Have an old bed that yields well. Some of the individual plants have a single stalk . 16-20 “ with nice smaller stalks coming in. Cut the large one or let it go for the smaller ones coming in?

Cut the large one.

So if I understand correctly, if I cut my big plant that grows, the smaller thin ones will get fatter ? is that the purpose ?

Thanks

Thanks

I don't believe they get fatter for you to pick this year they grow and go to seed and will be fatter next year. The seed is the reason to let them go.

If you have an established bed you don't need to worry about the seeding aspect.

I cut all of the stalks until the stalks that come up after them get smaller. I quit when they are pencil sized. Sometimes it is July before I quit on some plants. Each plant is different.

I put 10'' horse manure on top of my beds each fall. Last night I got one spear an inch around.

Pick them about 8'' to 10'' tall. Some people like them shorter.

The smaller thin stalks do not get fatter if you pick the big stalks. They are already the size they will be. The first stalks are typically the fatter ones. Those are the one you eat. As you take more stalks the pant uses it energy to grow them and eventually it starts running out of reserves to grow more shoots. That's when the shoots look thinner. That's when to stop harvesting them. If you keep going they get pretty small because the root system can't keep doing that.

The small thin stalks are male , the fatter stalks female. I have a farmes market friend that planted only male asparagus to get maximum small spears for his farmers market sales.

On my older beds, I pick all the stalks until July 1st. Then, I leave them alone. Newly planted beds, I don't cut the first 3 years.

That's backwards. It's the males that are larger. Many, or most, popular varieties these days are hybridized male only plants because they produce more and larger stalks.

Can you dig roadside asparagus and get it to transplant well? We love it and it grows along the roads but I'd like to bring some home.

I do. It can have a pretty big root ball and it can be a back breaker to dig it but it transplants well. It is very hardy.

I also have some plants growing along the road and the farms pasture fence. Any certain time of year you should dig it and transplant it.

Russ

Thanks. I planted three years ago, and never cut any yet. most are pretty thin. I will let them go another year and see how big they are then.

I dug some out of my daughter's woods and transplanted it in my garden. I moved it mid-summer and it seemed like it maybe didn't take that first year. But, the following spring it was up just fine and has been ever since.

Round up works well !

Spend the money and purchase the "Purple Passion" variety. All male plants and even the long/fat stalks are tender. You will discard the old Martha Washington variety for the Purple.

How do you plant the roots with success? I have tried it. It grows one year and not the next. I think it has to do with planting it to shallow or something.

Growing Asparagus In The Home Garden
HYG-1603-94
Carl J. Cantaluppi

Asparagus is a long-lived perennial vegetable crop that is enjoyed by many gardeners. It can be productive for
15 or more years if given proper care.

Soil requirements
Asparagus grows in most any soil as long as it has good internal drainage. Asparagus roots do not like
waterlogged soils that will lead to root rot. It prefers a soil pH of 6.5-7.5., and will not do well if the pH is less
than 6.0. Have the soil tested to determine phosphorus and potassium needs; or add 20 lbs of a 10-20-10 or
similar analysis fertilizer per 1,000 square feet, tilled to a 6 inch depth before planting.

Planting
Buy one-year-old, healthy, disease-free crowns from a reputable crown grower. A crown is the root system of a
one-year-old asparagus plant that is grown from seed. Each crown can produce 1/2 lb. of spears per year when
fully established. A list of crown growers appears at the end of this fact sheet.
Asparagus can be planted from seed. However, caring for the small seedlings until they become established can
be time consuming. Also, because the seeds are spaced a few inches apart, the crowns will have to be dug and
transplanted to their permanent, wider-spaced location in the garden after one year. Thus, one year of potential
spear production is lost due to transplanting.

Select the new all-male hybrid asparagus varieties such as Jersey Giant, Jersey Prince, and Jersey Knight. These
varieties produce spears only on male plants. Seeds produced on female plants fall to the ground and become a
seedling weed problem in the garden. Female plants also have to expend more energy to produce the seeds that
decreases the yields of asparagus spears on female plants. The all-male hybrids out-yield the old Mary
Washington varieties by 3 to 1.

Asparagus can be planted throughout Ohio from mid-April to late May after the soil has warmed up to about 50
degrees F. There is no advantage to planting the crowns in cold, wet soils. They will not grow until the soil
warms and there is danger of the plants being more susceptible to Fusarium crown rot if crowns are exposed to
cold, wet soils over a prolonged period. Plant the asparagus at either the west or north side of the garden so that
it will not shade the other vegetables and will not be injured when the rest of the garden is tilled.
Dig a furrow no deeper than 5 to 6 inches. Research has shown that the deeper asparagus crowns are planted,
the more the total yield is reduced. Apply about 1 lb. of 0-46-0 (triple superphosphate) or 2 lbs. of 0-20-0
(superphosphate) fertilizer per 50 feet of row in the bottom of the furrow before planting. This will make
phosphorus immediately available to the crowns. Omitting this procedure will result in decreased yields and the
spear production will not be as vigorous.

Toss the crowns into the furrow on top of the fertilizer. The fertilizer will not burn the crowns, and the plants
will grow regardless of how they land so don't bother to spread the roots. Space the crowns 1-1/2 feet apart in
the row. If more than one row is planted, space the rows five feet apart from center to center. Wide
betweenrow spacing is necessary because the vigorously growing fern will fill in the space quickly. Wide spacing also
promotes rapid drying of the fern to help prevent the onset of fungus diseases.

