With their distinctive shape and flavour, asparagus is a great vegetable to make your recipes crispier! Raw, boiled, roasted or grilled, on their own or as a side, asparagus promises to elevate any dish!
From white to purple, there’s a wide variety of edible asparagus, but the most common is green. From the same plant as green asparagus, if it’s covered with soil when it starts to grow and completes its growth underground, white asparagus is produced—more tender and often used for preserving.
Benefits of asparagus
Rich in fibre, vitamins C, B1, B2 and E, folic acid, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc and potassium, asparagus has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that help prevent various diseases. It’s also recommended in diets and for treating anaemia and type 2 diabetes, thanks to its low calorie count.
Asparagus is good for…
- Detoxifying the body: Because it’s rich in vitamins, it has strong antioxidant power.
- Bones: The high percentage of vitamin K in asparagus helps blood clot normally, protecting bones from fractures and post-menopausal bone loss.
- The immune system: Rich in iron and vitamin C, it helps strengthen the immune system and prevent anaemia and infections.
- The heart: Cholesterol-free and an important source of soluble fibre and folic acid, which acts as a protective nutrient for cardiovascular health.
Did you know there are over 300 varieties of asparagus, but only 20 are edible?
Grow your own
- Asparagus should be grown in deep, well-drained soils with a good percentage of sand.
- Soil pH: between 6.2 and 6.7
- Phosphorus and potassium must be added to the soil before planting.
- In spring (March), you should fertilise the plant with nitrogen and other nutrients, and don’t forget to fertilise after harvesting (May/June), about 3 months later, so the plant can replenish the reserves that were used up.
- Asparagus is harvested in the third year of cultivation, specifically in spring, when the spears are still young and low in fibre.
- The spears are harvested when they are 18 to 25 cm long.
