Growing Asparagus

DebratheZebra

Hello all, I'm a newbe to this forum. I want to grow some asparagus in my raised beds. Can someone tell me how many 'crowns' I should plant please? There are just two of us, and if we could pick enough for a meal 2-3 times a week that would be sufficient. Many thanks.

Lizzie27

Hi Debra, welcome to the forum. The simple answer is lots I believe. I'm no expert in asparagus growing and have struggled to grow them well for past 10 years - also in a high raised bed. I have four plants in a square spaced roughly 1 ft apart, which is less than ideal. We never have enough at any one time for one of us - so take turns! I think you need lots in straight rows so they do take up a lot of space all the time and can last 20 years apparently. I'm thinking of making a special bed in open ground where I have just about room for 8 plants.

DebratheZebra

Thank you Lizzie. I'm now just wondering whether it's worth giving up the space for them. We might be able to purchase a small part of the field at the back of our house so perhaps that would be the best as we wouldn't use it for much else.. or whether to just buy them from the farm shop! Thanks again.

pansyface

They grow extremely well in coastal Suffolk. I saw whole fields of them there. Extremely sandy soil and low rainfall. 

I love asparagus. I bought about twenty crowns ten years ago. I put them in a well drained bed, facing south in my garden.

They didn’t like it. They didn’t like it at all. One by one the crowns disappeared. I have one left. Just enough to use the fern in flower decorations.

So if you have high rainfall and anything other than almost pure sand, forget it.😕