Harvesting asparagus

[Smart Red]

I just remembered, last year I tossed half a year of rabbit manure into the bed and spread it around.

 

[Rick494]

Like Smart Red, I only harvest mine when they're about pencil thick. I add composted manure every spring, and harvest until about June, leaving it alone until the ferns die off in late fall. I planted another bed this spring, but perhaps I should be taking better care of them. The one bed has been going strong for 7-8 years so far.

 

[Smart Red]

Like Smart Red, I only harvest mine when they're about pencil thick.

You do mean at least a pencil thick or thicker don't you?

Once the spears are thinner than a pencil I let them go to leaf. That's when they make food for next year's spears.

 

[bills]

I agree, leave the thinner spears to fern. It will pay back in big fat spears the next year. I have a good production of spears that are huge..some are at least 2" in diameter at their bases. When you start getting ones like that, it's pretty easy to leave the smaller ones to grow..

 

[JimWWhite]

What they say. We started getting big, fat spears almost a month ago and I don't see them quitting any time soon. We have one 4'x8' box that Teresa planted I think 20 crowns in four years ago. There are still some of the thin ones we let go to fern. I guess there always be some that do this. This is a great, possibly our best year for asparagus this year.

 

[nachoqtpie]

Well only 3 crowns came up this year. Our chucked got in the bed and really made a mess of things! Tore out almost all of our strawberries, 2 of our rhubarb, and a couple of our asparagus! Dang birds! I really think I might need to put a cage around that bed. Lol