Searched but didn't find Asparagus answer

[btrowe1]

I heavily mulched my 1st year asparagus plantings. Winter has now gone and things are beginning to wake up, Question I have is should I remove the heavy mulch layer I have on the asparagus. It is leaves and such.Or just place more compost over this and hope the asparagus grows through.

Thanks as always..

[jal_ut]

I would be tempted to rake back that mulch. You should be seeing growth by now.

[tomc]

Its early yet for Glens Falls. Your asparagus will grow through the mulch. Once you have ferns then you can apply manure.

[btrowe1]

Okay, 3 responses would help with an answer here..

Haha, Just kidding..

What have others done with their 2nd year starting beds or someone must have a bed,What do you do every year??

How do you put your little green goodness sticks to bed at the end of the growing season and then wake them up??

That just reads wrong, but you get the question..

As always Thanks

Happy Tuesday..

[tomc]

if you start from seed the grown up "fern" looks like the lead of a #2 pencil. A five year old crown pushes up pretty male looking spear that grow into six foot tall ferns.

I mulch my asparagus thickly in the fall. After spears get spindly and I stop cutting asparagus I manure beds and them mulch with straw or, grass clippings, or leaves, late in the spring.

My goal is to feed my asparagus well and weed as little as I can.

Some folks chop frosted ferns late in the fall, I just cover them up.

Water when drouthy. Never ever use salt to suppress weeds, it mostly does not work and is an environmental disaster.

[imafan26]

I don't have a winter.

I cut all of the fronds down about March. I only harvest from the older crowns that have spears larger than a no 2 pencil. I can harvest twice a day for about 2-6 weeks . Then I put some more compost and a little manure on them and let them grow through summer

In September, I can cut the tops down again for a second round of twice daily harvests, and I repeat the compost and manure and I throw in some bulb food.

I planted my asparagus the traditional way by digging an 18 inch deep trench. Working some compost, manure and bulb food in to the bottom and planted the crowns and seeds of Mary Washington, I started.
Every year the roots grow up and I fill in the trench a little more. I used to pull the female fronds, but I almost lost my patch so, now I keep them all. I just got some Jersey knights this year so I extended my asparagus hedge a little longer.

[feldon30]

Mary Washington

I'm impressed with your results in Hawai'I! Have you looked into asparagus varieties developed in Texas? They might do even better for you.

[jal_ut]

In the spring, I cut the shoots for six weeks, then fertilize (urea) and water and let it grow up. After frost I run the lawn mower over it then mulch it with grass clippings. During the season from about June 1 it gets watered once a week when the rest of the garden gets watered.

[btrowe1]

Okay, removed a good portion of my mulch, found that I do indeed have asparagus growing,very white.believe this is due to it being covered,I do see white asparagus in stores.

The spears are bigger than a #2 pencil,(some not all) about 3 pencils in size of them in size.Not all crowns are sprouting yet, But once we get another warm spell I'm sure more will sprout.I planted 40 crowns last spring.

Question, being as it is 2nd year how many of these can I pick or should I just leave them be for the 3rd year Then begin to pick??.. Do I harvest them all or just pick those that are #2 pencil size and leave the small ones to fern up?

Very interesting crop asparagus is. Doesn't seem like there is a lot to do to grow it.

[imafan26]

The white asparagus you see in the stores were blanched or covered to block light so the spears remain white. If they are allowed to see the light, they would turn green.

I can harvest my asparagus twice a day. I take any that are 4-6 inches long and thicker than a number 2 pencil. After that I will feed and let them grow again. Usually in the second year I only get a two week harvest. After the clump is established I can harvest for 4-6 weeks or until the stalks are no. 2 pencil size around March for me (no snow) and again in September.

[jal_ut]

Yes, you can harvest some this year. Probably take it all for a month. Or, just take the larger ones. You decide. For sure, when you are done cutting, fertilize and water it well and let it fern up until frost.

[imafan26]

I just added some Jersey Knight crowns this year that Walmart brought in. Mary Washington seeds are about the only kind of asparagus that I can usually get. Guerney used to ship them here and I got crowns from them years ago, but now most companies will not ship bulbs or plants to Hawaii and Alaska.
Park Seed charges an additional $20 on any order from Hawaii and that was for seeds.

If you know of any companies that will ship onions and asparagus crowns to Hawaii I would like to know.

I would like to try different onions, but Texas granex actually does pretty well and that is the seeds I use. It is the seeds that are used for sweet Maui Onions. I can't get bulbs but if there are onion seeds of southern varieties that would be fine. I start onions from seeds anyway.

I usually only see asparagus plants offered, but I can also do seeds with them too. It takes just 12 weeks longer and for a twenty year crop, I can wait.

[feldon30]

Dixondale Farms charges $2 extra per bunch for shipments to Hawaii. Not sure if that is absurd or acceptable.

[btrowe1]

I have both Jersey knight and Mary Washington growing in my bed, Both look pretty much the same,Guess I'll see the difference when it gets a bit bigger..