Transplanting Asparagus in the Fall: A Complete Guide

Learn to prolong the life of your overcrowded asparagus patch by transplanting asparagus using these tips to ease the process of transplanting.

There’s one good reason for not transplanting asparagus: It’s a lot of work! However, it’s also the only way to get full production in the first spring following planting.

My original asparagus patch, for example, was started with two-year-old commercial plants. But five years later, I transplanted some ten-year-old crowns from a neighbor’s garden, and when spring rolled around, these transplants–in spite of having been recently moved–actually outproduced the younger (seven years old), established plants. What’s more, they were free for the digging.

But (naturally!) there is one catch: If you don’t know just how to handle the scavenged plants, your only reward will be improved muscle tone from all the additional gardening exercise. And should you consult the “experts” for advice, most of them will simply tell you that it’s easier to buy new plants.

Well, of course it’s easier, but you may have more energy than money, you may not want to wait several years for the payoff, or your present patch may have become overcrowded and so unproductive that it won’t satisfy your family’s appetite for this delicious, healthful spring crop. (Just 100 grams of asparagus contains 2.2 grams of protein and at least 900 units of vitamin A and beta carotene, a component that many people feel has great potential as a cancer preventive.)

Finding Asparagus Transplant Candidates

If you don’t have a crowded “sparrowgrass” patch of your own to raid for transplants, you’ll have to search one out. Fortunately, this perennial is quite hardy, and will live for years on abandoned homesteads. When such a site has enough rainfall to nurture old fruit trees, any asparagus that’s been planted has probably survived as well. (Remember, even abandoned farms belong to someone, so seek out permission before you start digging.)

In drier parts of the country, “wild” asparagus, which is simply the wayward offspring of the garden plant, is sometimes found along streams and irrigation banks. Neighbors’ plots can often provide sources of transplants, too. Although a properly tended bed can be productive for up to 50 years, it will become overcrowded long before that. In fact, if an old plot is dug up and the plants are divided, it will supply enough crowns to plant an area larger than the original patch, and–as a bonus–that same space will actually produce more edible shoots after it’s been thinned. Therefore, one of the best ways to get plants of known quality is to exchange the time and labor spent thinning and replanting another gardener’s patch for a share of the extra plants. Take heed, though, you might wind up with more asparagus than you know what to do with. I once dug up an 18-inch-diameter clump that yielded more than 250 plants (at least we found out why it wasn’t bearing!).

Asparagus can be transplanted at any time during its dormant period, as long as the ground isn’t frozen. And while many people like to undertake this task in the early spring, I’ve found that this causes the bearing season to be a bit delayed, at least as compared with that of those transplanted in the fall.

Actually, having the right tools (and using them carefully) will have a lot more to do with your success than will your decision as to whether to transplant in spring or autumn. You’ll need a shovel or spade, a garden fork, and a mattock. (If you don’t have a garden fork, you can make do with a shovel, but–since you’ll have to take a good bit of extra care not to bruise or to cut the roots’ tender tissue–using a shovel alone makes a long job seem downright endless. In addition, because a fork will allow some dirt to slip through its tines, that tool will be easier on your back.) A crowbar may also come it handy for loosening the larger clumps and–in anything but extremely sandy soil–a garden hose is useful during the final root-tracing-and-dividing process.

Planting the Transplanted Asparagus

When your asparagus roots are cleared and separated, you’ll have to determine where to put them. (I’m sure that the plan-ahead types reading this will wonder why this point wasn’t brought up before, but there’s no way to know how many plants you’ll have to relocate until you actually dig them up!)

The commonly quoted rule of thumb says that you’ll want at least a half-dozen plants for each member of your family. (However, I think a full dozen apiece would be closer to the truth.) Your needs will vary, of course, according to how much your clan likes asparagus. Then again, if you want to preserve some, it’s best to plant extra, and hope that the to-be-saved-for-later spears don’t end up on the spring luncheon menu.

In choosing a suitable place to plant, remember that you may well be picking from that location for the next couple of decades. Since asparagus will grow in almost any kind of soil, though, the only type of plot you’ll have to avoid is one that retains excessive moisture.

It’s best to allow from 18 to 30 inches between plants in each row, and from 3 to 5 feet between rows. If your planting area is limited, you might try placing the root clumps at the corners of equilateral triangles with 18-inch sides, but don’t plant them any closer together than that, unless you want to redo the whole thing in a couple of years!

If you’re concerned about your asparagus taking up too much of your garden plot, you can use the open spaces between your root clumps to grow annual vegetables for a few years. (Carrots, turnips, spinach, radishes, beets, and kohlrabi are good choices for this.) Just don’t place these “guests” so close that they interfere with the development of the permanent crop, because asparagus has to have a lot of breathing room. Always keep in mind that while this perennial can easily become crowded, there’s no way you can get its shoots too far apart, because they don’t require cross-pollination. Individual asparagus plants can even be scattered throughout an orchard or in flowerbeds.

If you want to plant the roots in groups, dig an 18- to 24-inch-deep bed. Otherwise, just prepare individual holes. Next, spread about 6 inches of well-rotted manure or compost in the bottom of the hole/trench/ bed, and cover it with a layer of dirt. The thickness of this soil layer will, of course, depend upon the size of the root system, but be sure to make the final level of the ground about 3 inches above the asparagus crowns. (Small plants may have only a few thin roots to be arranged horizontally on top of a thick layer of soil. A mature one, however, may have a 6-inch root mass extending down from its crown.)

Once the plant is placed in the depression, sift earth over it gently, keeping the roots spread out widely, pack this soil down firmly but carefully, then water the asparagus, and wait. (If you plant in the fall, it’s best to cover the crop with leaves or litter, which you should remove in the spring.)

HOW TO TRANSPLANT ASPARAGUS IN A RAISED GARDEN BED

FAQ

Can you dig up asparagus and replant in the fall?

Fall is the best time to transplant asparagus. The roots will have time to heal and grow and establish themselves before the spring. They will get about 120 days to rest before growing shoots in the spring. The process is pretty simple. Dig out as much of the asparagus root system as you can.

How deep to plant asparagus transplants?

Dig a generous amount of compost into the new planting site. Check the soil pH; it should be close to neutral, about 6.5 to 7.5. Dig a trench about six inches deep to place the transplants.

What should you not plant near asparagus?

• #1: Allium Family (onion, garlic leeks, shallots, chives)
• #2: Potatoes
• #3: Carrots

Can you move asparagus once established?

It’s best not to grow other plants or crops among asparagus, and don’t replant an old asparagus bed with new asparagus plants – choose fresh ground, to avoid …

How do you replant asparagus?

Shoots may be marketed in bundles of one kilogram or half kilogram as is done in the Crossing area in Pasig City or Nepa-Q-Mart near Cubao. Asparagus reaches 10-15 years of maximum productivity. After that, dig out the plants, split the canes at the base and replant them.

When is the best time to transplant asparagus?

The time of transplanting is in the month of July-August. It produces minute flowers in the month of July which are white and unisexual in nature. Nutritional studies demonstrated that Asparagus is a low-calorie source of folate and potassium.

Can You transplant asparagus?

Transplanting asparagus is exactly what you do when you buy crowns to plant rather than planting from seed. We cover this process on our page on planting asparagus. However this page is all about transplanting established plants or lifting and transplanting your own young plants. Picture courtesy of Aspara Buddies