I've never attempted to grow asparagus in my garden, but seed is cheap and I've (almost) always been able to grow just about anything from seed and and I really love the flavor. I guess my real question is how well asparagus will do in my central Texas climate once the plants are up and growing. Any input will be appreciated, especially from those from anywhere in Texas.
Asparagus from seed
I've never grown it from seed but I bought crowns abt 20 yrs ago and they are still going strong.
That's good to hear. I had always believed that asparagus wouldn't survive our summer heat..
You just have to keep them cut. They grow fast, I mean really fast! Lol
I grow everything in earthboxes. Will that work for asparagus?
I use EBs for some stuff but asparagus needs to stay in one place, it's not seasonal....so basically I have no idea. You may want to call EB customer service.
I've grown them from seed twice. It was easy and there were no problems, but it does delay harvest until the 3rd year instead of the 2nd. Given the price of crowns... seed is worth the delay, IMO. That said, varieties from seed are slightly less productive than all-male crowns.
I'm going to hazard a "no" to the earthboxes. Asparagus has a very extensive root system that never stops growing and the plants will outlive the container. But EBs may be great for starting from seed and nursing for a year or two before moving healthy crowns to a permanent location.
As much as I like asparagus, particularly fresh from the garden, it's really not a great choice for gardeners with limited space. You can grow a lot of food in the space you'd allocate to get a few pounds of asparagus several years down the road.
Further reading: http://www.soilandhealth.org/01aglibrary/010137veg.roots/010137ch6.html