I have asparagus!

hope its ok to bump this thread

i bought my first 3 crowns after seeing a pic on another thread....so i did a search and found this thread from last year and hoping you all could update on the progress of your asparagus

im going to purchase some more and i havent decided where to put them....i kinda of have a space pick out in our back garden.....but...the asparagus may end up being shaded when the corn comes up in the mid summer .....does anyone know if the ferns will still be going after the corn grows its eight feet or so up tall ?....or will the ferns die back down before then?

also what happens if you harvest before the third year?

hugs

Here's some information that might be helpful from Barbara Damrosch in her book, "The Garden Primer:"

In the south, plant in fall. In the north, plant crowns 4 weeks before last frost. Give some protection against cold nites but remove any covers during the sunshine in daytime. Keep new bed watered if spring is dry. Cultivate lightly to not damage crops but keep free of weeds. Don't pick any spears this first year. Leave it to turn to foliage to feed the roots.

End of winter, cut down old foliage and dump it or haul it away. Do not compost it because it might harbor disease.

2nd Spring: Pick only those spears as thick as your finger.

Water and mulch bed. Top dress with compost, manure or liquid fertilizer after harvest and again in fall each and every year.

3rd Year: More spears will have sprouted. Its OK to pick them this year, but only those finger-sized and only for 2-4 weeks.

Subsequent years: Pick all finger-sized ones you want for 6-8 weeks or until weather is hot and spears are coming up thin and spindly.

To harvest some earlier, pull winter mulch away from plants to warm in the sun to let them grow sooner. Spears should be cut when they are about 8" above the ground, before the scales on the tips have begun to open.