When is the best time to transplant? These roots are 3-5 yrs old and will be given to me for the taking. Any preferred method?

Generally early spring I do believe so they have all summer to get rooted down.

Asparagus is not good to dig and transplant from my experience

I haven't transplanted live plants. I bought roots from the farm supply store that looked dead.......planted them and they grew. Some of them.......had to replant a couple times to get it all filled in. I've heard once they're well-established you can't hardly get rid of them.

My buddy has a patch It's about 10 years old and still going strong. He gave me 10 lbs today and I pickled about 7 Lbs.

I haven't transplanted any but I know they have large fleshy roots in kind of a large crown shape. That and they need time to get established when planted. So I would assume great care would need to be taken to get the entire root and crown without to much damage and done so at a time of year that gives them the best shot at survival and establishment.

All is forgiven by dormancy.

It is best to dig them in the spring like stated and make you have alot of dirt with the crowns. Make sure you water them when no rain and if you can get some old manure of cow you put it in the bottom of the hole before you plant the crown and once they are planted the next year let them go and then after that you can cut them the years after. You will not need to move them after Just have to keep the weeds down in the spring to find them for you to cut them. I transplant some some years ago from out around me it grows in the ditches and found some and dig it up in the spring and now that is some years ago and still produce .

X2 im with coydog2 with one exception you might get female plants which are never big around. I would order some Jersey Knight crowns next spring all male plants and as big around as a large thumb.

I just transplanted a bunch of volunteer asparagus that has been growing in my grapes for the last couple of years. Since they must have been started from seed, I have no idea what variety they are. I have Jersey Knight, Mary Washington, and Purple Passion in my patch so these are probably some combination of these three.

The last couple of years they put up good looking asparagus (never tried it) so I moved them into the asparagus patch. I moved them after the stalks were a few inches long. When I've planted asparagus before it was from dormant roots so I didn't know if this would work or not. The transplants wilted pretty bad the next day and I thought they weren't going to make it but a good soaking brought them back. It's been 2 or 3 weeks and all looks good so far.

I moved them with a root ball the size of my shovel head.

Thanks for the info.

I had a bed of asparagus that I wanted to move. I called a garden center and asked them what would be the easiest way to move. The man at the garden center asked me if I owned a back hoe. He said if I didn’t own a back hoe then it would be easier to purchase new plants to plant.

That's true beeman, Digging established plants are like digging tree stumps.

Before the heat arrives.

Yep!! Dug some volunteer plants along the pasture.Will get the backhoe next time. I'd say a couple year maybe three year old plants. Never got them to take a hold. I just mark them now and go around and cut them when ready. I will look for new plants in the fall when they turn golden color.

Russ