Hu... I am no expert in asparagus. I planted them a number of times but didn't stay in one place long enough to get a good harvest of them. Once again, I planted two raised beds of asparagus at the beginning of the season. I think one asparagus plant will give rise to many spears. Hence you want to give it space so it can send out the spears when it matures over the year. I don't know what would happen if they are crowded, whether it would stun their growth or just have less spears.

I think it will be just fine. I was amazed to see a bed of asparagus with the plants very close together, yet the spears where thick and much healthier than mine (which became infested with weeds because I placed them nice and far apart). I'm growing them close together in the future!

Maybe the issue would be not enough sun?

To solve weed problem in mature plot, after you stop picking shoots, trim all asparagus stalk down to ground level. Spray with Roundup. The spears will re-appear and generate at nice cover which will choke new weed growth. I do it every year.

Great idea Hu- except that I try to be organic, although I am sorely tempted to break down and spray Roundup!

I disagree with HU- . I wouldn't let RoundUp get anywhere near any plant I wanted in the future. If it even so much as touches the top of the cut portion of a spear you can kiss that whole plant goodbye. And, don't use a pre-emergent either; the spears will be disfigured. I'm afraid hand or hoe weeding is your only organic recourse.

Agree with Kate. Besides that fact the the above ground growth is needed to help the plant regenerate and store energy for the next season, spraying an herbicide on a crop you want to eat is asking for trouble.

A four to six inch layer of leaves or other organic mulch keeps annual weeds at bay. If you have perennial weeds in an asparagus bed a thorough hand weeding (not just pulling but forking our roots) will clean up the bed. Then do the mulch.

Thanks floral. It looks as if I have no choice but to slowly dig up the roots of the vetch, clover, and birds foot trefoil that has invaded my asparagus bed. I'm thinking of putting strips of landscape cloth down and bark chips on top. I used bark chips before, but a lot of good that did :(.

Something else that I learned is not to leave the dead asparagus stalks. I did that as markers so that I would be careful when weeding around the plants, but the asparagus beetle overwinters in the hollow stems, all ready to attack my crop the following year - sigh!

I planted mine about a foot apart with no problems. cut back the ferns in about November and mulched with leaves. I did get asparagus beetles a couple of times, but then pulled back the leaves and sprayed with sevin (I think) and put a fresh pile of leaves. All was well.

I sure hope the new owners are loving all that asparagus! That's one thing I really miss about my big garden in the country!

I plant my asparagus 2 feet apart because I want lots of crowns. They come up with very thick spears- great for grilling. If you ever dug one up even at 2 foot intervals you would find a tangled mess as they intrude on one another. That said you should still get plenty of asparagus even at 8-14 inch spacing. I agree with Kate and Cindy.