Living healthy with this superfood
Living healthy should always be our goal because as we take care of our bodies we will reap the rewards of good health and longevity. Adding superfoods to our diet can promote good health but too often these superfoods are rejected for that which is pleasing to our taste buds which can cause much harm.
What better way to give our bodies what it needs by growing these superfoodsĀ in our home garden. Asparagus is a superfood that is worth taking a closer look at.
Growing Asparagus
Asparagus is a perennial veggie that can grow year after year in your home garden this is an added benefit that can give you an endless supply of this superfood.
- Asparagus can be planted in early spring. Choose a location that gets about 6-8 hours of sunlight. Prepare the planting area by removing weeds. Adding compost or manure will give your garden soil a boost
- Dig trenches 6 inches wide and 8-12 inches deep
- Create a mound in the trench and plant the crown 16-20 inches apart
- The rootsĀ should be spread over the ridge
- Cover the crowns and roots with the soil about 2-3 inches deep
- Give the plant a good soaking
Insect pest of asparagus
- Slugs
- Cutworms
- Asparagus beetles
Treatment of pests includes using insecticidal soap for beetles, handpicking slugs, diatomaceous earth is effective against cutworms. A word of caution here when using chemicals read and follow the label because the label is the law.
Disease of asparagus
- Rust
- Crown Rot
To treat these problems ensure your plants are getting proper air circulation, tin leaves where possible, Cut back on watering because overwatering encourages plant disease. Using a fungicide as neem oil will give good results.
Care of plant
Mulch bed, used an organic fertilizer also remove dead and diseased leaves.
Harvesting asparagus
- For the first year don’t harvest, allow asparagus to become well established
- The second-year harvest lightly
- In the third year, you will have a good crop
- After harvest time allowĀ asparagus to go through its cycle of growing
- Continue to care for veggies until the following year.
Raised bed
An effective way used by many homeowners
- Is to create a raised bed about 12-15 inches tall
- Use and organic soil
- Dig furrows 12 inches in the raised bed. Plants should be installed 16-18 inches apart
- Loose soil should be mounted in piles between 4-8 inches tall at the bottom of the furrow, leaving 16-18 inches between each mound
- Place asparagus crown on top of dirtĀ pile in theĀ furrow
- The rootsĀ of the asparagus should be positioned where they are over the dirt pile
- Cover the crowns with 1 inch of soil by adding soil to the furrows
- Keep plants well water but don’t overwater because asparagus hate wet feet
- As asparagus continue to grow add soil to the furrows, furrows should be filled to the soil level in the raised bed
- Wait for 2 years before harvesting the spears for a better crop yield
- Harvest spears when they reach 6-8 inches tall
- Preparing yourĀ asparagus for winter include cutting plants back. Wait until the leaves turn yellow and brown
- Leave 2 inches of asparagus above soil level
- Add about 3-4 inches of mulch around the base of the plant to protect against winter damage and as the weather warms up the mulch will break down adding nutrients to the soil
The final word
Asparagus is a veggie that requires patience but it is worth the work and the wait. Giving these veggies a try is a good choice to add to your garden so follow these steps for success and yield a good harvest as you have an endless supply of this superfood grown from your home garden.
Newsletter
Signup Today for Our Newsletter to Receive Up to Date Information on Herbs and Other Gardening News in the Industry.
About the author
Norman loves being in the garden, both at home and for his job....
he is 'Natures Little helper' being outdoors, growing his vegetables and flowers from an early age.
Now having spent over 22 years in the profession he want to give some of his knowledge to others...
his vast array of hints and tips you will find scattered over this site will help you no end growing plants in your garden.
I absolutely love asparagus. I don’t like that I will have to wait three years before I can fully harvest š LOL. But I know, as you say, it will be worth it. I have a sandy soil. Will I need to bring in some better soil to grow the plants in? Can I mix in a better soil with the current soil, sand. Thank for the great information!
Hello my good friend it is so good to see you and I hope all is well. Asparagus don’t like wet feet so having sandy soil can work in your favor. Just add compost and you are good to go. There is nothing like having your own home grown garden crop. Hope this helps. Please let me know how it goes. All the best to you and have a good day.
I have heard that asparagus is very healthy for you. It never crossed my mind to grow my own. It sounds like a cool idea. One thing I didn’t realize that if you want asparagus, you should wait two years for it.
I guess this is like growing fruit trees. Don’t expect any fruits during the first year. One thing I am confused about is that do you “chop” the asparagus stem off and wait for it to regrow? If that is the case, it sounds something like growing scallions. Am I right?
Hello my good friend so happy to see you. Asparagus is a great veggie to add to your garden. You cut it back when it is time to harves then continue to water it and give it tender loving care and the following year you will have yet another harvest. Hope this help and please let me know how it goes. Have a good day.
Great post Norman!
I tried to grow asparagus about 15 years ago, but it did not work for me. I think that the plants got fungus but I did not notice right away and so they kind of dried up.
Is it possible to grow a plant in a large pot on a patio? And then if it is successful can I move the plants into a raised bed?