Getting Started with Asparagus

Asparagus has so much going for it, yet it’s sometimes overlooked by gardeners. Don’t let that be you! Asparagus is very hardy in our northern zones and, even more importantly, it’s a perennial vegetable. Who doesn’t love a veggie that keeps coming back every year? Those asparagus crowns that you plant today could produce for a decade or more—how’s that for a phenomenal return on your investment?

How to plant asparagus

Give your asparagus a strong start by planting it in the proper place. Sun is a must, and well-drained soil is another key factor. A sandy loam works well.

Beyond the parameters of sun and soil, it’s important to remember that, unlike putting in a tomato plant that will only be in the ground for a few months, planting asparagus is a years-long commitment, so the location you choose is important. Consider all the activity in your other garden beds—you’ll be rotating other plants each year, after all—and also consider the mature height of asparagus. Will it shade the other plants you plan to have around it? Is it a location that’s ideal for the long haul?

While you can grow asparagus from seed, it’s much more common to plant one-year-old asparagus crowns. This gives you a jumpstart of an entire year, which is especially nice when you consider that asparagus takes about three years from seed to harvest.

You can plant asparagus crowns as soon as the soil can be worked in the spring. Asparagus is usually planted in wide trenches, 6 to 8 inches deep and at least 12 inches wide.  Fill the bottom of the trench with a couple of inches of loose soil and add the asparagus crowns with the roots pointing down. You can make mounds of compost in the trench about 18 inches apart and drape the crowns over each mound, or you can just place the crowns in the trench without making mounds.

Cover the crowns with 2 to 3 inches of soil. Over the next few weeks, continue to occasionally backfill with the loose soil as the asparagus grows until the trench is eventually filled in. (Some gardeners opt to skip the gradual backfilling and instead fill the trench at the time of planting.)

Weeds can be problematic for asparagus, especially for newly planted crowns. Be diligent about weeding, but also be gentle—you don’t want to weed vigorously around your asparagus while it’s still getting established. Mulch can be a helpful way to control weed growth.

Asparagus varieties

As far as varieties, look for both green and purple asparagus. Millennium is a popular green hybrid variety, and Purple Passion and Mary Washington are tried-and-true open-pollinated varieties. The well-known Jersey series (including Jersey Giant, Jersey Knight, and Jersey Supreme) was discontinued as of 2021 and only a few retailers still have these varieties available.

Harvesting asparagus

Now for the delicious part! Once the asparagus is established in your garden (about two years after planting crowns), you can begin to harvest the spears. Wait until the spears are about 8 inches tall, then snap them off near the soil line by hand (it’s better to snap the spears than cut them). Continue to harvest regularly and avoid allowing any spears to grow too tall.

For mature, established asparagus plants, you can figure on continuing to harvest all throughout the month of June. It’s then recommended that you stop harvesting and allow the plants to produce their fern-like foliage (this foliage helps ensure that the plants store up enough energy for next growing season).

Asparagus is not for the impatient, but once it’s established in your garden you’ll enjoy it for years to come—it’s definitely worth the wait!

Samantha Johnson is the author of several books, including Vegetable Gardening for Beginners: Learn to Grow Anything No Matter Where You Live (New Shoe Press, 2023). She writes frequently about pets, gardening and farm life. Visit her online portfolio at https://authory.com/SamanthaJohnson.