Asparagus

 

Spring 2025

This year has been a little weird. for asparagus. It started coming up during spring break, so April 14-18. It has been a really warm spring so far, but we were still having cool nights. But the stalks coming up are very thin. I've been harvesting them, but they are much thinner than they have ever been. Did I take too many last year? I felt like I took too few and let them go to plant too soon.

It's so cute! Can't wait to begin harvesting this. I love that is it a perennial and will grow for years to come!

Harvesting Asparagus

The plant will begin to produce shoots when the soil temperatures reach around 50°. 

At the beginning you're going to be able to harvest every two to four days. The first harvests produce very thin shoots, you can eat it, it's just a little bit small. 

The shoots will starting to thicken up as time progresses now as the air temperatures warm up you'll be able to harvest your asparagus every day. You'll want to keep on it so that the plants don't get too big. We want to harvest shoots that are between seven and nine inches tall. 

It's best to harvest asparagus in the morning and then put it in the water immediately after you harvest. Dry it and then store it in a plastic bag.

The length or the duration of the asparagus harvest is going to vary from year to year. Typically it lasts about 6 to 8 weeks, so maybe from end of April to Mid-June.

When you’re harvesting asparagus, even if they’re overgrown, you want to remove it to allow the asparagus to continue producing. A good rule of thumb is to end harvest when 3/4 of the shoots are less than the diameter of the tip of my pinky finger. Following that final harvest new shoots are going to emerge from your asparagus and they'll begin to fern out and produce foliage which is going to start storing energy in the roots for next year’s crop.

Growing Asparagus

After watering, it’s a wise choice to mulch over your patch or row with a thick layer of organic matter – straw works best here. 

Fertilize annually with a balanced 10-10-10 fertilizer each spring. 

When the spears appear in spring, harvest them when they are 6 to 10 inches above the soil line, but before the flower buds are open. Simply cut or snap off the spears at ground level. Continue harvesting for six to eight weeks, but no later than July 1.

If you notice decreased production and vigor in your asparagus plants, stop harvesting and let the plant store energy for next season. Any spears that reach a height of more than 10 inches should be allowed to continue growing to build root systems and energy for next year.

First harvest: The first year after planting, you can harvest a few spears from each plant. Pick for about two weeks and then stop so the fronds can unfold and begin feeding the root system. Harvest for three weeks the next year, and four to six weeks after that. Pick too much, and your plants will not be able to develop the strong root system and energy reserves they'll need to produce an abundant crop of spears the following season. you notice a decline in robustness after several years, you may want to divide and transplant your asparagus.

To Do: Increase height of Strawberry and Asparagus beds to 6' to accommodate tall asparagus fronds. MUST have easy to open gate to harvest strawberries. Reuse fencing for broccoli bed.