Asparagus spear shot up yesterday

[GrannieAnnie]

Is that normal for August to have an edible sized asparagus spear appear? It is the diameter of my little finger and about a foot tall. This is my first year growing them from roots planted in the spring, and I thought there was only one spring month this would happen.

[GrannieAnnie]

[Bing]

same here, got couple of new shots from my only plant. but they were already 6~7 inches tall and slim when I saw them last night.

[planetearth]

It's a new plant and doing well learning its trade.  Don't cut them until they are 5-6 feet high carrying almost ripe berries, then don't girl thingy foot about (see dictionary), cut down and burn.  Do the same next year and the following year you should start to get a decent crop for the next 20+ years.

(I used to live just off Baltimore Pike Pa).

[GrannieAnnie]

It's a new plant and doing well learning its trade.  Don't cut them until they are 5-6 feet high carrying almost ripe berries, then don't girl thingy foot about (see dictionary), cut down and burn.  Do the same next year and the following year you should start to get a decent crop for the next 20+ years.

(I used to live just off Baltimore Pike Pa).

They are tall now and have red berries. Shouldn't they die back in the cold before cutting down and burning?   Being Pennsylvanians, we used to go that route back and forth to Univ of Delaware all the time. Small world!

[pumkinlover]

I often find late edible fat spur later in the year.
I tend to cut down as the fronds start to go yellow/ brown as they are not feeding the plant anymore. I understand to remove them also helps with asparagus beetle.
Do you get these pests or does the cold kill them off GA??

[GrannieAnnie]

I often find late edible fat spur later in the year.
I tend to cut down as the fronds start to go yellow/ brown as they are not feeding the plant anymore. I understand to remove them also helps with asparagus beetle.
Do you get these pests or odes the cold kill them off GA??

The fronds are still a healthy green and I haven't seen any pests, but maybe that's because it is their first year in the garden-- they aren't on pest's radar screen yet. Even the groundhog didn't eat them which is a blessing.

It has been an amazing thing watching the thick stems shoot out of the ground. Maybe next year I'll try to do a time lapse video of that happening.

Do you mulch them over the winter or anything?

[pumkinlover]

Yes I mulch them- I think I should do thicker mulch than I do!

[planetearth]

The point of cutting them down before the berries are ripe, is to prevent self sown (weak hybrid) asparagus plants popping up all over your veg patch.

If the berries are ripe cut them down very carefully and burn them.

[GrannieAnnie]

Thank you, Planetearth, for that information. I forgot that one must do that for hybrids. After reading your post I went back and read the info on Jersey Night which is the type we're growing and they said some people even pull out the female berry-producing plants since they produce smaller stems than the male. I'm not sure I want to do that since the bed is just getting started... but maybe I should?