Growing asparagus

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Permalink Reply by Glenn Fletcher on September 3, 2009 at 7:04am

Hi Gillian
I don,t know if it,s different where you are, but in England you do not cut the foliage down until it is dead. That would be in winter. You need the growing foliage to build up the root system. You need ground that is clear of all perennial weeds as they don,t like having the roots disturbed. video

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Permalink Reply by Michelle W. Flannery on September 3, 2009 at 7:32am

Asparagus is something I've been thinking of growing myself. Just need to do it, I guess.
Glenn, thanks for the video. Just the way I like them - short, but full of great information!

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Permalink Reply by Kathryn on September 3, 2009 at 8:02am

Gillian İ met a woman who grew asparagus on Bribie İsland Qld and hers was doing very well, the plant itself was huge and she had alot of asparagus on it. Good luck

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Permalink Reply by Marla Bays on September 3, 2009 at 11:08am

My asparagus has been in the ground since last spring and, despite the heat and drought, is doing pretty well. I'll leave it all winter and then begin harvesting next year. I bought two year plants and won't cut the dead fronds off until February. Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Gillian on September 3, 2009 at 6:44pm

thanks everyone for all the responses, and the video Glen.. That is cool - I didnt know that you got the asparagus before the ferns came up - I will be sure to let it die down first befroe cutting the tops . I still have a couple of questions - I do not have very clear instructions on how much soil should be covering the crowns when you first plant them - one leaflet that I got with the crowns said to have them just below ground level and then to keep adding more compost as they grow up. How far - a couple of inches? I dont want to smother them! When they say do not harvest too many the first year - does that mean you leave the asparagus poking up out of the ground, and they die off on their own? There were a few shoots starting from the crowns that I planted.

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Permalink Reply by Kay Robbins on September 3, 2009 at 7:17pm

I am glad you brought this up. Love asparagus and it was on my back burner list of things to plant because I thought it might be difficult to grow in Flroida but if you can grow it there I should be able to also.

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Permalink Reply by Joel LeGrand on September 4, 2009 at 12:21am

Hi Gillian,
I planted Mary Washington(25) 7 years ago, only got one large shoot(1/2 inch) this year. A friend said I was wrong to NOT cut my shoots until I had big ones. He said I should cut them every year no matter how small the frist ones are. This forces the crown to produce larger shoots the next year, by not cutting them at all I wasted 5-6 years of shoots.
The depth of your crown can be as little as 3 inches or as deep as 8-12 inches. The reason for the deeper planting is to bleach the shoots. To do this you need to dig a trench, 6-8 inches deeper then you are going to plant the crowns, fill with compost to planting level. Add 1 inch of top soil then plant the crowns.
To keep from "smothering" them cover them with 3 inches of top soil wait until the shoots break though the top soil, then cover them with another 3 inches of soil. Repeat this until the trench is full. I left a 2 inch trench to hold water in the hot summer months.
Hope this helps, Good luck!
Good video, Glenn.

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Permalink Reply by Linda M. on September 4, 2009 at 1:22am

this is my first year growing asparagus. Out of the nine I planted, 7 tooks and are nice and hardy ferns. This is the first year so I haven't done much with them. I'm glad someone brought this up, it's always nice to read up on how to grow it.

Thanks for the video link!

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Permalink Reply by Gillian on September 19, 2009 at 6:33pm

Every time a see an aspargus shoot I pick it and nibble it while in the garden - so far none have made it inside, let alone to be steamed and served for dinner :) so yummy fresh like that! Some of the shoots have formed ferns already - gosh they are quick. I presume I can let some form ferns and then cut others. they are very skinny - not sure if that is the age of the plant or the climate. My little seeds are starting to show some movement.

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