Asparagus tenuifolius aka Narrow Leaved Asparagus

Asparagus tenuifolius belongs to the asparagus family, Asparagaceae. It is a perennial, which means it lives for years. It is native to southern Europe and the Mediterranean region. Records place it in France, Italy, the Balkans, and western Turkey. They also place it in Austria, Switzerland, Bulgaria, and Romania. It is not native to Britain or Ireland. In the wild, it grows in groves and scrub. In gardens, it can grow in beds that people tend.

The plant grows about 3.3 feet [1 metre] tall. It blooms in May. Each plant has male or female flowers, not both. A lone plant thus cannot use its own pollen to make seed. Grow both sexes if you need plants to set seed. The supplied species accounts give no width for a full-grown plant. Nor do they give leaf, stem, or fruit details for this species. The RHS gives those details only for the genus as a whole.

Choose an open site in sun, not a shaded spot. PFAF states that this species cannot grow in shade. It grows with ease in good garden soil. It does best in rich sandy loam. It also accepts sand, loam, and clay that drain well. The soil can be slightly acid, neutral, or slightly alkaline. It accepts both dry and moist ground. This range of soils gives some choice of garden bed. Neither source gives a hardiness zone or a set watering plan.

PFAF lists young shoots and stems as parts to eat. It gives their food use a low score: one out of five. It suggests cooking shoots like asparagus, but gives no confirmed steps. PFAF lists no known hazards. This does not mean the plant is wholly safe. It lists no known uses as medicine or for other needs. It also classes the species as having no weed potential. Neither supplied account names pests or diseases that harm this species.

You can raise more plants from seed or by division. PFAF says to soak seed in warm water for 12 hours. Sow under glass in spring, or as seed ripens in early autumn. At 25°C, seeds take about three to six weeks to sprout. Move each seedling to its own pot when large enough to handle. Keep them in sun under glass for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer. Divide well-grown plants in early spring, as new growth starts.