“The proof is in the pudding” is what springs to mind when talking about our asparagus!  You have to taste it to know just how delicious it is.  For those who don’t know, asparagus isn’t harvested the first year planted.  That first year you have to just watch as the plant grows (and grows and grows).  Only in the fall do you cut down the plants (fronds) and put them in the compost.  I posted about planting asparagus here: https://mominthegarden.wordpress.com/2013/11/18/preparing-the-asparagus-bed-for-winter/

This year, most of the asparagus is a nice size: not too thick and not too skinny!  We haven’t had an overabundance of it this year.  I’ve been able to harvest a small bunch at a time.

See?  There is just enough here to add into a pasta dish! But the taste of it makes it worthwhile. Cooking it is so easy: steam for a few minutes, or bake in the oven for a few minutes (high heat). Just don’t over cook! 🙂  When preparing them, I snap off the bottoms instead of cutting them. It’ll just naturally snap at the end of the tough part.  It’s hard to know where that point is if you cut them.

I have a few that need to be cut in the bed at the moment. They are at what should be their maximum height.  You cut them just below the surface of the soil.  There are still a few that are quite thin, that I’ve let go to seed.  They should be thicker next year.  Turns out that slugs also enjoy asparagus.  I’ve been visiting the bed in the evening to pick off the little critters.  yuck!

The asparagus bed is on the left, while we have two beds of strawberries on the right. Beyond them is a bed of garlic, then raspberries.  Blueberries fill a bed across from the raspberries (Bramley apple tree in between them).  Everything is looking good!  I have started the very slow process of collecting stones for the pathway between the beds.  I did this two years ago for our vegetable beds in the far part of the yard. (of course I posted about it! https://mominthegarden.wordpress.com/2012/03/25/a-stone-pathway-between-raised-vegetable-beds/  ) I’ve really gotten fed up with how messy the paths always looked here.   It’ll be a slow process, but I’m sure will be worth it in the end.

It has been raining the past few days, so when the sun came up this morning I made sure to snap a picture of the garden.  The sun makes everything more beautiful!

The strawberry plants look really pretty.  It’s nice to see everything doing so well!  What do you think, will you give growing asparagus a try?

Here’s to patience, and payoff!
Dana