Sunday Gardener: Planting rhubarb, strawberries, and asparagus for early spring
BELIEVE IT OR NOT, THIS UGLY THING WILL EVENTUALLY TURN INTO DELICIOUS RHUBARB. I’M HERE WITH CARRIE ENGEL AT VALLEY VIEW FARM, AND I LOVE RHUBARB. NEVER HAD IT, NEVER HAD IT. I WILL MAKE YOU A PIE. OKAY. A FAMILY RECIPE. VERY GOOD. I GUESS I NEVER KNEW WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE UNDER THE GROUND. I KNOW, I MEAN, WHO DOESN’T? A LOT OF THESE ARE PERENNIALS. SO THIS IS A PLANT THAT DOES COME BACK EVERY YEAR. NOW, WITH RHUBARB, YOU TO BE A LITTLE CAREFUL. THE STALKS ARE EDIBLE. THE REST OF THE PLANT IS POISONOUS. YEAH. THAT’S VERY IMPORTANT. THE STALKS ARE THAT RED PART. SO DELICIOUS. OKAY, SO WHAT ELSE DO WE HAVE THAT THINGS YOU CAN PLANT BEFORE THE LAST FROST? WELL, THIS IS EVEN BEFORE THAT. SO AS SOON AS YOU GET A SHOVEL ON THE GROUND RIGHT NOW, YOU HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT WET SOIL A LITTLE BIT. SO YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE YOUR SOIL IS CRUMBLY AND FRIABLE BEFORE, BUT YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND PLANT STRAWBERRIES. IT’S ANOTHER PERENNIAL. AND ASPARAGUS ROOTS. AND THESE ARE GREAT BECAUSE THESE ASPARAGUS SPIDER THINGS. YEAH. SO THESE COME BACK EVERY YEAR TOO. AND WHAT’S WHAT’S COOL IS YOU PLANT LIKE A YOU DIG A 12 INCH TRENCH AND THEN YOU PUT LIKE A LITTLE MOUND IN IT AND JUST PUT THE ASPARAGUS AROUND IT. AND THEN AS THE ASPARAGUS GROWS, YOU KEEP FILLING IT UP WITH SOIL UNTIL IT GETS TO THE TOP OF THAT TRENCH. AND LOOK AT IT. I MEAN, FIRST YEAR, YOU’RE NOT GOING TO GET MUCH OF ANYTHING. BY THE SECOND OR THIRD YEAR, YOU’LL START TO GET. MOST OF THESE ARE GOOD FOR 15 YEARS OR SO. THAT’S A LONG TIME. I MEAN, THESE LITERALLY GROW IN THE DITCH. AND SO, YOU KNOW, JUST ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. SO IT CAN’T BE THAT HARD. EXACTLY WHAT ELSE DO YOU HAVE? POTATOES. SO THESE ARE CERTIFIED SEED WE’VE GOT THINGS LIKE SETBACKS AND KATAHDIN NORDLAND AND THEY’RE COOL. YOU JUST CUT THOSE. SO YOU HAVE EYES IN THE PIECE THAT YOU’RE GOING TO PLANT. THIS HAS THREE EYES IN IT. YOU’RE GOING TO PLANT THAT IN ABOUT A 12 BY 12 AREA. AND SAME THING AS THAT GROWS. YOU’RE GOING TO KEEP COVERING IT UNTIL YOU END UP WITH ABOUT A FOUR INCH, FIVE INCH MOUND ON TOP. WOW, THAT’S A LOT OF POTATOES. YEAH. NOW THOSE ARE NOT POTATOES YOU NECESSARILY GET FROM THE GROCERY STORE. WELL, THESE ARE CERTIFIED SEED POTATOES. SO THE USDA HAS GONE THROUGH THEY HAVEN’T BEEN SPRAYED WITH ANYTHING TO FOR AS AN ANTI SPROUTING AGENT. SO YOU CAN FEEL GOOD ABOUT IT. AND YOU KNOW THAT THEY’RE THE VARIETY THEY SAY. AND THEY’VE GONE AND LOOKED AT ANY DISEASES THAT MIGHT OCCUR. OKAY REAL QUICK WE’VE GOT SOME ONIONS TOO. SO YOU CAN PLANT ONIONS BY SETS, WHICH ARE THESE LITTLE ONION BULBS. OR YOU CAN PLANT ONIONS BY THESE PLANTS. AND WITH MOST OF THESE, AGAIN, YOU’RE GOING TO DIG A TRENCH MAYBE ABOUT SIX INCHES DEEP. PUT IN SOME FERTILIZER, ADD PLANTS, MAYBE ABOUT TWO INCHES FROM THE TOP OF EVERYTHING AND PLANT THEM EVERY TWO INCHES APART. I PULL EVERYONE OUT SO I HAVE THE SCALLIONS LIKE EARLY IN THE SPRING, SPRING ONIONS. YOU CAN EAT THEM AT DIFFERENT PHASES. OKAY, SO WHAT’S THE FIRST THING PEOPLE SHOULD DO TO BE ABLE TO PLANT THESE? I WOULD REALLY CHECK, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE FULL SUN. GO AHEAD AND FERTILIZE IT. IF YOU HAVEN’T DONE A PH TEST THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, I WOULD DO THAT. OKAY, YOU’VE GOT SOME HOMEWORK TO DO TODAY. TILL THE NEXT TIME ON SUNDAY. GARDENER. WHEN INCARCERATED, EITHER. AND IF YOU’D LIKE TO HAVE YOUR GARDENING QUESTIONS ANSWERED, YOU CAN NOW EMAIL OUR SUNDAY GARDENER TEAM. JUST EMA
Sunday Gardener: Planting rhubarb, strawberries, and asparagus for early spring
Updated: 11:28 AM EDT Mar 15, 2026
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Spring has arrived and Valley View Farms has everything you need to plant vegetables and fruits in your garden.
Spring has arrived and Valley View Farms has everything you need to plant vegetables and fruits in your garden.
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