How to grow asparagus?

Having seen the prices for asparagus on a shelf in a supermarket, it always seems that this is a very special, delicacy plant that is very difficult to grow.But in fact, asparagus is very unpretentious in the care, so it can be grown in almost any region of our country without any problems. With great desire and proper care, growing asparagus can be done even in apartment conditions on a windowsill.

Asparagus is a perennial plant that belongs to the asparagus family. There was a time when this plant was considered a relative of lilies, but today asparagus is already isolated in a separate family, which currently has about three hundred species.

Asparagus is a real long-liver among other garden vegetables, it can successfully grow in one place up to 25 years. Asparagus is another name for asparagus. This plant has a strong root system, while the roots as well as the shoots can be eaten. They contain large amounts of ascorbic acid and are very nutritious.

Asparagus grows to a height of 1.5 meters, very branching. The leaves of the plant are either absent or very small and underdeveloped. The base of the leaves on the stem form a solid spore-shaped scale. Asparagus blooms inconspicuous, small flowers, solitary or collected in inflorescences, depending on the variety. Fruits are inedible, covered with red or dark skinned, contain a few seeds inside.

Asparagus is a dioecious plant - this means that the planted plant has its own specific sex. So, flowers on male and female plants differ in appearance, berries are formed only on female plants. The plant has a high resistance to frost, so growing in central Russia does not cause any problems. For consumption, they collect only young shoots that have reached a size not exceeding 20 centimeters.

Often asparagus grows in garden plots, but even gardeners do not know that it is edible and very useful. Most often it is used for decorating bouquets and is called "herringbone."

Asparagus has a fairly large number of varieties, but in general they can be divided into the following types:

• medicinal;
• decorative;
• vegetable.

Medicinal asparagus (ordinary) is quite common in summer cottages and is used in most cases only for decoration. Decorative asparagus is cultivated by amateur growers at home. This species includes such varieties as “Crusted”, “Springer”. The food is more often used vegetable varieties, but medicinal asparagus is suitable for cooking. Asparagus of different colors can be seen on sale, so most people think that the color difference is provided by different varieties. In fact, this is not the case; the difference in color depends on the method of cultivation and the moment of harvest. Asparagus shoots are white, green and purple.

The most popular ones are green, they are distinguished by bright taste and aroma. They are collected at the moment when they grow 10–15 centimeters above the ground. Escape a little undermining, finding the place of attachment to the root, leave a stump at least 2 centimeters and cut off with a sharp knife. Asparagus is green due to photosynthesis. With their help, it is saturated with vitamins and minerals and is most useful when compared, for example, with white. Asparagus becomes purple or purple after full aging, that is, when the sprouts are in the sun for quite a long time. It has the most intense taste of all, when cooking becomes green.

White asparagus is a more expensive product, since its cultivation is more labor-intensive. To get white shoots, the asparagus shrub is additionally covered with earth 20-25 centimeters above the normal level. The shoots of white asparagus are collected, not yet visible to the light, cutting is done at the moment when the soil is slightly cracked, and the sprout just begins to erupt through the top layer of soil.For cutting, you must dig up the mound and cut by the same rules as the green asparagus. This type of asparagus turns white precisely because of the lack of photosynthesis.

White asparagus is poorer in vitamin-mineral composition, but gourmets appreciate it for a sweet taste with a slight bitterness.

If we talk about varieties of vegetable asparagus, they differ among themselves in many ways - aging time, yield, shoot thickness and resistance to canning. It is worth considering common varieties in Russia.

• "Argentelskaya" is the oldest and most common variety. The plant has successfully fruited in one place for 20 years. The bush grows to a height of 2 meters. The culture is frost-resistant, medium-early, has a low yield - about 2 kg from 1 square meter. It is well suited for the cultivation of white shoots, in the light of the shoots become greenish-purple. The minus of this variety is the thickness of the shoots is very small (about 1 cm). The taste of this asparagus is tender and juicy.

• Tsarskaya - This is the second most popular species, which became famous for its resistance to drought and frost. The bush reaches a height of 1.7 meters. The yield of this mid-season variety can reach 3 kg from 1 square meter. Sprouts grow about 1.5 cm thick and up to 20 cm long. Sprouts have a saturated green color. The shoots are distinguished by white flesh, rich and delicate flavor. This variety is suitable for canning and cooking salads.

