Sweetfeet..How's your Asparagus?

I was wondering how your asparagus turned out this year?? Did you try the salt to keep the weeds out? My asparagus is all done for the season. I gave so much away and froze some. I can't believe the people who want asparagus and it's so easy to grow...LOL!

John B.,

It never came up. Going to have to try another planting (then will try the salt).

Don't know why I can't seem to grow asparagus. My first planting never grew. Second planting I got one plant that never did well. Third planting lasted 2 years, but never produced that much. I do ok with everything else in the garden - so will have to do some reading about asparagus I guess.

Seetfeet when you plant the crowns of asparagus be sure to plant them a minimum of 8" deep. It will take a while for them to shoot out of the ground but they will eventually come out.

Have you ever had a soil test on your garden?

John B.,

I thought maybe I have been planting them too deep... but probably 8-10 inches.

No, I have never had a soil test of the garden - maybe I should do that. Before it was garden it was hog or cattle pasture for a gazillion years. But maybe it is lacking in something.

I plant mine that deep but just cover the crowns, when they grow I keep covering until all the dirt is back in the hole, or in my case ,trench. I always leave a little green showing. I plowed deeper then that and put horse manure in the trench, then dirt ,then the crowns

BSpauld,
Thanks. Going to try it again. I did make a trench, put some Cosmos (?) plant food in it and planted the crowns basically in pete moss.

Our raised beds are 20 yrs old now. In the fall we cut the stalks down, and throw the female bows with the berries back on as mulch and cover with an inch or two of cow poo. Has worked well for us. It takes 4 yrs to establish a bed with large stalks. Many of ours are now the size off hoe handles and remain tender until 12-16" tall We quit harvesting the 5th of June this year.
Loren, the Acg.

Loren AGC,

If the ground gets fit to till - can I still plant some this year, just to get it established?

Thanks.

The peat moss maybe your trouble. It is not the best for nutrients.

I do not think you still have any livestock. So get a load of manure NOW. Put it in a pile. Add your yard waste the rest of the summer, grass clipping now and leaves in the fall. If you have a loader turn the pile once every thirty days. IF no loader, shovel time. You are just making your own compost.

Then this fall cover the garden with half of it. Leave the other half until spring. Then work your garden like normal. When planting make your trench and put some compost in the trench, not a lot just a few inches. Then take your hoe and drag it through/along the bottom of the trench a few times. Mix the compost with the dirt so it is not too hot for your plants.

This will give your plants the best of both worlds. The compost for nutrients and the dirt for their roots.

Then I put some compost around the plants as they grow and work that in with a hoe. A year or two of this and you will have a much better garden. Truthfully most pastures are short on nutrients. I would bet that you garden's soil is not that good.

If your garden is low and you can stand some additional dirt. Find a farmer that feeds round bales of hay in one spot in his pasture/lots. If he has done this for a few years that is some great dirt. It has some manure for nutrients and the left over hay for organic matter. Get a few loads and cover your garden with that dirt. You will have much better luck.

I filled some flower beds a long a new side walk that way a few years ago. I put ONE tomato plant in one of the beds. I got over fifty tomatoes off that plant the first year. The wife's cannans grew 7-8 feet tall too.

I planted mine 19 years ago and they're still going strong. Planted them 18" deep with a mixture of peat moss and fertilizer. You need to wait at least 3 years before you begin harvesting. We ridge ours so we can have white asparagus. As for as how deep to plant, Weather and ground conditions play a major factor there

I mixes manure 50% with black dirt when I Planted mine.

David G.,

Others have said that too - and dad always used to use it... so guess I will have to get some.

BIG RUH,

Thanks. Will use everyone's advice and give this one last try.

JD Seller,

Thanks. Will try to use everyone's advice: soil test, manure, planting depth... and salt if it grows.

I may have to buy "manure" bags at the greenhouse - you are right that we no longer have livestock and I really don't know anyone that has any available either. (Plus, don't want to bug anyone).

Keep the weeds down by hand for the first few years. I added salt to mine & killed it with the weeds when it was small.