Asparagus Essentials

Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis 'Jersey Knight')
Posted by pirl

• The easiest way to start asparagus is from crowns.
• Plant crowns in the spring as soon as the soil can be worked.
• Plants will take three growing seasons to become established.
• Allow ten to twenty plants per person (15 to 30 feet of row).

• Select a well-drained site in at least part sun; full sun is not necessary.
• Asparagus will thrive in slightly acid soil (pH of about 6.5), but will tolerate alkaline conditions up to 9.0.
• Eliminate all weeds by repeated tilling or by growing a cover crop a year in advance.
• About one week before planting, prepare trenches for crowns.

• Soak the crowns briefly in lukewarm water before planting.
• Draw a hoe along each side of the prepared trench to form a mound in the center running the length of the trench.
• Set the crowns 18 inches apart on the mounds in the trench, draping the roots over the sides.
• To cover the crowns, mix one part manure to 3 parts topsoil and bury the crowns 2 inches deep.
• Water the bed thoroughly.

• First year: Weed the beds carefully. Periodically add more topsoil/manure around emerging shoots until the trench is filled. Then spread a 4-to 8-inch layer of mulch such as hay or leaves or a 3-to 4-inch layer of aged manure, compost, or shredded bark around the base of the asparagus ferns. Water regularly. In the early fall, pull back the mulch and side-dress with 2 1/2 pounds of a balanced fertilizer per 100 square feet. Cut down dead ferns in late fall and side-dress with 2 1/2 pounds phosphate fertilizer per 100 square feet.
• Second year: Cultivate lightly by hand until the new spears are several inches tall. Keep the bed thickly mulched. Side-dress with a balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10 at the rate of 2 1/2 pounds per 100 square feet in the spring and early fall. Follow first year instructions for late fall.
• Third year and beyond: Maintain as for the second year, but apply the spring side-dressing after the harvest.

• Plants started from crowns can be harvested lightly in the spring of the second year; plants started from seeds in the third year.
• Harvest only those spears that are thicker than a pencil.
• Cut off the spears at or just above ground level when they are 6 to 8 inches tall.