Asparagus galore

I recently had some areas tilled with a tractor complements a wonderful neighbour who is also into food gardening. The first tilled section is for a large planting of asparagus. The area is approximately 12m by 2.3m so there is plenty of room for a multitude of plants.

A few months back, I was very fortunate to have been given a couple of mature asparagus plants from a couple in a local food growing group. They also provided me with heaps of seeds. So I attempted to germinate 198 of them and got about 180 viable plants. Not a bad start.

I have slowly been planting them out into the newly tilled soil. Unfortunately the soil in this area is poor. It comprises of subsoil (deco and clay) from the previous owners earthworks. I incorporated gypsum along with basalt rock dust, dead grass, and manure. So there should be hope for the asparagus producing capabilities of this rejuvenated soil. Asparagus is extremely hardy, as long as it has good drainage, so I shouldn't be disappointed. I also raised the bed about 10 cm or so above the existing ground level which will help with drainage.

For those of you who have not tasted fresh off the plant asparagus spears, it is like an entirely different vegetable. Fresh asparagus is unbelievably sweet and tasty. This is a plant worth making space for in the home garden. Come on spring!