Asparagus bed

[Wonderfulcheapfalafel]

I'd like to create an asparagus bed at my allotment... I. Just don't know how many crowns I will need. I LOVE asparagus so eat loads when it's in season. How many to feed a family of 3 do you think?

I would go for 3 varieties so that you can spread your harvest over a longer period. If you like asparagus then 9 crowns. If you love it and can eat it a lot then go up to 18. Look at buying 3 year old crowns but you will find that they will take 2 years to produce properly and won’t be really productive until year 3.

We have about 18, two rows of 9. Planted about 15 years ago, so much free asparagus! Such a good investment.

Thanks! I have plenty of space, how big a bed do you have for your 18?

I have 20 crowns, spaced 40cm apart in a bed 60cm wide (plants can root out under the paths).
This was the bed's third year & produced around 5kg.
I expect the crop to be more like 8kg next year.
I'd advise to take nothing in the first two years, to allow the plants to become established, then maybe six spears off each in year three before fully cropping thereafter.

If you're buying crowns from the plastic bags that are in supermarkets/garden centres now, they might not grow that easily for you. I've had years of frustration of wasting my time and money on these, then found out it was far easier to grow them from seed. Although, it takes a bit of time to get them to germinate (up to 4 weeks under light and heat), it's worth it. I did 15 seeds and all of them had come up and coddled for about 4 months, before planting out in late summer in their new bed.

We are a family of 5, we have 25 crowns and when in season cut twice a week getting enough to have a portion for everybody each to me we cut.

Tried from seed & had poor results. Bought my crowns online from a reputable supplier & they've been super.

Thanks all for the advice!

Here's some good advice - https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/sep/26/alys-fowler-autumn-planted-asparagus-crowns