For the past 35 years, at least, Horsford’s has carried bareroot asparagus. The big flat by the door loaded with roots and wet peat moss is viewed by some with familiarity as they confidently fill a bag with the dangling, mop-like roots. Others stare at it and timidly ask; “Which part is the top? How do you plant those things?”

Asparagus is one of the easiest vegetables to grow. It is also a perennial, which means that once you get it started you will enjoy an abundance of fresh, crisp green stalks year after year.

Choose a spot in full sun, somewhat protected from winds and prepare a bed by turning over the soil and incorporating well rotted manure and compost. Dig trenches 12 inches deep by 12 inches wide spaced about 3 feet apart. Old garden books suggest forming a low ridge of manure down the center of each trench. Soak the roots for 20 minutes in water. Take your root and with the crown (or buds) facing up, carefully spread the string-like roots over the manure ridge spacing the plants about 15 inches apart. Cover the roots with 3 inches of soil and water well. As the shoots grow you will gradually fill in the trench until it is level with the ground. Mulch the bed with straw or hay to keep the weeds down and the soil cool. Reapply manure and mulch each spring. Hand weeding is recommended.

The hardest thing about growing asparagus is resisting the hunger for harvesting for the first two years. Such self control will pay off in year 3 when you can pick those spears to your heart’s content leaving only 2 or 3 spears per plant to grow into ferns.

Horsford’s Nursery carries 2 varieties.

‘Martha Washington’ is an old cultivar that is resistant to rust, heat tolerant and a good producer in zones 4-10.

‘Jersey Knight’ is also resistant to rust and other diseases and will grow well in heavy soils. This variety is long-lived and hardy in zones 3-8.