Asparagus from seed

[Bertie's gardener]

I'm a volunteer on a project to restore an historic walled kitchen garden for community use.  This is the first year we have been able to plant crops on a large-scale basis and because we don't have much money we have grown everything from seed.

One of our experiments has been asparagus.  We now have about 100 plants (a mixture of Connover's Colossal and Early Argenteuil) in 9cm pots which look ready to be moved on but, frankly, we're not sure what to do next.  I've trawled the internet only to find all sorts of conflicting comments.  We know we have to do some serious work on preparing the permanent asparagus bed involving deep digging to remove weeds and richening up the soil.  In the meantime, do we just leave the young plants in their pots for the rest of the year, should we plant them out into a side bed and leave them there 'til next spring or having cleaned up the ground and added compost, do we plant them straight out into their final positions?

I know we should have thought of all this before but we are rather flying by the seat of our pants this year.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[Barbara]

Asparagus can be grown from seed, but it is easier to plant one-year-old dormant plants, known as crowns, in March. To plant, dig a trench 30cm (12in) wide and 20cm (8in) deep. Work in well-rotted manure to the bottom of the trench and cover the base with a 5cm (2in) layer of the excavated soil.

Make a 10cm-high (4in) ridge of soil down the centre of the trench. Place the crowns on top of this ridge, spacing them 30-45cm (12-18in) apart within the row. Spread the roots evenly and replace the rest of the soil, leaving the bud tips just visible.

Leave 45cm (18in) between rows and stagger the plants between adjacent rows. Water in and mulch with 5cm (2in) of well-rotted manure or other weed-free organic matter.

I found this on the RHS site Bertie's gardener, I'll go see what else I can find. hiya by the way.

[Barbara]

The new seedlings should emerge in about 3 weeks, and as soon as they are large enough they can be thinned out to about 2in apart. Then, once the seedlings reach about 6 inches high, they can be thinned out again to around 18 inches apart. For the rest of the year you just need to keep the beds weeded and the plants well-watered.

If you have bought seed varieties that produce both male and female plants, you will need to remove any female forms as soon as they become identifiable - normally from their berries.

[Rosefriend]

Welcome back...

I am not in the know regarding Asparagus but I see Barbara is helping out....one thing - I remember someone saying that it takes 4 years from sowing to actually getting some asparagus...anyone know if that is true?

[Tig]

I will tag Dutchy, I sent her some seed a few years ago, and I know they grew for her and she has had a crop off them.
Mine self-seed in the border. They need to use the ferny foliage to feed the roots & mature into croppable plants. Look out for asparagus beetle, they devastated mine last year.

[Bertie's gardener]

Many thanks for responses to date. It's a few years since I visited this website and it's good to know that the forum is still populated with such friendly and helpful people.

I'm now edging towards trying to get the permanent site ready as soon as possible and then transplant the young plants within the next month or so. They look as though they would be better off in the ground but I fear weed control may be a problem - we have the dreaded horsetail in the garden!

Rosefriend - I believe the four year thing is true. I've heard that you should leave new crowns for three years. In both cases, I think that although spears will appear earlier than that, it's better not to harvest them so that the young plants develop more strength.

Thanks again. Any further advice would be most welcome.

[Dutchy]

Hi Bertie,

Yes I did grow mine from Tig's seeds.
The first year I had them in containers about a foot wide and deep.
This to give them a fighting chance ( against s&s brigade ) and because Asparagus are never started from seeds in the spot where they will live. This because it works better to prepare the soil for them.
The second year they were planted out on high beds. My clay soil is too wet for growing white asparagus so I went for green.
The difference is simple.
On well drained sandy soil you grow them deep and white.
Make a trench wide enough to take the roots and about a foot deep. put some good compost as a ridge in the trench and gently plave the roots over that so the crown bit sits in the middle.
Back fill and let them come and go the second year. Third year you have things heaped up and can harvest modestly . You start heaping up after removing the yellow stems in autumn of year two and heap up with for example cocopeat.
Asparagus seem to love that ,not real peat but the new stuff from coconuts.

Green Asparagus is what I have and winter wet clay. I have the roots sitting on a ridge that is well above my soil level so they do not drown in Winter. Over the roots I have about 5cm of soil in year two.
No harvesting in this first year ( year two in the asparagus its life ) and in autumn remove all yellow stems above soil and when possible slightly deeper to the crown. This is where asparagus bugs survive in and you need to burn it or remove far from your plants and certainly not on the compost heap.
I have a bad bug infestation as the allotments have people who are less careful. It can't be helped but influences how much I can harvest.
After removing the yellow stems, heap some cocopeat up on the mound to more protect them from cold.
No need to remove that the next Third year. They will grow through.
Disadvantage of green asparagus is that the bugs find them even before you think you can pick some.
I did take some but left things to grow.

The routine of removing the yellow stems and adding a bit of cocopeat or fleece for protection is from then on every autumn.

In Spring when they come up you harvest when they are the length of your hand to that of your foot. Harvesting is from April till 21st of June.
In a moist cloth in the fridge they keep pretty long so no worries if you can only harvest small amounts at a time.

Or when you have bugs big time. ( alas no proper killing mechanism other than catching an flattening hundreds of the monsters and I have given up and hope some day a predator will arrive )
Harvest for a shorter period to give the plants a fighting chance. The top growth is indeed ferny and at first glance young small shoots look like horsetail but the difference will soon be clear to you.

This 4th year they finally fattened up well and from my 5 plants I could harvest three meals for two of 7 asparagus each. Which is not bad at all. The rest was claimed by the asparagus beetles.
If I had the space I would have 5 more plants but my veg plot is best described as bijoux. Even the fruit trees have only 2 meters between them.

I think you will have good fun with them and they are well worth the trouble.
Even when the brdy beetles do arrive.

[Bertie's gardener]

Wow Duchy, thanks so much for such a comprehensive response!

I see the sense in using containers but I'm not sure I can achieve that with so many young plants. I'm tempted to put some into containers or larger pots and plant the rest into a well drained seed bed until next Spring. In the meantime, we can get the permanent bed as well prepared as possible to give them a good start next year.

Does this sound reasonable?

The alternative would seem to be that we get the bed prepared as quickly as possible then and plant them straight into it but I'd prefer not to do that really.

I note what you say about the bugs - we will try to be ready for them!

[Dutchy]

You are welcome Bertie's gardener .
I would in your position also give them a temporary bed and good winter protection.
( but then your location is hopefully not going down to minus 20*C in a normal winter )

With us the wet is a killer because when all things are soaking wet get true winter and the wet soil freezes solid.

Hence the need for planting Asparagus up high with proper drainage.
I hope you can grow them deep as that soooo helps with the blstd beetle.