Here are guidelines for growing asparagus from Univ California: http://ipm.ucanr.edu/home-and-landscape/asparagus/cultural-tips/

Basically, dig out some of the covering soil so that the crowns are in a trench that you fill with time.

There is nothing to stop you planting a quick temporary crop in the bed while you wait for the asparagus to settle in. Don’t throw it out. It’s a slow starter. I don’t know your climate. Is it too late for you to plant lettuce or something?

i was always under the impression that it can take a few years.. to grow the root mass.. to get to the point of being able to harvest a crop of any significance ...

most of your veg are annuals.. finishing a whole life cycle in one season ... this is a perennial.. and might be considered a long lived perennial ... so it might be the old adage .. the first year they sleep ... something the second year.. lol .. and leap the third ... ok.. im amusing myself.. i need more coffee ... someone will complete that for us ...

i like floras idea of working around the plants to avoid disturbing the roots .. and planting some very fast veg .. radish.. lettuce.. etc ... though the radish will hve to be a bit away ...

ken

The first year they sleep, the second year they creep, the third year they leap.

there you go ... thats what perennials do ...

it translates into .. grow roots the first year ... so you let the green grow without harvest.. more sun converted to energy... to grow the roots ... and of course.. you cant see any of that .. unless you dig them up ... and you dont ....

second year ... a little more up top .. and maybe cut a few ... but leave enough greenery to keep growing the root mass ...

and the third year.. you should be able to get a decent crop ...

your problem right now.. is there is no green to grow the roots.. so it might be time to dig it up .... and see whats going on down there.. and then replant it ...

ken

compare mature roots with what you planted .. bet it is a significant difference: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=asparagus+roots&t=ffnt&iax=images&ia=images

@floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK, @ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5, @cindy-6b/7a VA Thanks for the comments. Is what you've said based on actual experience with asparagus not coming up AT ALL the first year, but coming up the next? I've always been under the impression that asparagus crowns should each send up at least SOME growth the first year.

@ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5 When you say, "your problem right now.. is there is no green to grow the roots.. so it might be time to dig it up .... and see whats going on down there.. ", I've already done that and posted the results in my original post.

Thanks everyone!

What I'm basically trying to find out is:

1) Is this bed a loss, and I should give it up and try again next year?

2) What did I do wrong, so I don't make the same mistake next year?

(I feel like I did everything right, so I'm really confused)

Have you fertilized the area at all?

If not, you may want to sprinkle some urea (nitrogen) over the bed. Not too much though.

frankly.. i gave up on A after two tries.. it wasnt worth the wasted space ... and on top of it.. i dont even like A ... so why was i trying.. lol ...

no plant stays in dormancy for a whole season.. and then magically grows the following year ... [im sure there might be an exception... but if you were growing that plant.. you would know that might happen...]

but they could be all out of sync.. and might sprout later ... whats the limit of your patience ...

a dead plants rot .. yours doenst seem to look like it rotted .. but though you show us pic 4.. i dont see that you actually did dig it out all the way ...

you are in CA .. you have more growing season left.. then my entire growing season in MI ... flag the plants.. and plant something else around and in between and use the space.. if they come.. they come ... you are not a big enough farm.. to let a couple hundred acres lay fallow for the season ..

ken

I don't know what is wrong, but they should have grown greenery. Since you got a few weak growths that died, it doesn't sound like they are dormant.

Were they bare root plants? And if so, did you soak the roots prior to planting? A friend got some Jersey Knight and split them with me... I soaked the roots for at least an hour, then planted them. My friend just planted his as they were. Mine sprouted and his didn't.

Where are you located? There’s no sign at all of my established asparagus above ground yet. But I’m confident it will appear eventually as it does every year. Maybe you just need to wait.

@cindy-6b/7a VA I did fertilize at planting time. I doubt that them not sprouting would be due to lack of nutrients. The roots should have enough energy to get them at least that far.

@ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5 Good idea. I'll probably plant something down the center between the rows and see what happens.

@party_music50 Yes, I did soak the roots.

@floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK I'm in San Jose, CA (USDA zone 9)

Tell us how many inches of soil were added above the new crowns. I always planted mine in a trench and covered with a few inches of soil and then gradually added more soil over the course of a couple months as the ferns grow. it's been a few years since I put in my last bed but IIRC most of the crowns were showing growth within a month or so.

@LoneJack Zn 6a, KC Maybe 3-4 inches from the top of the crown to the top of the soil.

As long as the roots are firm and not rotting I would give it a chance. The soil looks very wet in the last picture. Is that normal or has it just been irrigated?

To me, the soil looks oddly wet in the last picture... the soil around the crown looks very wet, and the soil to the left and below it looks dry. I've never been a fan of soaker hoses. :p I'd just give them time... I thought I lost my patch a long while back when we had -30F temps and no snow cover at all. The plants laid dormant that entire growing season, then the next year most of them reappeared.

Yes, the soil had just been irrigated using dripperline. Thanks!