This week we cleaned up the asparagus beds from the weeds they acquired over winter. We also took the opportunity to trim back the dead fronds from last year.
For those who don't know, asparagus is a perennial that you can harvest each year. However, you're playing a long game with this crop as you shouldn't harvest the first two years. You should allow the fronds to grow and create strong plants and roots.
You can see from the first two pictures that the dead first year fronds were quite thin and wispy. However you can see a familiar looking asparagus top poking through in the last pic thats much thicker. Those are the start of our second year fronds which should be about the size of a normal shoot you'd see in the store.
Still have to wait until next year to enjoy our asparagus though. Then they will be well established and healthy. If we keep them healthy they will expand from the crowns and if not a hybrid, they will produce seeds and self sow to expand.
Anyone else experimenting with this cool plant?
For those who don't know, asparagus is a perennial that you can harvest each year. However, you're playing a long game with this crop as you shouldn't harvest the first two years. You should allow the fronds to grow and create strong plants and roots.
You can see from the first two pictures that the dead first year fronds were quite thin and wispy. However you can see a familiar looking asparagus top poking through in the last pic thats much thicker. Those are the start of our second year fronds which should be about the size of a normal shoot you'd see in the store.
Still have to wait until next year to enjoy our asparagus though. Then they will be well established and healthy. If we keep them healthy they will expand from the crowns and if not a hybrid, they will produce seeds and self sow to expand.
Anyone else experimenting with this cool plant?