Asparagus Season

The first shoot of 2010

The heck with the groundhog or tax-day, the real harbinger of spring has arrived! Asparagus shoots came up overnight in all three of my beds planted with the herbaceous perennial. I was surprised at how synchronized their emergence was since they're planted in quite different soils, microclimates, and their ages differ by 15 years.

Zuni waffle garden of asparagus and a few other perennial herbs

I planted a couple dozen 2nd year rootstock 3 winters ago (best Christmas present ever!), and so I'm looking forward to my first full harvest season, as you can only harvest in limited quantities the second year, and none the first. The other 2 beds are much smaller, but filled with persistent asparagus planted by previous owners, yet with regular feeding, they're still productive. Last fall, after clearing off the dried stalks of last year's full grown asparagus 'ferns', I fertilized the Zuni-inspired waffle garden with well composted chicken manure and leaf mold. Blowing sand from the adjacent 'beach' provides the perfect mix of rich and sandy soil amendment. I'll harvest the shoots before they're 7" tall and turning woody, for the next 5 weeks.

From My Garden: Summer Asparagus?

An August shoot of asparagus

Asparagus is one of the most time-sensitive crops in my garden. For 6 weeks in the late spring, muscular shoots draw moisture from the snow-melt still stored in the soil and force their way upward to find light. These pale white shoots, supple enough to eat raw, emerge through even the driest, crusty clay soil. When they do find sunlight, nutrients stored in the large perennial root force the shoots to green and grow rapidly. Each day, shoots can grow 6 inches or more, and the folded triangular bracts common at the tip of asparagus start to elongate into branches with the growing stalk. If you miss the harvest for a even a single day, the stalk turns woody, and unharvested, these shoots grow into a 3-5' fern-like plant.

Feathery 'leaves' and flowers of mature asparagus

Life cycle, meet farmer. Mature plants are usually harvested for 4-6 weeks starting in late April in my shadowy canyon. My most productive asparagus bed was planted 15 years ago by previous owners of this lot and still has enough vigor to indicate at least another few productive years. A couple of years ago I also planted 40 root-crowns in my waffle garden of perennials. I've yet to harvest any shoots, but interestingly, this bed of young root stock has continued to produce new shoots throughout the summer. In contrast, the older asparagus bed thrives on the original stalks that are allowed to mature after harvesting ends in late May.