ASPARAGUS TIPS

Asparagus can be expensive to buy in the shops, but given a little space and time, it’s easy to grow this gourmet treat in your own back garden. Here’s how...

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Asparagus is among the first fresh veg to be ready for harvesting in the spring and with the right varieties can go on from mid-April to mid-June. It does take a little commitment; plants need a permanent home and spears should not be harvested from young plants until the second year after planting to give them time to establish and build strength.

Plants can be grown from seed, but it is quicker to buy ready-grown young plants which are supplied as spider-like crowns with fleshy roots, each with several healthy buds. For the longest period of cropping look for an early and late variety (see opposite page).