Spring - Asparagus is first!!
The cold hard ground thaws and the green asparagus shoots begin to appear. May in Pennsylvania means that the asparagus harvest is now at about midpoint as the crop has been in since the beginning of April. My job was to cut it both morning and evening. Sometimes Mom or sister Peggy would take a turn at getting it done. There was this little wooden slat basket that we used and cut it with a paring knife or my pocket knife. Dad said it must be cut exactly at ground level. It was then taken to the farm shed and placed with the cut end down into a tub filled with several inches of water to keep it fresh. The asparagus stems were later bundled for sale on the truck peddle route or taken to farmer's market by Mom.
