Asparagus in the summer has a graceful, fernlike foliage. It stands tall and grows towards the sun. The leaves manufacture food beyond their growth needs and store this excess in the roots. When the soil warms in the following spring, stalks rise from the crown to renew the plant. At this point, all the growth occurs because of the food that is stored in the roots. Since many more shoots form than the plant needs to renew itself, you can prune them-a few or more the first year, more the second. The third year should give you 4 weeks of cutting. Left to grow to maturity, asparagus becomes a decorative fern with red berries.

Asparagus can be established by buying plants or by planting seeds in April 1inch deep in rows one foot apart, thinning later to one-foot spacing. When you plant asparagus, you will receive 10 to 15 years of production. Therefore, you will want to take the time to work the soil a foot or more deep and mix in large amounts of manure, compost, peat moss, or organic material, plus 4 to 5 pounds of 5-10-10 fertilizer per 100 sq. ft. Since asparagus remains in the same bed for many years, it is a good idea to double dig the ground. An ideal bed size if 4 ft. wide, three rows of plants, 15 inches apart.

When planting crowns of purchased plants or thinned-out seed plantings, dig a hole approximately 10 inches deep and make a 4-5 inch mound of compost on the bottom. Place the plant on top of the mound, cover the roots with fine soil and then fill the hole. The crown of the plant should be no more than 4-5 inches deep when finished. If blanched or white asparagus is desired, mound the soil around the shoots as they grow.

For high production and thick spears, follow a twice-a-year feeding program. To encourage heavy top growth, make the first application before growth starts in the spring, and the second as soon as the harvest is finished.

Cut or snap off spears when they are 6-8 inches high. Snapping -bending the spear over sharply until it breaks-avoids injuring other shoots below the ground. Asparagus spears are best if picked as soon as they appear in the spring. The shoots may require cutting only every third day early in the season, but as the growth becomes more active, you may have to cut twice a day. In the summer, the beautiful fronds of the plant may be used in floral arrangements.