Morphological and Habitat Characteristics of Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) and Socio-Economic Structure of Producers

Abstract

Asparagus officinalis L. (Asparagus) is a species that belongs to Liliaceae family, 300 species grownaturally on earth and 12 species of it grow naturally in Turkey. Generally, above-soil and undersoil parts of some of its different species are used as a diuretic, tonic, heart sedative, demulsan,antidiarrheal, antidisenteric, galactagogue, aphrodisiac, antispasmodic in traditional treatment. Inaddition to that it is also consumed as a food. To date various pharmacological studies wereconducted on many types of that species. However, no comprehensive study has been made onAsparagus species, including anatomical, morphological habitat and productive characteristics. Inthis study, morphological features of Asparagus as a medical aromatic plant in spreading areas, itsraising environment features, economy, socio-economic status of producers, and contributions ofits production on both household and local economy have been examined based on Kastamonu case.As a result, Kastamonu district has wide range with respect to climate, which helps Asparagus plantbeing cultivated in appropriate growing environments, having potential to provide opportunity togenerate high earnings. But producers do not have adequate expertise to cultivate and grow it, lackof any relevant training/education, so efficiency is low and it does not have the value it deserves.