My asparagus plants have not had an easy life. I discovered them by accident when I first took over the long plot while I was digging over a bed that had been neglected so badly that it had reverted to grass. I saw the roots hanging from a clod of earth, and then looked carefully for others. I found six in the end, and made a new bed for them in the proper manner, layering newspaper underneath the mounded earth, and layering the roots over that, with further earth covering them. It seems an odd practice to me, as if the roots are arranged on raised earth it means they like being well drained, so why have a newspaper layer as you would for runner beans, which need a lot of moisture?
The plants seemed reasonably content, although one failed to thrive. However, they were always getting accidentally decapitated by the strimmer, and the spears were very thin. I did manage to harvest one, and it was a gorgeous taste, like fresh peas.
When I took the small allotment under my wing, I decided to put all the perennials there, so made a new bed in it for the asparagus. They settled in well, but unfortunately they suffered when I neglected the beds last year, and when I decided to dedicate the area they were in to strawberries to simplify maintenance, I once again put them through the upheaval of a move. I retuned them to their original home in the long allotment, but this time near the calming presence of the apple trees.
I didn't bother to make a traditional bed for them, and just placed them in the ground with a bit of fertilizer. They really thanked me for it, and this year for the first time they are producing spears that are thick enough to harvest.
Yesterday I was able to crop four, and everyone had a share. My Mum has never understood why people rave about asparagus, saying it has no taste, but had no problem savoring this home grown version. I was hoping she wouldn't like it so I could have hers, but no such luck.
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