Asparagus

[Rudi]

Bill:

I know it is kind of confusing, maybe even a bit oxymoronic.. but best way I could transmit what I was trying to say. I know that salt is not good for gardens... but they seem to indicate that asparagus because it is a maritime plant, likes it and does well with it. How do you give your asparagus bed salt and somehow prevent it from leaching over to the other plants in the larger bed? Or is it a concern?

That is what I meant.. to add salts around the asparagus but not around the less salt tolerant other veggies and stuff? Does that make any sense?

... Now here is another question for you. If asparagus really needs some localized salt, can it be added to a mixed use bed without disastrous results to say the lavender, rosemary, thyme and rhubarb that would be close beside it?

Maybe I will be successful next year.


Thanks.

Rudi,

Help me out here, "localized salt?' Translate please.

Bill

[Rudi]

Bill:

I planted it in the fall cause my slightly nutty friend from the north end of the boot, said I should. Last time I listen to him...

I see also that planting should be done in the spring.. as Bev did. And I think I have the Martha Washingtons..

Asparagus has both male and female plants. When you plant seed you gets what you get. You can buy selected plants you can get all female for best results. Bev planted hers in the spring and I just noticed you planted in the fall.

Em said tonight as we went to Capt Dan's for all ya can eat Cod ... , that the one who planted then roto-tilled the previous crop might do well to fertilize in fall and plant in spring. I wonder who she meant I been trying to rectify that problem for 6 years now, with NO success whatsoever... and now I really like the stuff whereas back then I wouldn't eat it ifn I was starving...

[Bill Hudson]

... I know that salt is not good for gardens... but they seem to indicate that asparagus because it is a maritime plant, likes it and does well with it. How do you give your asparagus bed salt and somehow prevent it from leaching over to the other plants in the larger bed? Or is it a concern?
...

Rudi,

To answer question #1: You don't. Salt will move with the water and where do roots go? Where the water is in the upper soil profile = not good.

Question #2: Yup. I wouldn't do it

Try what was suggested in the Fact Sheet, with appropriate modifications for your location, and see what happens. If you get lots of asparagus, no need for salt. Save it for the table, not that you can use a lot there either.

Bill

[beaconlight]

Words of wisdom from the mouth of EM. I can't figure out who she meant either.

[SONNY]

We had some, but it seemed to grow only where and when it wanted to!!---Touchy stuff!----A friend has it growing among weeds in their garden and don't do anything to it other than buy a bundle of plants from a nursery in the spring and plant it!!---no fert., no cultivating----3rd year----great big harvest!!!--UNREAL!!! thanks; sonny

[Buzzard Wing]

Shows that I don't pay much attention to anything but the 'Cub' part of this board..... but happened to notice this post and since my second favorite subject after Cubs is asparagus....

First I should start by saying most ANYTHING will grow and grow well on my island and it's sad that I only have a city lot. But about 15 years ago I widened my driveway and has some of our fine soil left over so I made a raised bed with it. Grew some beautiful cauliflower (from bare root mail-order plants) and such for the first couple of years. Then I planted the asparagus. Best thing I ever did. Bill and the others have schooled you well, so I may repeat them.

The plants are over my head, hiding a huge rhodedendron right now (early August). What I believe is key to my success was quality rootstock. Like hops, good asparagus has a 'sex' and you don't want it to pollenate. Hops are female flowers and the plant is also grown from rootstock. Asparagus is male. Seeds are NOT the way to plant asparagus, means it got pollenated somewhere along the way and will not give you good results.

I have had excellent results with everything I have gotten from Miller Nurseries in upstate NY, except the dang deer liked the walnut tress in Maine and I screwed up on the pruning of my dwarf pear tree (3 varieties on one tree). What I planted was 'Super Male' (sorry, Rudi... says they don't ship to CA) http://www.millernurseries.com/cart.php ... tail&p=198

It is truly a lazy gardeners dream come true for me.... I harvest it in early spring and 'mow' it with a pair of hedge clippers in late winter, very early spring...... That's it! The other year I 'mulched' it with a good compost to kill the weeds after the asparagus was all 'up' and that is all I have ever done to it. Sure beats mowing the lawn that would have been there. It's a pretty plant and looks great, especially in the snow.

I would have an acre or more of it if I could.

Water is very expensive here (city keeps getting fined for dumping sewage into the bay/ocean in big rains) so I almost never water anything. Asparagus is so deep that it never seems to have a problem in dry spells.

Hope that helps some Rudi..... find a good source of rootstock, plant deep and in a few years you will enjoy an awesome treat very early in the growing season every year!!

