Looking for a vegetable that will produce for 20 years? Asparagus is the answer. The thought of asparagus grilled with olive oil and garlic makes the mouth water. Asparagus is best grown from a 1 or 2 year old root, or crown. Twenty asparagus crowns will provide enough asparagus for a family of four.

Preparing your bed for planting is very important because you will only be doing it every 20-30 years. Choose a sunny location with well-drained soil. Loosen the soil to a depth of 16 inches. Work in plenty of compost and aged manure. Next dig a trench about 10” deep and 1 foot wide. In the bottom of the trench make little mounds (approx: 5” tall) of prepared soil. These mounds should be spaced 1 foot apart. Drape the asparagus crowns over the mounds like a skirt and then back fill the trench with more soil, compost, and aged manure.

Make sure to keep weeds controlled so they do not compete with the asparagus. For the first year the asparagus is planted do not harvest, just let them go to seed. They will produce a 3 foot tall fern like foliage with red berries. The following year and for years to come they will be in full production which will last four to eight weeks.

So dig in and let’s get planting!