I became a gardener last year for the first time. After building and filling a few raised garden beds of my own, I set about the work of planting fruits and vegetables that my family enjoys. I was most excited for the berries. Finally, I was going to have delicious berries of my own to enjoy all summer!
Imagine my disappointment when I learned that the raspberry and blackberry plants wouldn’t fruit until their second year. The strawberries were small and mushy because the roots hadn’t set yet. I was crushed.
So, I set out to find more plants that could provide immediate gratification. I bought herbs and a little cart to plant them in. I bought a third tomato plant that was already fruiting from the nursery. “I’ll turn this season around,” I thought.
I also picked up a couple asparagus plants from the local nursery. They were already growing, so I figured I could have some fresh asparagus within a month or two. When I got home and started researching how to care for asparagus, I discovered that you’re not supposed to harvest it for THREE years! THREE! It turns out that if you harvest asparagus early, you’ll have small results now at the sacrifice of much greater yields later.