Maintain good foliage growth. Weeds shade asparagus, compete for water and nutrients, and reduce yields. Varieties Several hybrid varieties of asparagus are available. They usually give better yields and larger spears than standard varieties. They are, however, more expensive than standard varieties.
Standard varieties can still be very productive in a home garden.
The most serious disease of asparagus is Fusarium root rot. Plant only disease-free seeds or crowns. Planting infested seed or infected crowns leads to a rapid buildup of the disease, causing drastically reduced yields. That area of the garden will also be permanently contaminated so that asparagus can never be grown there again. Fusarium infects the root system and kills feeder roots.