Asparagus which is expensive to buy is a luxury vegetable with a relatively short harvesting period, but because it's a perennial knowing how to grow your own delicious spears means that repeating this seasonal treat is possible for twenty years. Home produced asparagus has a unique flavour which can't be matched by that sold in shops. Growing your own crop is an inexpensive way of adding delicate flavour to those special recipes.
How and When to Sow Asparagus Seed
Raising asparagus plants from seed to first harvest takes 3 years, but for the patient gardener it's well worth the wait.
- Sow under cover in large modules or 9cm pots in February.
- Germinate the seeds in an electric propagator set at 18 degrees centigrade.
- After germination remove the lid of the propagator and maintain a temperature of 13-16 degrees centigrade until the plants are 10-15cm tall.
- Harden off the young plants and transfer them outside to a well drained nursery bed in June.
- Keep weed free and watered in the first growing season.
- Plant in them in their permanent site next April.
Buy Asparagus Plants Known as Crowns to Save Time and Effort
To save time and effort most gardeners cut out a year and buy asparagus plants. As asparagus plants grow they produce long tubular roots which grow horizontally more than vertically. A one year old root system is called an asparagus crown.
Best Site and Soil Preparation for Asparagus
Asparagus will grow in a wide range of soil types and it doesn't need to be too fertile. It pays to adhere to the following guidelines:
- A well drained soil is essential, as is a deep root run.
- Ensure all perennial weeds are eradicated during ground preparation.
- Check the pH and lime if it is below 6. A pH of 6.5 to 7.00 is ideal.
- Ground preparation involves digging a trench 30cm wide and 20cm deep.
- Put well rotted manure in the bottom and cover this with 5cm of excavated soil raised in the centre to form a ridge.
How to Plant Asparagus Crowns
The best time to plant seed raised one year old, or bought crowns is March/Apri
- Space the crowns 30-45cm apart on top of the ridge.
- The crowns should be about 10cm deep.
- Spread out the roots and fill in the trench to cover the crowns.
- Keep filling in with soil as they grow leaving about 10cm of stem showing for the first few weeks then add no more soil.
How to Care for an Asparagus Bed
Don't harvest any spears until three years from sowing or two years from planting one year old crowns. Regular plant care is fairly straight forward and not very demanding of time:
- Keep well watered in the first year to aid establishment.
- Keep asparagus beds weed free by hand weeding. The shallow roots are easily damaged by hoeing.
- An annual mulch with a sandy loam or friable compost once the spears emerge is of great help in the battle to control weeds and retain moisture.
- On windy sites the top growth can break off causing crown damage. Use canes and twine either side of the rows for support.
- An application of general fertilizer such as 'Growmore' or pelleted chicken manure at a rate of 150 grammes per square metre put on as soon as growth starts in May and again at the end of harvesting is beneficial.
- In autumn the fern (foliage) turns a lovely straw yellow. This can be appreciated for about a week then it should be cut down to 2.5cm from soil level.
- The main pest to affect asparagus is the asparagus beetle. Adult asparagus beetles are up to 6mm long with yellow and black wing cases. They feed on asparagus foliage in spring. To prevent attack clear away plant debris (their hiding ground) and hand pick adult beetles and larvae.
Harvesting Asparagus Spears
Aim to cut asparagus spears when 15cm long. Resist the temptation to carry on cutting beyond the middle of the year (mid-late June), because the plants must have sufficient time to build up a store of food capable of producing a good crop next year.
- Use a sharp knife and cut 2 to 2.5cm below soil level.
- Discard the tough bottom end of spears which have grown much longer than 15cm, as indeed they will during hot days.
- Special asparagus knives with serrated blades are expensive and have no impact on the ease of cutting or flavour of the crop.
Some Varieties of Asparagus
Traditional cultivars of asparagus are a mixture of both male and female. Modern all male F1 cultivars produce more spears over a longer season, but they tend to be slimmer. The variety 'Connovers Colossal; has thick mid-green spears of superb flavour. 'Jersey Knight' and 'Gijnlim' are both reliable F1 hybrids.
This Gourmet Vegetable is Worth the Long Term Care
So there is no instant gratification for the asparagus gardener. It is not an ephemeral plant, but one which given long term care will reward the grower and cook with delicious, succulent spears over very many years
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