When to plant asparagus in Oregon and Washington

In Portland: Plant asparagus crowns Mar 15 – Apr 26. In Bend: May 12 – Jun 23. Find your city below.

Difficulty: Moderate
Sun: Full sun
Spacing: 12 to 18 inches apart
Planting depth: In a trench 6 to 8 inches deep, covered gradually as the spears grow
Frost: Hardy perennial; comes back every year
First harvest: Light picking in year two; full harvests from year three

A bed that produces for 15 to 20 years. Don't harvest the first year, pick lightly the second, then fully from year three.

Asparagus planting dates by city

City	Plant in the garden
Astoria, OR	Apr 1 – May 13
Baker City, OR	Apr 27 – Jun 8
Bend and Redmond, OR	May 12 – Jun 23
Burns, OR	May 14 – Jun 25
Coos Bay and North Bend, OR	Apr 1 – May 13
Eugene, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Gresham, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Klamath Falls, OR	May 12 – Jun 23
Medford, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Pendleton, OR	Apr 1 – May 13
Portland, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Roseburg, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Salem, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
The Dalles, OR	Apr 1 – May 13
Wilsonville and Canby, OR	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Aberdeen and Hoquiam, WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Bellingham, WA	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Ellensburg, WA	Apr 15 – May 27
Everett, WA	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Forks, WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Moses Lake, WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Olympia, WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Omak and Okanogan, WA	Apr 15 – May 27
Seattle and Tacoma, WA	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Spokane, WA	Apr 15 – May 27
Tri-Cities (Pasco, Kennewick, Richland), WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Vancouver, WA	Mar 15 – Apr 26
Walla Walla, WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Wenatchee, WA	Apr 1 – May 13
Yakima, WA	Apr 10 – May 22

Pick a sunny spot with soil that drains well, and mix in an inch or two of compost.
Plant asparagus crowns on your city's dates, 12 to 18 inches apart. In a trench 6 to 8 inches deep, covered gradually as the spears grow.
Fill the trench in gradually as the shoots grow. Keep the bed weeded, and cut the ferns down only after they turn brown in fall.
Harvest: Snap spears at soil level when they're 6 to 8 inches tall. Stop picking when new spears are pencil-thin, and let the ferns grow.

Asparagus beetles chew the spears and ferns. Hand-pick them in the morning.