When Should I Cut Down Asparagus Plants In Utah?

After you have harvested some asparagus spears in the spring (careful not to cut them all from one plant),  you need to stop harvesting in early or mid June.  Let the plants grow up from the late spears and they will turn into huge green ferny things.  These large asparagus plants will nurture and feed the crowns from which they grew.  In the fall, after the ferny parts have turned yellow and sent their energy back into the crowns and roots, you can cut them to the ground.  But not before they turn yellow.  In Utah, this happens sometime in October.  After you cut the asparagus plants to the ground, it's a good time to put two or three inches of rich compost on top of the asparagus crowns.

asparagus plants can be cut back after they turn yellow and die back