• "Glory of Braunschweig" - it is a frost-resistant, late ripening variety. Bushes grow to a height of 1.5 meters. This variety differs from other high yields - from one bush per season you can remove up to 12 shoots, which are distinguished by low fiber and white flesh. This variety is ideal for canning.

• "Snow Head" is an early variety. Productivity - up to 3 kg from 1 square meter. This variety fell in love with gardeners for its unusual taste, reminiscent of green peas. The shoots are green, the tip, like the flesh, cream colored. The shoots are very delicate, but are suitable for use both raw and canning.
• "Heinlim". This variety is bred abroad, they are distinguished by high yields - up to 3.5 kg per 1 square meter. The shoots are long, large, up to 2.5 centimeters thick, weighing up to 150 grams and have a bright taste. The flesh is yellowish.
• "Mary Washington" - This is a variety bred in the USA, but well suited for growing conditions in the middle zone of our country. It is medium, it is distinguished by a bright purple, purple, reddish color of the shoots. In bright light, the shoots may turn greenish. Sprouts are thick and dense.

If you decide to engage in the cultivation of asparagus, you should be patient, because the plant will begin to bear fruit only after 3 years. It is necessary to consider in detail the agricultural practices of this plant. The easiest method is to buy asparagus rhizome or get it by dividing an existing adult plant. To divide the rhizome, you need to dig it up and divide it in such a way that each part has at least 1 shoot. The division can be made at any time from spring to autumn.

If plans to plant asparagus root in the spring, it should be done before the appearance of the kidneys on the roots. The soil must be fertilized with humus (about 1 kilogram of humus per plant). For planting you need to dig a hole about 30 centimeters deep, the distance between plants in a row is 30 cm, between rows is about 60 cm. Thus, about 3 plants will be located on a square meter. Rhizomes are placed in a hole and covered with soil so that the level of the soil directly above the root is slightly lower than the total, which is done for ease of irrigation.When planting rhizomes in the fall, you need to thoroughly dig up the planting area and apply fertilizer - 60 grams of superphosphate, 30 grams of potassium sulfate and 20 grams of ammonium sulphate.

Growing asparagus from seeds is a laborious process. You can plant seeds immediately in open ground or use the seedling method. The second method is more priority, since it is planting seedlings that allows you to get healthy plants that are resistant to climatic changes and diseases. When planted in open ground, the seeds are soaked for a week in the water, which is done for faster germination; water needs to be changed daily. The soil at the planting site is prepared - organic fertilizers are dug up and applied. Seeds should be planted according to the same scheme, the distance between the bushes should be about 30 cm, between rows 60 cm. After planting the seeds, the bed with plantings is covered with a film before the first shoots, usually asparagus grows for a long time - about 3 weeks.

Successful cultivation of asparagus seedlings is determined by the choice of a good fertile soil. Seeds are soaked in water from 2 days to a week, while kept in a very warm place. Determine the readiness of seeds for planting can be their swelling. Further, the seeds spread on the gauze or cotton wool moistened with water, and wait for their germination. At this time, you need to prepare fertile soil for seedlings - peat, sod land and humus are mixed in a 1: 1: 1 ratio. If the soil is too dense, you can add some sand to loosen it. Before planting seeds, it is better to disinfect the soil by spilling it with boiling water.

Germinated seeds are planted in separate containers or in a large container with a distance between plantings of 10 cm, sprinkled about 2 centimeters with a layer of soil, closed with film and sent to a warm place for germination. The optimum temperature for the appearance of sprouts is from +28 to +30 degrees. After the emergence of seedlings, the container with the seedlings is transferred to a cooler place with air temperature from +16 to +25 degrees, the film is removed. Watering is carried out as the soil dries. Every 14 days you need to make specialized seedlings. The last dressing is carried out 2 weeks before planting the seedlings on the street. At this time, young crops should be actively tempered; seedlings should be taken out to the open air every day, increasing this time gradually over a week.

