Planting Asparagus
Asparagus is a cool season vegetable in the Asparagaceae family. Getting the timing right is the difference between a strong stand and a disappointing one, so the windows below are given relative to your own last spring frost and first fall frost rather than a generic calendar date. Look up your local frost dates and count back or forward from there.
Transplant young plants outdoors 2–4 weeks before your last frost — Asparagus tolerates cool conditions and benefits from an early start.
Spacing and Planting Depth
Give Asparagus room to mature. The figures below come from verified extension and seed-supplier data for typical varieties.
| Spacing in row | 18 inches |
|---|---|
| Row spacing | 48 inches |
| Plants per sq ft | 0.17 |
| Planting depth | 6 inches |
| Sun requirement | Full sun |
Plan a square-foot bed with Asparagus →
Calculate plants in a bed for Asparagus →
Days to Maturity
Asparagus reaches maturity in 730–1095 days from sowing.
Asparagus is ready to harvest after about 913 days. Harvest before summer heat or, for fall crops, before a hard freeze, to keep quality high.
Conditions and Care
As a cool-season vegetable, Asparagus does its best growing in the cooler weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat. It is frost hardy and can shrug off light freezes, so it can stay in the ground later into the season than tender crops.
Asparagus needs full sun — give it at least six hours of direct light a day for the best growth and flavor. Sow seed about 6 inches deep, then keep the soil evenly moist until seedlings establish.
Asparagus belongs to the Asparagaceae family; rotating where you grow members of this family each year helps limit the build-up of soil-borne pests and disease. Asparagus is generally grown as a single planting each season rather than succession sown.
See Asparagus in the full planting calendar for your ZIP →
Plan crop rotation for Asparagaceae →
Companion Plants
Pairing Asparagus with the right neighbors can improve growth and deter pests; a few combinations are best avoided.
Grows well with: Tomato, Parsley (Flat-leaf)
Check Asparagus with other crops in your garden →
Growing Notes
Perennial; planted from crowns, no harvest until year 2-3.
Related Crops
Other crops you might grow alongside or instead of Asparagus.
Documented companions
These crops are listed as good growing partners for Asparagus:
Similar growing requirements
Crops with similar season and time to maturity — useful if you want a diverse garden on a similar schedule: