Planted several Asparagus plants last season. They came back this season but were really thin. How many years should I wait to harvest - and when will they get thicker than a pencil? :-)
- posted
10 years ago
Asparagus harvesting?
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10 years ago
It takes 2-3 years. Then, you have to stop harvesting when new shoots are again very thin.
Feed and water as you would other plants in your garden. Leave the billowy "ferns" in place until they turn yellow in the fall.
When you cut the yellowed plants, leave a 3-inch stub as a marker so you can see where to expect new edible shoots the following spring. If you get snow in the winter, Sunset recommends leaving the dead growth to hold snow in place, which will protect the roots from even colder temperatures. (Fortunately, that is not a problem in my climate.)
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10 years ago
Yes, wait at least two years before you harvest any asparagus. Don't let them flower. And you might need to move them around in about 5 years. Generous fertilizer is a plus.
Chris
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10 years ago
Chris said
Thanks for your help guys.
How do I stop them from flowering? Cut off any attempts for flowers to form?
(Sorry, newby here) :-)
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10 years ago
Why not let them flower? Just what are you going to do about it?
Why move them in 5 years?
David
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10 years ago
The bigger, the better.
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10 years ago
The flowers are tiny and scattered over the plant. Don't bother trying to stop them or remove them.
Asparagus shares a characteristic with certain other plants -- including ginkgo and ash trees and date palms -- that there are separate male plants and female plants. If you have female asparagus plants, you might get berries. If they ripen (turning bright red) and fall off, you will soon have even more asparagus plants, some where you don't want them. In that case, you might trim away parts of the plants that have berries turning red.