Asparagus capital of the world
Hadley, Asparagus Festival
Known as “the asparagus capital of the world,” western Massachusetts is still home to hundreds of working farms and many more locally-owned restaurants and breweries. Now in its 11th year, the NEPM Asparagus Festival returns to the Hadley Town Common on Saturday, June 7 to celebrate the region’s legacy of agriculture and community.
The family-friendly NEPM Asparagus Festival features a full day of fantastic local food, drink, music, games, and fun for everyone. Among the special asparagus-themed menu items will be fried asparagus, smoked asparagus mac and cheese, asparagus pierogi, asparagus hand pie, and asparagus stir fry over rice.
Farmers & Makers Market
Stroll through this section of the festival to find arts and crafts, get info from local organizations, pick up some delectable goodies, and meet farmers. Don’t forget to buy a bunch or two of asparagus!
Suggested Donation
The NEPM Asparagus Festival is a free event for all to enjoy with a suggested donation of $5 per person or $20 per family to support public media in western Massachusetts.
Asparagus
From the end of April until St. John's Day (24 June), local restaurants tempt visitors with delicacies based around the famous Schwetzingen asparagus. The royal vegetable, first cultivated in the Schwetzingen palace garden in the middle of the 17th century and once reserved for the electoral table, can now be purchased daily fresh from the field, at the asparagus market, in the backyards of Schwetzingen's old town or directly from the asparagus farms.
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"Until St. John's Day - don't forget - seven weeks of eating asparagus!"
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Where the asparagus grows
Not only eat asparagus, but also see where it comes from. Follow our asparagus nature trail, which combines a leisurely walk with facts worth knowing. Or download the current flyer for the asparagus season right here.
The Asparagus Capital
Once One of the Biggest U.S. Producers of Asparagus
Many acres of farmland surround the town of Aiken, South Carolina.
Even within the city limits, several plots consisting of only an acre or two are rotated throughout the year with corn, soybean and cotton crops. But few people realize that less than a century ago, Aiken was known as one of the "Asparagus Capitals" of the United States.
From the mid-18th through the mid-20th centuries, cotton was the South's predominant crop, and Aiken was no exception. Just before the Civil War, cotton comprised nearly 60 percent of all American exports. The phrase "King Cotton," made famous by then-Senator (and future Governor) James Henry Hammond, implied that European industry depended heavily on southern cotton. Hammond owned Redcliff Plantation in Beech Island, Aiken County.
Enslaved people provided the majority of labor for cotton cultivation. Hammond, along with scores of other plantation owners, hoped that buyers of southern cotton would fight against the blockade enacted by Abraham Lincoln's federal forces. Southerners were certain that their cotton exports were so crucial that Europeans would surely back th
Why Michigan Is the Asparagus Capital of the World
Oceana County
— Well known for the perfect camping around Silver Lake, the pristine local beachfront and clear inland lakes of Oceana County harbor some of the most popular summer spots for slowing down. But among the beloved mom-and-pop ice cream shops and the dusty kayak rental huts is a treasure trove.
Within the sandy soil along Lake Michigan lies America’s bounty of asparagus. These ideal conditions have been cultivated for years, turning Oceana County into the “Asparagus Capital of the World.”
It’s also home of the Michigan Asparagus Council and, of course, the decades-old National Asparagus Festival, held in June.
From mid-May to late June, the asparagus farms and fields from Oceana and around the state will be continuously handpicked stalk by stalk.
The enjoyment won’t end there. The budding green stalks of spring will turn into a flowering giant after the summer’s harvest, only to mature into a beautiful contrast of golden yellow against the rich reds, oranges, and browns of the fall leaves. Asparagus is a crop to be enjoyed year-round.&nbs