Crop Rotation Group
Miscellaneous
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Soil
Fertile, well drained, and free of persistent weeds.
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Position
Full sun to partial afternoon shade.
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Frost tolerant
Long-lived hardy perennial. Beds can produce for decades.
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Feeding
Mulch with 2 inches of rich compost or rotted manure every winter.
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Companions
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Spacing
Single Plants: 1' 5" (45cm) each way (minimum)
Rows: 1' 5" (45cm) with 1' 5" (45cm) row gap (minimum)
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Sow and Plant
Set out dormant 1-year old roots, called crowns, in late winter or early spring. A few varieties can be grown from seed.
Our Garden Planning Tool can produce a personalized calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area.
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Notes
After the stems die back in early winter, cut them off at ground level and compost them. Remove weeds, apply compost and mulch, and your yearly maintenance is done.
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Harvesting
Begin gathering spears the second year after planting, cutting all spears that appear for a month in early spring. In subsequent years, harvest for 6 weeks each spring.
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Troubleshooting
Cutting new shoots just below the surface often helps control problems with asparagus beetles, which often lay their eggs on tender shoots near the soil line.
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