By Jill: When John and I moved our family to Vermont we were lucky enough to end up in a rental house with an established bed of asparagus.

Dr. Leonard Perry, Extension Professor University of Vermont Planting asparagus, making raised beds, and dividing rhubarb are some of the gardening activities for this month. Other than artichokes, capers and rhubarb, asparagus is the only perennial vegetable regularly featured in North American cuisine - it will send up those slender, succulent stalks each spring for decades if it is given a happy home. Crown planted asparagus can be harvested in carefully in the 2nd year and fully in the third year. Late spring frosts can kill emerged spears, so find an area that is not low-lying or exposed to frost. Soak the crowns in compost tea for 20 minutes before planting. A perennial crop, established asparagus plants will provide an annual crop of tasty spears for up to 20 years. John and I both enjoyed asparagus but the children didn’t really like it…but they were young!

Choose a spot in full sun for these long-lived perennials. Our Garden Planner can produce a personalized calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area. University of Vermont Planting asparagus, making raised beds, and dividing rhubarb are some of the gardening activities for this month.

In my cold Vermont climate, the last frost happens the first week of June. The frost won't freeze them but this will protect the spears. When you plant asparagus from seed, you’re one year behind schedule compared with planting asparagus crowns.

How to Plant Asparagus By Brian Barth on April 3, 2015 Apr 03, 2015 Brian Barth Done right, planting a bed of asparagus is a once-in-a-generation affair.

As soon as the soil thaws and is dry enough to work in, plant bare-root asparagus crowns. Asparagus plants … Start the seeds indoors 10 to 12 weeks before the last expected frost date in your area. Summer growth allows asparagus roots to grow large and store energy for the following year’s spears. Stakes and string will keep plants upright. Asparagus officinalis, you should know, is precisely the same plant you buy in the store.It is not, strictly speaking, wild. Single Plants: 1' 5" (45cm) each way (minimum) Rows: 1' 5" (45cm) with 1' 5" (45cm) row gap (minimum) Sow and Plant. A few varieties can be grown from seed. A planting of asparagus can last 15 years or more, so choose the spot for an asparagus bed carefully. If the weather turns colder and you have asparagus spears already up in your garden, simply cover them with hay, mulch, blankets, anything!

Fertilizer: Spread a phosphorus fertilizer in the bottom of the trench. After harvest, let the plant’s fernlike foliage grow tall. Notes Asparagus Planting As soon as the soil thaws and is dry enough to work in, plant bare-root asparagus crowns.

Summer. To plant asparagus crowns, dig trenches 12 inches wide and 6 inches deep (8 inches in sandy soil) down the center of the prepared bed. This question came in a week ago when the nights were in the 20s and this being Vermont, that could happen again!

Weeds will compete with asparagus plants for nutrients and diminish both yield and spear size. Growing Asparagus from Seed. Avoid growing asparagus in shady spots, heavy clay soil or containers. Choose a fertile, sunny, well-drained site with soil that holds moisture well. Asparagus is a crop that thrives when started from seed and those plants that are derived from home-grown stock tend to be larger and more robust than store-bought crowns. How to Plant Asparagus By Brian Barth on April 3, 2015 Apr 03, 2015 Brian Barth Done right, planting a bed of asparagus is a once-in-a-generation affair.

During the harvest period (traditionally spring, but see below for summer harvest instructions), the spears develop daily from underground crowns.

A single row of asparagus plants set 15 inches apart will fill in to form a 24- inch-wide bed, or you can grow a double row in a 36-inch-wide bed.

A 0-20-0 fertilizer is ideal (the numbers and dashes describe the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, respectively, in a …

It is one of the most valuable of the early vegetables and is well adapted to freezer storage. Choose the spot you will grow your asparagus carefully.

Set out dormant 1-year old roots, called crowns, in late winter or early spring. Asparagus needs lots of space to grow and thrives in sheltered, sunny sites with well-drained soil. That means I’ll need to plant asparagus seed in …