That’s not the case with asparagus, so don’t be tempted to cut back the overgrown asparagus plant as it opens up and begins to fern. Its culinary value is just about nil, and you’ll be weakening the plant.

Can you eat tall asparagus?

The part of the asparagus that we eat is actually the baby shoot of the plant. Harvesting them is easy: just cut or snap off each spear when it gets to 8-10 inches tall (wait any longer and the stems will start to get woody).

What part of asparagus is poisonous?

5. Asparagus. Like the rhubarb, the part of the asparagus plant that we love – the young stems – are perfectly safe to eat. But the asparagus hides a deceptive, nasty secret: Its fruit, which are bright red berries, are toxic to humans.