Growing Asparagus

Aspargus officianalis : Asparagaceae / the asparagus family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
              P P P P  

(Best months for growing Asparagus in Australia - temperate regions)

  • P = Plant crowns

August: frost tender

  • Easy to grow. Plant as crowns. Best planted at soil temperatures between 16°C and 30°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 20 - 40 cm apart
  • Harvest in 2-3 years. Plant 'crowns' to harvest earlier .
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Parsley, Basil, Nasturtiums, Lettuce
  • Avoid growing close to: Garlic, Onions, and root vegetables
  • Asparagus growing
  • Baby Asparagus Seedlings (approx 6cm/3in) ((c) Liz Hutchinson)

Plant crowns (roots) 20 - 40 cm apart and a few cm (1 inch) deep in well manured soil. The asparagus shoots grow in spring. Harvest the shoots which are bigger than 1 - 2 cm/half-inch in diameter. Leave the rest to grow into the leafy ferns (1.5 m/5 - 6 ft tall) which will feed the crowns to give a crop next year. In autumn the ferns will be covered in bright red poisonous berries.

Leave the ferns to die down in autumn, then trim off the dead stalks and pile on plenty of rotted manure/compost to give the roots plenty of food to produce new stems in spring.

Harvest by cutting off the stalk, close to the ground. From the third year you can get an additional crop by letting the first lot of ferns grow, then bending down the stalks to break them. A second crop of shoots will grow and can be harvested. Leave subsequent shoots to grow on to ferns. Asparagus does not like continuously wet and warm soil. It grows better where there is a cool or frosty season.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Asparagus

Steaming is traditional, then coating with melted butter or hollandaise sauce.
Alternatively break in short lengths, and cook quickly in hot oil in a wok and sprinkle with soy sauce or balsamic vinegar.

NOTE: The asparagus berries are poisonous. Only the young shoots are edible.

Your comments and tips

19 Sep 23, Chris Veenstra (Australia - temperate climate)
Have been away and have come home and asparagus is already up, do I cut if and start again or just harvest what comes up?
20 Sep 23, Anonymous (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
You can cut all the shoots/fern off. Any that are just spears you can eat. Cut them off each day or two. Enjoy!!!!!
13 Jun 23, Janice (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I planted a few asparagus plants in a small raised bed. The bed now looks very full. What do I do for over crowding?
01 Aug 23, Garlic Breath (Australia - temperate climate)
Try putting some in a seperate bed
16 Jun 23, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Thin out weaker plants and provide adequate spacing between the remaining ones. You can also transplant or divide the crowns.
09 Jun 23, Sandra (Australia - temperate climate)
I bought a punnet of very fine spindly asparagus plants a few days ago from Bunnings not much information on how to plant should they be planted individually or should I leave them in a clump? Theres about 2 dozen measuring 3 to 6 inches in height and should they be planted in a separate piece of ground or tub?
10 Jun 23, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
You could plant out but you would have to pay a lot of attention to them. Work out how many plants you want to grow - 6-8-10. Maybe plant two seedlings together and later (3-4mths) reduce to one plant. OR plant into pots and grow them to about ,5m and then plant in the ground. Plant in a separate part of the garden as you will have them for 20 years. The ferns grow to 1.2-1.5m high.
03 Jan 23, david (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
When is the best time to split crowns and replant?
05 Jan 23, Anonymous (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
In the winter while they are dormant.
02 Jan 23, John d braby (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I've bought purple asparagus in a pot. There are 6 woody stems in the pot. Should I try to disentangle the root systems and plant each stem separately ?
Showing 1 - 10 of 331 comments

Tony - a friend of mine has had asparagus in for 4-5 years. He moved them last year and they are doing fine. Asparagus is dormant during the winter months and this is the time to do it. You probably could have waited another month or so but I don't think it will do any harm. Hope you dug the soil up good and put some manure in the garden bed. During July and August put some more manure / compost on top of the garden -- 4-6".

- Mike

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