I have planted two year old asparagus crowns this year?
Question:They have sprouted some little spears and seem quite healthy. I know I shouldn't harvest them this year, but what should I do with them (apart from feeding and watering!)? Leave them alone altoghether? or cut them back?
Answers:
Leave the shoots alone this year and they will grow up into ferns. When these ferns turn brown and start to die, cut them down to within 5cm from the soil. Next year, if the shoots are bigger that your little finger, cut only a few from each plant and let the remainder continue to grow into ferns as before. The year after, cut most of it but leave the thin spindly ones. Feed well with manuer or asparagus salt
Leave them alone - cutting them back is the same thing as harvesting them and you want to keep as much greenery on as possible to feed the rest of the plant!
Prepare a pan with some butter, herbs (if desired) and seasoning - very lightly fry the best few and leave the weediest ones until late in the season - at which point they will rot away.
Leave well alone or you could well kill them. The plants need to be mature before they can take the strain of having all their young shoots cut off for the pot. This year the plant will get larger and more established but even next year only cut a few spears and for no more than 3 weeks. The following year you should be able to go at it for the full 5 to 6 week cutting season - usually from the beginning of May to the first week in June. Don't be tempted to keep cutting as the plant then needs to put out its leaves to get its energy for the next year. I grew the stuff for years and it is well worth it but they do take space up and need heavy manuring and looking after to get the best out of them.
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