Word has gotten around that harvesting asparagus is tedious work. Even in commercial cultivation, the harvest has to be done by hand. Green asparagus is simply cut off above the ground, white asparagus is harvested by the so-called stinging.

Tool for cutting out asparagus

If you have only planted a few asparagus in your home garden, it is hardly worth buying the right tools to harvest the asparagus. A sharp knife and a mason's trowel will do, too.

If you are cultivating asparagus on a larger scale, the right tools will do a good job. You need:

  • A curved, sharp asparagus knife
  • asparagus ladle
  • gloves
  • Harvest basket with cover

How is the asparagus pricked?

As soon as cracks appear on the top of the wall, there is a ripe asparagus spear underneath. With your fingers spread, walk down the bar as low as you can and gently uncover it.

Cut the rod far down, place it in the basket and cover it.

The resulting hole is immediately filled with soil and tapped tight with the asparagus trowel. Only on a smooth surface is it recognizable when a new rod is maturing here.

The best time for asparagus cutting

Asparagus sprout quickly in warm temperatures. Therefore bite twice a day, preferably in the morning and in the afternoon.

Harvest white asparagus in good time before the head has pushed through the wall, otherwise it will discolour. If it is not cut, it forms above-ground stems that bear flowers in summer.

Harvesting green asparagus

Green asparagus does not have to be pricked. It is cut off with a sharp knife just above the ground.

When is asparagus season?

The asparagus season usually begins in the second half of April. After very mild winters, most asparagus varieties are ready to harvest earlier. They start growing when the soil temperature has risen to twelve degrees.

The season traditionally ends on June 24th, St. John's Day. After this date, the asparagus must not be harvested to allow the plant to recover.

tips and tricks

So that you can prick your asparagus earlier, cover the mounds of earth with a dark film. It stores the heat of the sun and thereby warms the ground. The asparagus will then grow faster.

Category:

Vegetable garden