Sustainability Practices
Wild ramps (Allium tricoccum) face severe over-harvesting pressure across North America. At Gates Hill Farm, sustainable stewardship and forest conservation guide every seed we collect, plant we harvest, and woodland we manage.
Our Core Conservation Commitments
1. The 10% Harvest Rule
In our partnerships with regional forest landowners, we strictly commit to harvesting no more than 10% of the mature ramps in any given harvest sector in a single season. This allows root systems and parent colonies to regenerate continuously year after year.
2. Overcoming Nature's 5% Germination Barrier
Ramp seeds dropped in the wild struggle to penetrate heavy deciduous leaf litter. In his landmark cultivation handbook, Having Your Ramps and Eating Them Too, Glen Facemire Jr. notes that as few as 5% of fallen wild seeds ever make direct soil contact and reach maturity.
We actively reverse this loss. We commit to replanting at least 10% of all gathered seed directly back into the harvest property. Crucially, we hand-sow every seed beneath the leaf litter onto bare, mineral-rich forest soil—ensuring 100% soil contact and maximizing colony reproduction.
3. Expanding Nursery Cultivation
By propagating starter bulbs and seed flats in dedicated nursery shade tunnels, we provide forest gardeners and homesteaders with thriving domestic planting stock—reducing consumer demand on native wild Appalachian and New England populations.
Grow Your Own Sustainable Forest Patch
Whether planting viable seeds for multi-year colony expansion or jumpstarting your woods with cold-stratified cultivated bulbs, establishing private patches protects wild populations.