Ramsons, Spice
Ramsons (Allium ursinum) is a woodland plant in the family Alliaceae, found in Northern Hemisphere. It is commonly known as buckrams, wild garlic, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic or bear's garlic. Ramsons are a favorite of wild boars and brown bears. They love the ramsons' bulbs and have a habit of digging up the ground to get at them. Ramsons grows from small bulbs and, once established, often spreads to form a large colony. They usually grow in deciduous woodlands with moist soils, damp woods, scrub, hedges, and shady banks. It has broad basal leaves and a large triangular green stem. In spring, the plants bear clusters of white, star-shaped flowers, filling the air with garlicky smell. The flower-head contains no bulbils. All parts of the plant are edible. The stems are preserved in salt and eaten as a salad in Russia. The leaves are delicious raw or cooked. They have a mild garlicky flavor, providing flavor to salads and stews. The leaves lose their garlicky flavor once the flowers emerge. Ramsons leaves are used as a fodder, and cows fed on ramsons leaves produce milk that tastes slightly of garlic. The flowers have a stronger flavor than the leaves, and are also used in salads, giving an interesting decorative and tasty addition. Ramsons' bulbs can be eaten raw or cooked, and can be harvested all year round. It is best to harvest bulbs when the plants are dormant from late summer to winter. The bulbs are small and fiddly to harvest. They have strong garlic flavor. Ramsons is effective in reducing high blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels. It also contain antioxidant, antibacterial and antifungal properties. Lily of the valley, Colchicum autumnale and Arum maculatum, are three species of posonous and deadly plants which bear leaves that are similar to those of ramsons. One mean of positively identify ramsons is to grind the leaves between one's fingers, it should produce a garlicky smell.  Ramsons Author: Simon Barnes (Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic) | ||
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