Asparagus Growing Guide

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Asparagus is a perennial plant that might last 15 years or more – so chose your planting location carefully!
Be sure to clean up the planting area thoroughly. Weed control the largest part of growing asparagus, and starting clean is the best way to avoid weedy invaders. Using glysophate (‘Roundup’) a week or two before planting will destroy both annual and perennial weeds.
To plant the roots:
1. Dig a trench 8” deep and about 10” wide – wide enough to accommodate the outspread roots. Space the roots 18” down the row.
2. Cover the roots with 2” of soil, and continue to fill in the trench as the shoots grow. However, be sure not to bury the green shoots completely! It may take all season to fill in the trench.
Don’t harvest any spears until the third year after planting. This allows the plant to develop a large, healthy root system.
The first year of harvest, cut for only 2-3 weeks in May – early June. As the plants mature over the years, you can increase the harvest time to 6 weeks.
When you cut asparagus, the spears should be 6 – 8” tall and the tip should be tight. Take only the thick spears and leave the spindly ones. Snap or cut the spears off at the soil line. Be careful because there will be more spears just emerging or hiding just below the soil line.
Each spring, before the spears are showing, add 1 or 1.5 pounds of 10-10-10 garden fertilizer per 100 square feet.
To control weeds, keep pulling them and keep mulching the bed.