07.04.2025 16:51
In the Aydın mountains, during the spring season, wild herbs known among the public as "kedirgen" and "sarmaşık" are becoming a source of hope for the unemployed. This year, due to drought, the price of sarmaşık herbs has risen to 100 TL, enriching the wallets of the poor while adorning the tables of the wealthy. These herbs, which are said to have significant healing properties, are most sought after in the provinces of Aydın, İzmir, Muğla, and Manisa.
In the spring months, herbs that grow spontaneously in the mountains, known among the public as 'kedirgen' and 'sarmaşık otu', have become a hope for the unemployed. In recent years, particularly in the coastal Aegean provinces, the consumption of these wild greens has significantly increased, and they are known as a 'healthy food' because they are natural, bringing smiles to the faces of the poor living in villages. Every spring season in Aydın, thousands of bunches of sarmaşık herbs are collected from the mountains and offered for consumption in the cities.
THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE EAT BREAD
Ramazan Çapar, who has been collecting sarmaşık during the season and selling them to greengrocers in city centers since his childhood in Aydın and its surroundings, stated that thanks to this herb in the region, thousands of people are able to earn a living. He noted that everyone in need, from seven to seventy, is making money thanks to these herbs, which he calls "Aydın's blessing." "This year, due to drought, sarmaşık was scarce until Ramadan Bayram. As a result, the price of a bunch reached up to 100 TL for consumers. Thank God, it has been rainy in the Aegean Region for the past 5 days. We hope that sarmaşık will be abundant in the coming days. When it becomes plentiful, the price will drop, but since more can be collected, everyone's earnings will also increase," he expressed.
"THERE IS NO COST OTHER THAN LABOR"
Ramazan Çapar stated that in the basin including Germencik district of Aydın and Nazilli district, these herbs that grow spontaneously in the mountains every spring season have a lifespan of 2-3 months depending on the season. He said: "Many people in the villages of Germencik's Efeler, Köşk, Sultanhisar, Koçarlı, and Nazilli collect sarmaşık every day during the season if they are healthy and have the time. These herbs, which are bundled and offered for sale, are collected from the villages by wholesalers every day and sold in city centers. The sarmaşık gatherer earns money and provides healing to those who eat it, with no cost other than the labor involved in collecting them."