Asparagus, the king of vegetables and how it grows

Today, we call asparagus as the king of vegetables, once upon a time it was just swamp of grass. To prove it, asparagus even has a crown on it. Its really tough to pin it down from where it originated, history says its a native to the Mediterranean. Being the Egyptians to first harvest and cultivate them, later by the Greeks and the Romans.

The king of vegetable just shames you aside and demands that we dress well at the dinner table. Keeping its tall slender head high, it commands for respect and admiration. Prefect during the spring, asparagus has a unique flavor with clean and bright earthly undertones. If you have tasted asparagus brought from a supermarket, then its a total rubbish giving out sour and bitter tastes. The farm fresh asparagus is a real deal providing the sweet tastes to it.

The vegetable is a king due to its rich all round nutrients, from Vitamin C, K and A. It has superior folates, promoting the health of our cells and the ability to structurally change them. A bowl of steamed asparagus contains rich amount of fibers and nutrients with no fat or sodium present in them. No wonder asparagus is the king of vegetables.

How does the king of vegetables grow?

While asparagus takes really quick to cook, it takes really long time to cultivate and harvest them. This plant takes five years to grow from a seed to a fully yielding plant. Asparagus is a perennial which means they are not picked out at the end of a harvest like our other common vegetables like cucumber or tomatoes.

The crowns of asparagus are planted rather than seeds, Forming into roots, asparagus goes deep down into the earth anywhere between 6 to 15 feet. Having a window of only eight weeks to plant a crown, the king of vegetable is surely a delicacy. A mature plant grows no more than sixteen spears each season. Thinking about this whole situation, the king of all vegetables is hard and rigorous to harvest.

While the initial stages of the yield is stressful, the later stages of asparagus is pretty simple. A spear can grow as much as six inches in a day. That is a stress buster for every asparagus harvesting farmer. If the spear grows too tall, then it becomes a tough and a woody spear. Hence picking a asparagus is a race against time.

At the end of every harvest season the plants are allowed to fern out, branching out and growing into wispy fronds. During the next harvest season all off it will be mowed down.

Health benefits of asparagus

• It is very low in sodium, which is a win win sign for all the blood pressure patients.
• It contains 3 grams of fibers in every 150 grams of serving, Improving digestive health.
• Containing high amounts of folates, it helps in keeping your body cool.
• Asparagus is a very good source of antioxidants.
• It helps diabetic patients for a better sugar control.
• Folates also helps in better structuring of healthy DNA for pregnant women.
• Asparagus extract contains essential amino acids that may prove effective in curing hangovers.
• Asparagus contains least amount of calories, helping people for their summer bodies and people looking forward for a balanced diet.

For a healthy asparagus recipe click here