Larry

[Rudi]

Well I guess that pretty much solves it huh? Ok, so I guess I will add manure and amendments in the fall and then nice good root stock in the spring and see what happens. Will probably order some from Vesey's.. and see what happens there.

Thanks all, I appreciate it immensely.

[Eugene]

I am extending an asparagus patch started this spring.

A couple of weeks ago I picked berries (seeds) from an older patch. Mostly Martha Washington and some sort of supposedly all male, blue, giant variety. Today I dug off the top foot of soil and set it aside. Then loosened the next foot. Scattered the seeds, covered with about 1/4 inch of soil. I will fertilize the patch a bit later this fall. The top soil that was set aside will put back in the patch as the asparagus grows.

[Buzzard Wing]

Eugene, although the 'seeds' may grow I think you will be disappointed with the results. Of course, I don't know a whole lot about it, but I think most (all) of them won't be pollenated as the best plants are strictly males. The ones that have come up from the seeds are spindly and have never amounted to much. The roots are still going strong after at least 15 years. And the plants are at least 10' tall now (end of the growing season here)


The rootstock from Miller isn't too expensive ( a bit more than a buck a plant) and I assure you they sell great stuff. http://www.millernurseries.com/cart.php ... tail&p=198

You may want to experiment by getting some rootstock from Miller and comparing the results.

I am interested in how you make out with the seeds.

Larry

[Rudi]

I still onlye the one sprig of asparagus. It survived nicely.. not sure what it is going to do. I am going to fertilize around it, and in the rest of the bed and then plant new stock in the spring. All of what we grew from seed in the house, didn't make it.. withered and died before we could even get it in the ground... and the seed we planted in the garden itself, didn't germinate.

We do not have Miller's up here, will look at the Vesey site and see what there is.. will post possible choices for input..

I am hoping.....

[Eugene]

I really over seeded the area. Most seeds will not survive. I'll over seed again next spring when seed packets are availabe in the local stores.

I started some asparagus seeds in the incubator then planted when they were about 10" tall. Shortly after planting the sprig looked like it died. But later came back as a plant.

I've tried root stock several times. Some survive, some don't. I'm cheap. Ticks me off when I pay $1.00 for an asparagus plant and it doesn't survive.

I have tried two locations on son's acreage. Both plots produced nothing. I have started another small plot in my back yard. This small plot does not seem to be doing well. The current asparagus plot, at son's house, seems to be doing well. Different soil????

[Bill Hudson]

Rudi,

You were seeking information on asparagus varieties. Here are three sources, two of the Canadian:

http://ohioline.osu.edu/b826/b826_4.html

http://www.hortns.com/asparagus-cultivar00.html Nova Scotia trial

http://www.asparagus.on.ca/article.php?id=12 Ontario trial

Enjoy. Hope it helps you.

Bill

[Buzzard Wing]

Thanks Bill, some real interesting stuff in your links. I guess you can grow from seed.

I am cheap too... but I sure know I got my money's worth out of the rootstock I planted. I did add some this spring (the purple variety) and it does seem to be a bit slower to get established, but I do have the old stuff towering over it and not the best sun. From one of the articles related to Bill's links mentioned the care to be taken with the rizomes.... mine went in the ground the day I got them, so that probably helped.

But everthing does grow well here, the major crops are nursery stock and grapes for wine. Land on this island is just too valuable to grow 'normal' crops. (the guy with a dozen Cubs has sold off the land his nursery is on.) The wine business has really taken off in the last 10 years and there is a suprising amount of grapes growing around here these days.

Sure wish I had some fresh asparagus!!

Larry

[Rudi]

Bill:

http://www.hortns.com/asparagus-cultivar00.html Nova Scotia trial

Thanks for that link.. I will email Kentville and get the info for this area. Mom and Dad used to live back in the late 70's in Kentville and we used to visit the Farm when I got home on leave. Still have friends there, and we go to the Minas Basin just about every year, so when we go, I will pop in and get some first hand help on this as well.

Thanks a bunch, that should help a lot..

[Eugene]

It's that time of year. Asparagus seed harvest.

A small part of one asparagus patch is supposed to be "all male" giant. One of the "all male" asparagus plants has produced seeds for a number or years. Previously when I harvested asparagus seed I just collected and processed the seed. I didn't keep the seeds seperate.

I started several patches from the saved seed. The seed from the "all male" giant is viable. I now have some giant asparagus growing in the patches.

This year I am keeping the "all male" giant seed seperate.