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Photo by Kim Winey Photography
Asparagus is one of those love it or hate it vegetables. I love it, as long as it is properly cooked. Overcook it and you get slime. But cooked until just tender, it’s sublime. And roasting it brings out its sweetness, like it does for other vegetables.
The exciting thing about asparagus in the garden is that it’s a perennial. That means that you only have to plant it once and it keeps reproducing for up to 20 years. Asparagus can be planted from seeds or from crowns (plants rather than seeds). With seeds, you should wait three years after planting before harvesting. With crowns, you may harvest the year after planting, but of course, crowns are much more expensive to purchase than seeds.
Asparagus is an easy vegetable to grow organically as it is not generally bothered by a lot of pests. The asparagus beetle can be hand picked from the plant if it shows up. Asparagus should be planted in an area that gets at least 6 hours of sun a day. It is important that you choose an area that has good drainage – waterlogged areas will cause root rot. Choose an area that will not shade other plants because asparagus grows from 5 – 9 feet tall.
To plant crowns, prepare a wide hole for each crown 5″ – 6″ deep, allowing the roots to spread out. I prefer planting in a lasagna garden. Asparagus can be planted from late April through May in northern climates. Space the crowns about 1 1/2 feet apart. Fill in the hole to its original soil level. Allow the ferns to grow and do not cut them in the fall if they are still green but rather, cut the old growth off at the ground the next spring. Keep the plants mulched to prevent weeds from growing.
A year after planting crowns, you may begin harvesting your asparagus. Snap them off when they are 7″ – 9″ tall and the tips are still tightly closed. Once the buds begin to open, the asparagus will become tough. Asparagus is best eaten soon after harvest.
My favorite way to eat asparagus is to roast it. Break off the base if it’s woody and wash the asparagus in cold water. Heat your oven to 400 degrees. I place a few tablespoons of coconut oil (find coconut oil here) into a baking pan and place the pan into the oven for a minute to melt the oil. Toss the asparagus, along with some green onions, in the melted oil, sprinkle with sea salt, pepper, garlic powder and a tablespoon or two of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Roast the asparagus for approximately 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the spears, turning with tongs once or twice as they roast. Asparagus should be tender, but not mushy. Transfer to a serving platter, and enjoy!
Recommended Reading: Lasagna Gardening by Patricia Lanza
I love asparagus! Thanks for the great planting tips for growing it too!
Me, too! Me, too!
We all love asparagus and I’m planning to start growing it when we buy a house in the next year, or so. I’ll be pinning this post to come back to when it’s time. Thanks so much!!
Yay for a house and yay for gardening!
My family loves asparagus this way. Roasting is the only way I have ever prepared it. In making concessions for my 2 year old (so that he will not think adversly about it) I eliminate any possibility of woodiness by snapping off the stem where it naturally breaks. Because I hate to waste I have always thrown those ends in the freezer for another use. Two nights in a row of asparagus meant something needed to be done with the ends today so Roasted Cream of Asparagus Soup it is! Asparagus ends, cauliflower stems also from freezer, raw milk, and homemade yogurt. Yum!
It’s awesome the way you use it all!!!!
I love asparagus too. I like steaming it and them butter and sea salt. YUM!!! One of these years I am going to plant those in our garden.
Maybe this year?
We just talked about asparagus before our small group last week and then all of us want to plant it this year, thanks for telling me how!
HaHa! That’s so great!
Last fall I scored free asparagus crowns on Freecycle. It took me 2 hours to dig up the two mounds of asparagus and a whole day to separate the crowns and get them planted. I ended up with thirty-some crowns. I planted most of them at my parent’s house, because I don’t have a sunny spot for them. I gave the rest to a neighbor. After all that work I hope they grow!
You are the queen of frugal, Kristel. Wish we were neighbors!
Mmmm! Roasted asparagus with lots of butter is delicous!
Thanks for sharing the tips on growing too. We’ve been thinking about asparagus for a while now, but it grows wild in ditch banks so we’re trying to decide if we should. So glad you joined us on Wildcrafting Wednesday this week. 
~ Kathy
I’ve never seen wild asparagus in my area, but I’m going to take a closer look!
Thanks for sharing at Meal Plan Monday! Hope to see you back there tomorrow!
Thanks for hosting!
Someday I will find a place to plant asparagus…we love it, even the kids!
That’s great – a lot of kids won’t touch it!
For dinner last night I made a delicious asparagus cream soup! I probably used 3 pounds of asparagus and simmered them for about 45 minutes in a 4 quart pot with onions, garlic, dill, pepper, salt, and turmeric. When they’re really soft I took the asparagus out in batches and pureed in my blender. Then I added some plain whole milk yogurt and fresh onion. It was so good! Even better for lunch today because I decided to throw in some salsa and cheese to the mix, incredible!
Oh, yes! This sounds fantastic!
I absolutely love asparagus. We have a small patch in back, but it’s not really big enough to give us a “dish” of asparagus. We get a lot of asparagus garnish, which is a really fun kick to a dish. Seeing your picture made me think about Spring and how lovely it is going to be. Thanks!
Can’t wait for spring!!!
I’m always looking for ways to get the hubby to actually like asparagus. maybe this will help. I wonder if I grow asparagus here in Texas? Off to research. Thanks for the recipe.
I know it likes cooler weather, so I’m not sure it would grow in TX. Let me know what you find out.
Oh, how I love roasted asparagus! In fact my entire family loves it. We’re fortunate enough to have it grow wild around here (rural Utah), but we eat so much of it that I REALLY want to plant an asparagus bed. We’re getting ready to build a house, so I’m hoping next spring I’ll be able to finally put a bed in.
I’ve never bought asparagus before because I tend to be a freshness snob, but I’m craving it so much right now (6 months pregnant) that I think I might break down and try it from the grocery store today. Hope it’s as good as our wild asparagus!
Don’t get your hopes up too much, Tara. I can’t imagine that it will be as good as your wild asparagus. That’s so awesome that it’s so abundant in your area!