This asparagus can be both male or female and is pale green. Now comes the patient part. But asparagus tests even the most committed gardener, asking for a major feat of excavation followed by a lot of patience. Your email address will not be published. The Jersey Giant is hardy and does well in … Some of these include Jersey Giant, Jersey King, and Jersey Knight. New asparagus varieties are developed through the Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station and the Department of Plant Biology at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. Adding large amounts of organic matter, preferably compost, to the soil should always be the first step; an organic soil is easier to pH-balance. ‘Purple Passion’ consists of both male and female plants. Long lasting. I say try it! If you want the largest spears, these are your best options. ‘Jersey Knight’ is one of the more vigorous types of asparagus; highly resistant to asparagus diseases such as crown rot, rust and fusarium wilt. This is because female plants expend tremendous energy producing seeds and small, weedy seedlings that compete with established asparagus plants. Some popular choices include: 'Mary Washington': The most commonly found variety; bred for rust-resistance The subtitle of University of Delaware professor Doug Tallamy’s recent book, “Nature’s Best Hope,” is “A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard.” Meaning: The choices we make all year-round, including the very important one of how we clean up, can help counteract an overdeveloped, fragmented landscape that puts the food web to the test. SOUND GARDENER: New male asparagus varieties less fussy. Grows in USDA zones 3-8 and is Rust-resistant. While there are only 3 types of asparagus, green, purple and white, there are a handful of varieties to choose from. All male hybrid giving improved production of spears up to 2cm (1") thick. (Disclosure: includes affiliate links.). The advent of new hybrid and all-male asparagus varieties is another major change. Male Asparagus crowns produce far more spears than female crowns. The types you can buy are designated by heirloom, open-pollinated, or male and female breeds on the one hand, or strictly all-male hybrids on the other. I suspect he/she put them in water because it’s impossible to dig up something like asparagus with a rootball of soil attached. I don’t know how many asparagus crowns or plants you have, but you could do a double row in that space, with the crowns in 1 foot from the edge front and back and the two 8-foot rows 2 feet apart from each other, which would probably use only 10ish plants/crowns (because the spacing within the row is meant to be at least 18 inches). Since they don’t produce seeds, the all-male varieties can focus on growing more shoots. 'horticultural how-to and woo-woo' | margaret roach, head gardener. As you dig the trench, put the soil you excavate on a tarp or in wheelbarrows beside the site. ‘Jersey Knight’ is one of the more vigorous types of asparagus; highly resistant to asparagus diseases such as crown rot, rust and fusarium wilt. growing, cooking & stashing asparagus: 12 don’ts, making the switch to native groundcovers, with duncan himmelman of mt. Plant Asparagus roots: Buy Jersey Knight, Supreme, Giant, Heirloom. Asparagus is a long-lived perennial vegetable – so long lived, in fact, that some types of asparagus survive for 20 to 30 years. I have no idea what variety, just that the CSA I workshare fo got them from a friend who just dug them out of their neighbors garden. When they are in place, backfill an inch or two of soil onto the plants and firm, then water. What’s The Difference Between Male And Female Asparagus Plants, Asparagus Harvesting - How And When To Pick Asparagus, What Is Asparagus Rust: Tips On Treating Rust In Asparagus Plants, Symmetry In Landscaping – Learn About Balanced Plant Placement, Mulching With Oyster Shells: How Crushed Oyster Shells Help Plants, Unique Paving Ideas – Creative Ways To Use Pavers In The Garden, Rose Varieties: What Are Some Different Types Of Roses, Choaenephora Wet Rot Control: Tips On Controlling Choaenephora Fruit Rot, Is Growing Butternuts Possible: Information About White Walnut Trees, Tomato Plant Insect Pests: Tips For Treating Pests On Tomatoes, Cut Flower Gardening: Growing Flowers For Others, Pieces Of Garden Wisdom – Gardening Tips For Beginners, Garden Renovation: Giving Life To Neglected Garden Beds, Ordering Plants: Planning The Spring Garden Begins In Winter. Press Esc to cancel. With older varieties that are not all-male, weed out volunteer plants from females that set seed. ‘Martha Washington’ and ‘Mary Washington’ were names you used to see most often in catalogs, but no more. Asparagus to shout about . Once the crowns send up green shoots, shovel in another thin