Harvesting Asparagus?

[the1honeycomb]

I have several plants that I thought were dead and I placed dirt over well lo and behold they are coming up. when can you harvest them each of the root sets that I knew I had sent 1 or 2 stalks do you have to wait for several stalks, or can you immediately harvest them. I read that you should let one of the stalks to fern this is year 3 so I should be able to start the harvest! )I am the Queen of run on sentences!!(

 

[majorcatfish]

if you started your aspargus by seed 3 years or by crown 2 years before havesting and that should be a light harvest 2-3 spears per plant every couple weeks
following years you can increase your harvests.. have read about leaving 1 or 2 small ones to fern. but have never done this.

harvest them 8" tall, if they are hit and miss just place them in a plastic grocrey bag and put in the veggie drawer in fridge till you have enough for a meal.
you can harvest them for between 4-8 weeks and stop when you see the spear tip coming up loose, after that just let them fern..

i perfer 6 weeks....after 6 weeks having aspargus perpared every possible way have od'd on them...

 

[the1honeycomb]

Thanks for the tips! so if they only have 1 each plant I can harvest them?

 

[majorcatfish]

questions...

how old are your aspargus ?
you been feeding them? they are heavy feeders...since they have been sleeping all winter, they are hungry
watering them? they like water too.....the only way too get the food to them is to water.

 

[the1honeycomb]

OK what to feed them? 3 yrs old plenty of water. Mulched them with leaves and straw put compost on them this spring. Each plant giving 1-2 stalks

Thanks for the help

 

[majorcatfish]

13-13-13

next year start feeding early april
my bed i will put down around 7 lbs in april and around 3 pounds in sept.

do not worry every year as the crowns get bigger you will harvest more... be patient

sorry for the out of focus picture had the wrong lense on the camera.

 

[the1honeycomb]

My bed is 4x3 and I have 8 spears up now!! one of them at least a foot tall!! thanks for the help and the photo
hope to have at least one meal this year!!

 

[majorcatfish]

after all my choirs were done today transplanted 12 seedlings out of the bed
fingers crossed

 

[the1honeycomb]

Funn!!!1 can you get seeds from the ferns?? I am excited I did cut some but they were VERY Woody if the plants only have one or two spears I don't want to harvest if it will hurt the plant!
:tools

 

[majorcatfish]

well you can if you have a female.
the only way to tell is this fall, if you have a female you will see red berries on the fern those are the seed pods.

a few got away when i was trimming the dead ferns last year and overwintered.