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Perennial vegetable varieties should be part of your vegetable garden Custom Search Perennial vegetable crops should be a part of your vegetable garden if you can find the space for them. Asparagus, horseradish, and rhubarb are among the most popular, but chives, multiplier onions, and some of the flavoring and condiment plants, such as sage and mint, are also popular. Unhappily, asparagus, horseradish and rhubarb are not adapted to conditions in the lower South as they are cool weather perrenials. It is always a good idea to place these perennial crops in a group in one section of the garden, where they will not interfere with your work on the annual crops. AsparagusAsparagus is one of the earliest of perennial spring vegetables. If you have an area about 20 square feet or a row 50 to 75 ft. long, you will be able to supply enough fresh asparagus for family of five or six people, as long as the soil is well enriched and the plants are given good attention.This perennial grows best where the winters are cold enough to freeze the ground to a depth of at least s few inches. Once an asparagus bed is established and well maintained, these perennials will produce crops for many, many years. 
Asparagus matures very slowly. It is three years from seed to the first light harness, so planting seeds in the garden will take the longest possible time to fresh, homegrown asparagus. Maturation time can be shortened by planting one year old roots, available from nurseries, garden centers or by mail order. Asparagus roots need a thick layer of soil protection, so they have to be planted deeply. Dig a trench 12 in. deep and 18 in. wide, with a distance of 4 ft., center to center, between the trenches. At the bottom of the trench, loosen the soil up to the depth of about 8 to 10 in. and add 1/2 pound of 10-10-10 fertilizer to each 10 ft. stretch of trench. Asparagus does best in neutral soil, with a pH of about 7.0, so if the soil test shows too much acidity, sweeten with some ground limestone. At that time, add 4 in. of old compost in the bottom of the trench, this will keep the plants well fed for years. It is almost impossible to have the soil too rich, especially by using manure. After spading the soil and adding the fertilizer and compost, the soil in the bottom of the trench will be very loose. Tamp the soil slightly to firm it down and then rake to make it level, leaving the trench 8 to 10 in. deep and ready to receive the roots. Fan the roots out like a star and lay them at 2 ft. intervals along the bottom of the trench, and cover them very gently - they are very fragile - with 2 in. of garden soil. As the growing season progresses filling with more soil from the sides of the trench until it is filled in completely. About every three months, side dress the rows with 10-10-10 fertilizer, using about a handful of fertilizer for each plant. Two years after planting, these one-year-old roots will have produced a healthy crop ready for harvest as soon as the stems are about 8 in. tall and about one half inch or greater in thickness. Keep the first harvest to a bare minimum, so that as many stems as possible grow to nourish the plants in the following years. Pick the harvest on time because the growing stems quickly produce outside branches and foliage, and if that happens the harvest season is lost. At the end of the season when the stems are all small, the growing season over. The plants are then about ready to enter their revival phase. At this point fertilize the bed with 5-10-5 or 10-10-10 immediately after the harvest and then again in mid -July and mid -August. Planting parsley and basil right among the asparagus plants will act as an insect repellent as they are
companion plants.
HorseradishHorseradish is a another perennial cool weather vegetable which is well adapted to the north temperate regions of the United States, but not to the South. Any good soil other than light sands and heavy clay will grow horseradish, but will grow best in a rich, deep, moist loam that has much organic matter. Avoid shallow soil; it produces rough, prongy roots.Mix organic matter with the soil a few months before setting the plants or cuttings. Some fertilizer may be used at the time of planning and more during the following seasons. Top dressing of organic matter each spring is advisable. The plants can also be mulched with green grass or weeds. Horseradish is propagated either by crowns or bare root cuttings. In propagating by crowns, a portion of an old plant consisting of a piece of root and crown buds is lifted and planted in a new place. Root cuttings are pieces of old roots, 6 to 8 in. long and of the thickness of a lead pencil. They may be saved when preparing the larger roots for grating, or they may be purchased from a nursery. A trench 4 or 5 in. deep is opened with a hoe and root cuttings are placed at an angle with their tops near the surface of the ground. Plants from these cuttings usually make good roots in the first year. Plants in the home garden are usually allowed to grow from year to year, with portions of the plants removed as needed. Pieces of roots and crowns remaining in the soil are usually enough to reestablish the plants.
RhubarbRhubarb, another perennial like asparagus, also grows best in regions having cool moist summers and winters cold enough to freeze the ground to a depth of several inches. A few hills in your garden will probably supply all the rhubarb your family can use in one year.
Any deep, well drained, fertile soil is suitable for rhubarb. Spade the soil to a depth of 12 to 16 in. and mix in rotted manure, leaf mold, decayed hardwood leaves, or other organic matter. The methods of soil preparation as suggested for asparagus are also suitable for rhubarb. As rhubarb is planted in hills 3 to 4 ft. apart, it is usually more convenient to prepare each hill separately. Rhubarb plants may be started from seed and transplanted, but the usual method of starting plants is to obtain pieces of crowns taken from established hills and set in newly prepared hills. Top dress the plants with a heavy application of organic matter in early spring or late fall. Applying organic matter over the hills during early spring greatly speeds growth, or forces the plant. Adding a pound of complete commercial fertilizer which is high in nitrogen every year ensures an abundance supply plant food for these perennials. The plants can also be mulched with green grass or weeds. Remove the seedstalks as soon as they form. No leaf stem should be harvested before the second year and only a few until the third year. Harvesting must be confined to early spring. Like asparagus; this is a long term perennial project before the actual harvesting, but the rewards are certainly worth it. The harvest season is largely confined to early spring. The hills should be divided and reset every 7-8 years, otherwise they will become too thick and will produce only a slender stems. If you enjoy rhubarb as much as I do, visit this terrific site for lots of wonderful information as well as some terrific recipes. CAUTIOM! USE ONLY THE RHUBARB STALKS AS FOOD. RHUBARB LEAVES CONTAIN INJURIOUS SUBSTANCES INCLUDING OXALIC ACID AND SHOULD NEVER BE EATEN. SorrelSorrel is a perennial plant which although considered an herb, is used as a green in salads and in cooking. It is usually started from seeds and is quite hardy. A rich well drained soil with a generous amount of organic matter is ideal for this plant. Thin to approximately 8" apart, harvest the leaves, cultivate to prevent weeds and you will have a crop of sorrel for 3 to 4 years. Remove the flowering tops to keep the leaves tender. To view a map showing the gardening zones of North America, click here.
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