layer of soil (don’t cover the tips completely), and repeat this step through the summer until the asparagus trench is filled back in. Order roots, or crowns, by mail for the freshest possible plants; they will be either one or two years old when you get them. I’m grateful that Doug returned to the podcast in autumn to do just that. 8) Millenium. The millennium asparagus is great when cooked. ‘Viking KBC’ – This is a newer hybrid variety in a mix of male and female plants. They are usually sold dormant and “bare root” (asleep and unpotted) in very early spring, so I can’t say I’ve ever transplanted them in late summer or fall, but what do you have to lose? It comes from Canada and has excellent tolerance to cold winters. Sign up for our newsletter. 100% male variety. Asparagus is available year-round, but spring is the best season for this nutritious vegetable. (Stream it below,  read the illustrated transcript or subscribe free.). Read on to learn more about different asparagus varieties, including a few heirloom asparagus types. LISTEN OR SUBSCRIBE FREE: IT’S A DEFINING MOMENT: the first asparagus spear of a new garden year. Organic 3 year roots crowns for your garden. Affiliate Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The Rutgers NJAES All-Star Variety is the ‘NJ1113’ asparagus! If purple asparagus doesn’t sound appetizing, don’t worry; the color fades when the asparagus is cooked. Val Bourne on the asparagus grower spearheading the best new varieties. My picks of garden gear, books, and mulch, mulch more, all things I use myself. To prepare the bed, first test the soil pH by following the package instructions on a home test kit, or by taking a sample, according to their directions, to a local soil lab. Hi- I was interested in the question from Tamara because we have some misplaced asparagus growing in various flower gardens and in our main veggie garden instead of in the asparagus patch. (Sometimes cutting for just two weeks in the second year is suggested; follow the directions your grower encloses with your crowns.) Will that be ok? ... content which means that almost the entire spear is free of the tough fibre normally found on the bottom of the green varieties. ‘Martha Washington’ and ‘Mary Washington’ were names you used to see most often in catalogs, but no more. It is highly disease-resistant. It does not produce seeds. Did I mention that you can also grow the super-sweet and exceptionally pretty purple-spear varieties at home (here’s one source)? User Login. Asparagus seed is not widely available and takes longer to produce mature plants. I like them.. WHEN I TALKED to Doug Tallamy in February around the publication date of his latest book, “Nature’s Best Hope,” I didn’t want to go on and on about the advice in it regarding smart fall cleanup, which is one of the ways I know I’ve dramatically shifted the way I manage my own garden compared to 10 or even five years ago. Female asparagus are easy to identify as they produce bright red berries that are toxic to humans. Underground roots continue to grow each year. Establishing a healthy bed of asparagus requires considerable work but, once established, you’ll enjoy asparagus in early spring for a very long time. However, researchers have discovered ways to effectively propagate all-male varieties of asparagus. ‘Jersey’ Series – This all-male series of hybrid asparagus varieties include ‘Jersey Giant,’ a hardy plant that performs well in chilly climates. Love your info- keep it coming. Male plants grow a greater number of smaller, uniform spears. ‘Apollo’ – This asparagus type performs well in both chilly and warm weather conditions. Plant in early spring for a small harvest in late spring. I AM ON THE ASPARAGUS DIET, because that’s what the garden has to offer at the moment: beautiful spears of tender asparagus. Because asparagus stays productive for so long, it’s important to plant the best variety available for your area. The resulting strains, most of which have the word Jersey in their names, are what you want to grow if you’re going to plant asparagus. Our asparagus plants are highly productive, one-year-old, large-graded crowns grown in managed nursery conditions; All-male hybrids resistant to fusarium crown rot, asparagus rust and other diseases. If you are growing an all-male cultivar, you will need to remove any female plants as well as any seedlings that appear. ‘UC 157’ – This is a hybrid asparagus that performs well in warmer climates. Standard varieties like Mary Washington, Martha Washington and Waltham Washington are still being offered; but a number of new varieties that are either predominantly or all male recently have been introduced in to common usage. Here are some of the best asparagus varieties to try. ‘Purple Passion’ – As its name suggests, this widely grown variety produces attractive, ultra-sweet purple spears. Recommendations. Excellent all-male asparagus varieties for the home garden include ‘Jersey Giant,’ ‘Jersey Knight,’ ‘Jersey King,’ and ‘Jersey Supreme.’ ‘Mary Washington’ and ‘Martha Washington’ are good standard asparagus varieties. In fact, male asparagus is favored so much more that there are now new hybridized male asparagus plants that produce larger yields. ‘Viking’ is known to produce large yields. Some varieties come in all-male plants because they’re considered more productive and yield a larger harvest. The stalks shoot up from the crown of the plant and grow into fern-like leaves when they are allowed to develop. Required fields are marked *. Find more gardening information on Gardening Know How: Keep up to date with all that's happening in and around the garden. Asparagus varieties should be both high yielding and disease resistant. I just recieved some freshly dug up asparagus crowns and was hoping to plant them this weekend. If any female plants do appear, they will be noticeable because they produce orange-red berries. Listen live at 8:30 AM EDT Mondays, to the replay Saturday morning, or stream the podcast anytime. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Asparagus officinalis Last modified January 4, 2010 Major changes in asparagus production have occurred in the past 20 years with most production now confined to California, Washington and Michigan. Asparagus plants (Asparagus officinalis) are unusual because they're dioecious, which means some plants are male while others are female. Asparagus is a dioecious (dye-EE-shus) plant, meaning that there are both male and female plants. Your email address will not be published. The illustration from Cornell University, above, shows the “W furrow” that is created once soil or soil and rotted manure is shoveled or hoed into the middle of the trench to support the roots, after the roots have their first soil heaped on top, as below: Space the crowns about 18 inches apart within the row, and leave a few feet between parallel rows. I was plannign on maling a 4×4 raised bed and planting in there. How to plant Asparagus roots crowns for sale, easy to plant, fast to grow, garden, gardening delight Whichever variety is grown will come back time and time again for up to 15 years or more, so when choosing a variety, make sure it's one you love. Male Asparagus produce far more spears than females. Asparagus plants are either male or female. Some varieties have been bred to produce primarily male plants whilst others produce both. Begin typing your search above and press return to search. They grow well in sandy soils as well as in heavier clay soils. Due to decades of cultivation experience we are capable of cultivating the best of asparagus plants. Types of Asparagus Hi, Karen. It usually grows during warm climatic conditions. Thanks for your question Sally. To get all male asparagus seeds, plants must grow in a fully screened field to keep pollinators out. As a result you are likely to get better crops with the male plants. Generally, females produce larger spears than males, but the males produce greater numbers of smaller diameter spears. Welcome! ‘NJ1113’ produces yields up to 30% greater than previous varieties. Most gardeners plant primarily male plants, which produce larger spears in greater numbers. This asparagus type is resistant to most asparagus diseases, including fusarium rust. To make asparagus season all the more productive and delicious, from garden.. But we were looking ahead to spring then, not fall. The lab report will indicate how to amend the soil, and with what material; the typical routes are sulfur to acidify and lime to neutralize, but neither is a quick fix—or the whole answer. In the spring the surrounding plants aren’t yet visible. As you know, they get HUGE, so we want to move them to their own bed! Asparagus Varieties. The payoff is obvious, if you love asparagus. Male asparagus plants live longer and are more productive than female plants. Breeding work Pests: Asparagus beetles (common and spotted) - Handpick in small plantings. Unlike typical asparagus varieties, that only grow well in sandy loam soil, Millennium will grow well in nearly all soil types...Even Clay Soils! The thing about asparagus is that they don’t like “competition,” whether from weeds or other plants, and in that space it will be tight. Plants with all male flowers do not use energy on developing seeds and fruits. Asparagus is either male or female. Suitable for the harvest of white and green varieties. When you consider all but the most recent planting directions, you understand why. ‘Atlas’ – Atlas is a vigorous variety that performs well in hot weather. These all-male hybrid varieties can produce three times more than traditional asparagus