entirely eradicated, surviving in small groups under shady canopies in long-forgotten areas. Some claim they can prevent many feared, modern illnesses - like Ebola - while others insist it can rid the body of cancer.

Today, the red ramp is mostly forgotten, but an old wives’ remedy remains among Appalachians and northeasterners: for any minor ailment－a headache, stomach ache, or nausea －eat a raw onion, leek, or ramp.

Other Obscure Folk Remedies

Blood Thinner/Winter Tonic

Sassafras tea consumed daily, or as symptoms persist

Cure for Colic

Drink tea brewed from catnip leaves

Night Sweats

Drink tea brewed from sage

Pneumonia

Drink warm buttermilk until symptoms are gone

Rheumatism

Use hemlock leaves to make a strong tea; bind the rheumatic place with cloth soaked with the tea

Spring Tonic

Small dose of dry calomel taken with water; a few days later, follow with a dose of castor oil

Thrash in Infants

Have a person who has never seen the baby’s father blow into his/her mouth 9 times

Wart Removal

Count the warts and name a person you know for each of them

Worm Removal

Drink tea brewed from lavender, black walnut bark, peppermint, and rosemary

Pickled Ramps Recipe

Trim any loose or slimy bits, hair, and the greens from 1 lb of ramps
In a glass pint jar: add the ramps, parsley, 7 peppercorns, 3 petals of a star anise, 1 dried red chile pepper
Boil 2 tbsp honey, ½ cup water, ¾ cups cider vinegar, and 1 tsp coarse salt for 1 min.; skim the foam off the top and pour into the glass jar, until the ramps are completely covered. Seal, invert jar, and let rest right side up. Store in refrigerator.

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