Geeks for Leeks

 

"Minna, do you want to look for leeks?" I said when she came home after school yesterday.

"What?" She replied, half-interested.

"Leeks, wild leeks. They're kinda like onions. They are the first edible forest greens to appear in spring.  I want you to help me look for them.  It may snow tomorrow, so now's the time to look."

"Oh Mom..."

wild iris chewed by deer

It took some urging, but eventually Minna pulled on her boots, and we went outside and began our search.  In the gully out back, we noticed all the wild irises eaten down to the roots by the deer.  We spotted an empty mouse house in a rotted out tree trunk.  We felt sorry for the patch of nearly bloomed bloodroot cozy in their leafy wraps anticipating a heavy snow.  Fifteen minutes later, without a leek in sight, we gave up and decided to work on cleaning out the beehives, which I had already started earlier in the day.

mouse house

vole trail question mark

As we made our way toward the beeyard, Minna complained about the noxious smell of bee death lingering in the air.  "Mom, these dead bees smell HORRIBLE."  


Meanwhile, I cursed the raised maze of gopher and vole trails in the apple orchard and pasture.  As I came up next to the thicket by the hives, some little green patches caught my attention.   I triumphantly shouted to Minna, "I think I found some!"  Indeed, the greenery seemed to be the wild leeks we were pursuing.  


I remarked to Minna, "Wow, how did the deer miss these?"  We were shocked that somehow these patches miraculously eluded the greediest eyes and mouths of our local gang of thieves. 


Only a couple dozen groupings were growing, so I carefully dug out two plants and took them inside, washed them and squashed them to see if they had the smell of onions.  They did, so I tasted them and they were good.  Like scallions, only more garlicky.  Wow.  A whole new experience!  


So now geek leek mom is a little cranked at the critters hogging all the woodland groceries.  


I'm not the only one miffed about the lack of leeks in our woods.  In today's New York Times there is an article about a new demand for wild edibles and overharvesting for entirely different reasons from ours.  How interesting and timely!