Sowing of seeds for seedlings begins in March, in order to transfer it to open ground in June after the completion of frosts. Sometimes for growing seedlings use greenhouses. In this case, after germinating seeds on gauze, they are immediately planted in a greenhouse and grown there before planting in open ground.

Many asparagus lovers are interested in growing fragrant shoots at home. It is safe to say that it is almost impossible and impractical. Healthy roots of adult asparagus go deep into the soil at a distance of up to 1.5 meters, which is quite problematic to provide at home. Yes, and the cultivation of a single plant brings about 250 grams of crop under suitable conditions. Therefore, seriously thinking about the cultivation of asparagus, you should choose to grow a garden on the summer cottage.

Often gardeners use heated greenhouses to grow asparagus in the winter, the so-called forcing. If the country has the ability to grow "winter" asparagus, this method is definitely worth a try. It brings the crop of shoots a little lower, but in the winter juicy asparagus sprouts are especially valuable.To do this, in the autumn at the adult plant (at least 5-year-old), rhizome is dug, which is removed in a cool dry place, for example, the cellar. The roots are planted in December in small containers corresponding in size to the roots themselves.

Containers are located in a continuous, that is, right next to each other. Above the rhizome, they are covered with a thick layer of humus (about 20 cm) and covered with an opaque film. It should be 7–10 days in the greenhouse to maintain a temperature of +10 degrees, then it should be slowly increased over several days to +18 degrees, which simulates spring warming. For two months the same temperature is maintained. After about 2 weeks it will be possible to harvest the first crop, the fruiting will last for 1.5–2 months.

Care for asparagus is simple. It is worth regularly carrying out for successful cultivation several events.

• Watering. Asparagus likes frequent watering, but not plentiful. Strongly re-moisten the soil is not worth it, because the roots do not like it. But also it is not necessary to allow overdrying of the soil, especially if the plant is at this moment in the period of shoot growth. If at the time of fruiting was insufficient watering, the shoots will be hard, fibrous and bitter.
• Loosening. After watering, it is necessary to loosen the soil so that a solid crust of soil does not form. To facilitate the care you can mulch the plants, which will relieve immediately from a number of problems - weeds, loosening and excessive drying of the roots.
• Fertilization. Asparagus is a long-lived plant in one place. To asparagus grow well, you need to regularly feed its roots with organic fertilizers with a frequency of at least 1 time per month. Mineral fertilizers should be made only once per season - at the end of the garden season before the start of frosts.

Between the rows of asparagus planted, you can grow greens in the first two years after planting, asparagus begins to bear fruit only in the third year. Asparagus is a fairly resistant plant for diseases and pests that can affect it. It is worth considering the most common diseases.

• Fusarium. This fungal infection of the plant occurs due to waterlogging of the soil and insufficient loosening. The development of this disease is also promoted by frequent torrential rains and insufficiently moisture-permeable soil. The disease spreads from the bottom of the plant and gradually moves up, the leaves wither and turn yellow.
• Rust Fungus looks like red rust, affecting shoots. When a plant is diseased, the leaves gradually die and fall off. Even if the time to cope with the disease, the next year, the diseased plants can be reduced yields. To combat fungal diseases, you must use fungicides or 1% Bordeaux mixture. To protect the plants from this scourge, it is worth using fungicidal agents in the spring.
• Asparagus leaf beetle - These are small bugs that feed on foliage, trunks and berries of asparagus. As a rule, this disease appears in the middle of summer. Insecticides such as Fufanon, Fitoverm and other similar preparations are used to destroy these pests.
• Asparagus fly - This is a brown insect with yellow tendrils, laying larvae in asparagus shoots. The larvae make passages in asparagus, thereby destroying the plant. To combat these pests use only Chlorofos. All damaged shoots must be removed, and in the fall, the soil around the plant is well digged.

Cultivation of asparagus can be done in all parts of Russia, except, perhaps, the Far North. Zoned varieties can be grown throughout the middle belt of our country and in the Urals, and in the suburbs.These varieties include the "Glory of Braunschweig", "Argentelskaya" and "Tsarskaya". They are quite cold and drought resistant.

To learn how to grow asparagus on your site, see the following video.