After planting, back fill the furrow to its original soil level. It isn't necessary to gradually cover the crowns with
a few inches of soil until the furrow is filled in. However, do not compact the soil over the newly filled furrow
or the emergence of the asparagus will be severely reduced. Spears should emerge within one week in moist
soils.

Do not harvest the asparagus during the planting year. Spears will be produced from expanded buds on the
crown. As the spears elongate and reach a height of about 8 to 9 inches, the tips will open. The spear will
become woody to support the small branchlets that become ferns. The ferns produce food for the plant and then
move it down to the crown for next year's spear production.

Asparagus is very drought tolerant and can usually grow without supplemental watering because it seeks
moisture deep in the soil. However, if rainfall is insufficient when planting or afterwards, it is beneficial to
irrigate the crowns. Otherwise the plants will become stressed and vigorous growth will be impeded.
Insects and Diseases

Inspect the ferns throughout the season for insect feeding and fern dieback. Asparagus beetles chew on the fern,
causing the stem to turn brown and reducing the yield the next year. Spray the ferns with an approved
insecticide when beetles are seen. For disease prevention, spray with an approved fungicide on a 7 to 14 day
schedule beginning when the ferns reach a 3 to 4 foot height and continuing until mid September.
Do not cut down the fern growth at the end of the growing season. The all-male hybrids stay green until frost,
enabling photosynthesis to occur longer throughout the season. Leave the dead fern growth intact over the
winter. This catches snow for additional soil moisture and keeps the soil temperature about 5 degrees F cooler
than bare soil with no covering of dead fern. The cooler soil temperature is helpful in delaying the early
emergence of asparagus in the spring, when air temperatures might rise prematurely and then fall again,
predisposing the spears to frost damage. Frost-damaged spears should be snapped and discarded.
Remove the old fern growth by cutting or mowing as low as possible during the first week of April in central
Ohio. Dead stalks are very sharp and can easily skin knuckles when harvesting new spears.

Weed Control
Growing Asparagus In The Home Garden, HYG-1603-94 Page 2 of 4
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1603.html 02/07/09
Weed control can be accomplished by hand hoeing and cultivating during the planting year since there are no
herbicides labeled for use in asparagus during the first year. Labeled pre-emergence herbicides may be used
during the second spring, by applying it over the shredded fern, about three weeks before spear emergence
(April 1st in central Ohio). Do not use salt as a weed killer. It will not harm the asparagus, but it inhibits water
penetration in the soil. Also, rains can leach the salt out of the asparagus bed and into the rest of the garden,
injuring other vegetables that are less salt tolerant than asparagus.

Harvesting
Harvest asparagus by snapping 7 to 9 inch spears with tight tips. There is no need to cut asparagus below the
soil with a knife. This may injure other buds on the crown that will send up new spears. The small stub that is
left in the soil after snapping, dries up and disintegrates. A new spear does not come up at the same spot, but
comes up from another bud that enlarges on another part of the crown.
As the tips of the spears start to loosen (known as "ferning out"), fiber begins to develop at the base of the
spears, causing them to become tough. The diameter of the spear has no bearing on its toughness. When
harvesting, the asparagus patch should be picked clean, never allowing any spears to fern out, as this gives
asparagus beetles an excellent site to lay their eggs.

The year after planting, asparagus can be harvested several times throughout a three-week period, depending on
air temperatures. Research shows there is no need to wait two years after planting before harvesting. In fact,
harvesting the year after planting will stimulate more bud production on the crown and provide greater yields in
future years, as compared with waiting two years before harvesting.

Asparagus spears will start to emerge when the soil temperature reaches 50 degrees F. After this, growth of
asparagus is dependent on air temperature. Early in the season, 7 to 9 inch spears might be harvested every 2 to
4 days. As air temperatures increase, harvesting frequencies will increase to once or twice per day, harvesting 5
to 7 inch spears before the tips start to fern out and lose quality. The second year after planting, the length of
harvest can increase to about 4 to 6 weeks. The third year after planting and thereafter, harvesting can continue
for 6 to 8 weeks. Since the length of harvest season will vary from year-to-year depending on air temperature,
stop the harvest when the diameter of 3/4 of the spears becomes small (less then 3/8 inch). Experience gained
by growing the crop will make it easier for the gardener to know when to discontinue the harvest.
When harvest is finished, snap all the spears off at ground level. Apply 1/2 lb. of ammonium nitrate fertilizer
per 50 feet of row . At this time, a home garden formulation of glyphosate non-selective herbicide (such as
Roundup) can be sprayed on the asparagus patch. This will kill any existing weeds. New spears will then
emerge, fern out, and provide a large canopy to cover the space between the rows. Once a dense fern canopy is
formed, weed growth will be shaded out.

Storage
Asparagus is very perishable and should be harvested in the morning when air temperatures are cool. After
picking, immerse the spears in ice-cold water to remove the heat; then drain the water and place the spears in
plastic bags. Store in the refrigerator at 38 to 40 degrees F. Asparagus will keep for 1 to 2 weeks with little loss
of quality.

Nix the Roundup unless you want to make millions in the class action suit. Seriously we are organic and go to a farmers market so some things are out.