I planted a 24-ft. long bed of asparagus about 15 years ago, and it was great for about 10 years, but for the past 2 or 3 years all we are getting is skinny little female asparagus sprouts.
I am going to replace the asparagus with some other vegetable, but I found that pulling the plants up is like pulling up a small oak tree. No can do.
Obviously, I can snip the plants off at ground level, but I need to eliminate them---roots and all.
I don't really want to spray them with 2-4-D or other plant killer.
I can dig them up with a shovel, I suppose, but that's a lots of work. I suspect that the roots go pretty deep.
You can spray the ferns with white vinegar, cut or burn them all down to the ground, till up the soil and remove the crowns that have turned over.
Best time to do this is when adolescents are nearby and in need of money.
Pile wet, heavy grass clippings about 2 feet deep over the bed. That cooks the roots. You know you did it right if you see the pile steaming a day or two later.
I know that when I planted the asparagus crowns, I had to dig a trench and put the crowns in the bottom; so I figure the roots are pretty deep and have spread like nutgrass.
By the way, I see now that there are "all male" asparagus crowns available. If anybody plans to start an asparagus bed, I highly recommend going with an all male variety.
Female asparagus plants produce seeds that produce even more female plants. Every year you get more and more female plants. And pretty soon all you get is spindly little asparagus shoots about the diameter of a pencil.
The alternative is to remove (cut back) the female plants before they bear seeds, but it's hard to tell the male plants from the female plants when they get chest high. And . . . you cut most of the male plants to eat them when they were about 8 inches tall; so there are not many left.
Are they deeper than a rototiller? Tilling a few times when rain isn’t expected should do it if you can get the roots before they go dormant.
Or till then black them out for the entire season would do it too.
Thanks. I cut them down to the ground level with a hedge trimmer.
Next I plan to do just that: till it up.
I have a powerful enough tiller that should have no trouble with the roots.
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