varieties. They can be harvested more often (about every two to three days in a productive, established bed) and yield about 20 to 30 percent higher than the old varieties. Don’t cut off any foliage until cleanup of the bed in late winter or early spring. Coming from 1st generation seed these crowns are virtually all Male. Growers like Jersey Asparagus Farms will tell you which all-male variety is right for your region. Whatever kind you’re planting, you have to dig a trench about 18 inches wide and 6-8 inches deep (some people go a foot deep). You cannot cut any spears until the third spring in the ground – a full two years after planting. ‘Mary Washington’ is a traditional variety that produces long, deep green spears with pale purple tips. 7) UC 157. Asparagus has a reputation for fussiness. Jersey Knight F1 Asparagus. Asparagus can be grown from seed but it is easier and faster to transplant roots into the garden. I am planting a row of asparagus in a 4″ x 8″ raised bed. By the end of May, asparagus is at the end of its season in most locations. Sign up to get all the latest gardening tips! If asparagus grown for seed is in an open field, pollinators can pollinate many of the blooms resulting in female seeds. Any thoughts? This pale green, disease-resistant asparagus is both male and female. purple asparagus I T SHOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE, since it’s true so many other places still: In the asparagus rows, males are in charge. Male asparagus plants tend to live longer and produce more spears. In the mid-1980s, Rutgers University, a state institution in New Jersey, began a program to improve asparagus performance that focused on the extra productivity of the male plants. Since asparagus is best planted in spring, when dormant roots are sold by mail, prepare the bed the previous fall or in earliest spring. For asparagus, you are aiming for a pH within the neutral range, or about 6.5 to 7.0. Asparagus plants are monoecious, which means that each plant is either female or male. ‘Jersey’ Series – This all-male series of hybrid asparagus varieties include ‘Jersey Giant,’ a hardy plant that performs well in chilly climates. While many sellers claim their varieties are “all male” many aren’t. They are best purchased as 1-year old crowns for spring planting. Thanks. Only female plants produce berries. For more information, check out this article on asparagus from Mother Earth News. I have some room for other veggies and/or herbs and am wondering if you would have some suggestions as to compatibility. Look for all-male plants for plenty of big, flavorful spears. Would you wait till it gets a little cooler to try and is there a date that I shouldn’t attempt to move them after? It is one of the tender varieties of asparagus with a delicate flavor to it. Also, the crowns came submerged in water….is that normal? It was developed through the Rutgers breeding program to improve asparagus quality for consumers and production for commercial growers, locally and internationally. Asparagus is a perennial and will come back for years to come with larger harvest each year. The newer cultivars are bred to be all male, which means they will put all their energy into growing the plant, not setting seed. cuba, gifts for gardeners: my tried-and-true gear, mastering microgreens, with kate spring of good heart farmstead, david lebovitz’s french onion soup (from ‘my paris kitchen’), tuning in to heirloom collards, with chris smith, pumpkin custard: holiday pie, minus the crust, cookies, snacking cakes, pies & more: 5 new books to bake by, with ali stafford, https://robinhoodradioondemand.com/podcast-player/17424/ecological-fall-cleanup-with-doug-tallamy-a-way-to-garden-with-margaret-roach-october-5-2020.mp3. The Jersey Series asparagus is a hybrid variety of all-male plants and includes Jersey Giant, Jersey Knight, and Jersey Supreme. Want to plan your most ecologically minded garden cleanup ever, and understand the consequences of each potential action you can take—including next spring? All male hybrid giving improved production of spears up to 2cm (1") thick. Recommended plantation density is 18,000 to 22,000 plants per hectare. Their weakness: The Washington strains include both male and female plants, and the males are far more productive if what you want is lots of spears. Who doesn’t? Preferable cultivation in mild and warm climates. Until the last two decades, types of asparagus consisted of a mix of male and female plants. You and I are nature’s best hope, and I’m glad Doug joined me again to help us learn to support it. ‘Jersey Supreme’ is a newer, disease-resistant variety that produces spears earlier than ‘Giant’ or ‘Knight.’ ‘Supreme’ is an excellent choice for light, sandy soil. I’m Margaret Roach, a leading garden writer for 30 years—at ‘Martha Stewart Living,’ ‘Newsday,’ and in three books. Both of these are modern, all-male hybrid plants and have numerous beneficial traits including cold hardiness and resistance to diseases such as fusarium and root rot. Diseases: Fusarium wilt, crown rot - Use disease-free crowns or seed. Many of these all-male hybrid varieties come from research done at Rutgers University so they often have “Jersey” in their name. Here are some varieties you might like to grow in your garden: Pacific Purple: produces bright purple spears with a mild flavor. Crops are harvested from late February to June, with April being the prime month and high season for asparagus. Guelph Millenium F1 hybrid - If you live in the north of England this may be the variety for you. The experts wanted you to excavate crevasse-like trenches and line them with barnyards of manure. I host a public-radio podcast; I also lecture, plus hold tours at my 2.3-acre Hudson Valley (NY) Zone 5B garden, and always say no to chemicals and yes to great plants. Until then, simply let the plants go through their cycle of sprouting spears that turn ferny in summer. Keep the area weeded and watered. I suspect they will sulk next year and may need to just be allowed to grow ferns, and not be harvested. Asparagus Roots Crowns For Sale 3 Year. Then layer the middle of the trench floor with a few inches of well-rotted manure and soil, sprinkle with rock phosphate and an all-natural organic fertilizer according to label directions, tamp the bottom, then fan the dormant roots out over the mound in the trench so they look like so many giant spiders with legs dangling. Asparagus plants are naturally either male or female. Margaret's weekly public-radio show, from Robin Hood Radio in Sharon, CT, the smallest NPR station in the nation. Asparagus plants are either male or female. They waste no time or energy on seed production and go right to the task of making spears. In addition, the way asparagus is separated into different varieties sets it apart from most other vegetables. In addition, our broad range allows us to respond to the specific demands of our customers and take account of matters like cultivation systems, soil structure, climate, etc. ‘Precoce D’Argenteuil’ asparagus is an heirloom variety that is popular in Europe for its sweet stalks, each topped with an attractive, rosy pink tip. Ideal for early asparagus production. However, the edible stalks are harve… The spring, even though I’ve read and you kind of confirmed that in your reply to her, is best, is hard as I’d like it out of there beforehand, preferably this fall, so I can see what else I don’t want to disturb. Most hybrids, such as Jersey Giant, are plants with only male flowers that produce no seeds. Maybe food for another post…. These varieties out-yield previous landmark hybrids ‘Jersey Giant,’ ‘Jersey Knight,’ and ‘Jersey Supreme’ by 10-30% in trials at multiple sites around the world. It is good in poorer soils and is an all male variety of asparagus. And, best of all, if kept weed-free and otherwise well-tended, a planting can last for up to 20 years. While plants are salt-tolerant, the old practice of using salt to kill weeds is not recommended. Although there is a mix of male and female plants, many gardeners choose to grow all male asparagus. Many of these new varieties are being tested by researchers and growers in the Northwest, By: Mary H. Dyer, Credentialed Garden Writer. Chris Smith — Feb 17th, 1995. Learn how your comment data is processed. I recommend either the Jersey Knight or Jersey Giant varieties of asparagus. Hi, Tamara. Male plants produce more and better spears, so many modern cultivars are all-male. The females produce berries and producing those berries uses up some of their energy. Jersey Knight F1 Asparagus. Appreciated for its uniform size and delicious flavor, ‘Mary Washington’ has been a favorite of American gardeners for more than a century. purple asparagusIT SHOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE, since it’s true so many other places still: In the asparagus rows, males are in charge. Varieties of Asparagus . Asparagus is a home garden favorite. In addition, these all-male hybrid varieties will not produce seeds (and thus, no red berries), according to this article on asparagus from Extension.org. Their weakness: The Washington strains include both male and female plants, and the males are far more productive if what you want … Hello, : asparagus beetles ( common and spotted ) - Handpick in small plantings to 20 years type is resistant most! Toxic to humans and planting in there may be the variety for you keep up to 2cm ( 1 ). In all-male plants because they’re considered more productive and yield a larger harvest water because it ’ s impossible dig. 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