Vegetable-Gardening 1403 



cultural methods 



The varieties recommended under the various kinds of vegetables are 

 those that have been found by the writer to give the best satisfaction. 

 Other varieties may be better suited to particular soils or climatic con- 

 ditions. 



Artichokes, globe 



A deep, rich sandy loam, liberally supplied with well-rotted manure, 

 seems best for artichokes. Plant the seed early in the spring, about 

 \ inch deep, in rows 2 to 3 feet apart for hand culture or 3 to 4 feet apart 

 for horse culture. When the seedlings have come up they can be thinned 

 so that they stand 2 to 3 feet apart in the row. The plants do not pro- 

 duce until the second season; they should therefore be covered during 

 the winter. After the bed has once been obtained, the plants may be 

 propagated by using side shoots from the base of the old plants. The 

 burs will be larger if the plants are treated in this way than they will be 

 by any other method. Clean culture should be given throughout the 

 season. As the head, or bur, is the edible part, the artichoke should be 

 gathered soon after blossoming and should not be allowed to produce 

 seeds. If so gathered, the plant will continue to produce burs until the 

 end of the season. 



Asparagus 



Asparagus will do well in almost any soil; but a well-drained sandy or 

 gravelly loam, deep and mellow, seems to suit it best. It may be started 

 by planting seeds and growing the seedlings one year, the seeds being 

 planted in rows 1 foot apart and about f to 1 inch deep. The seedlings 

 should be thinned so as to stand 8 or 10 inches apart and liberal applications 

 of manure should be made. If the time required for starting the seed- 

 lings is too valuable to be given to this work, growing roots may be bought 

 at $8 to $12 a thousand or a relatively larger figure for smaller amounts — 

 $4 for a hundred roots. These roots or the roots that are home-grown 

 may be planted in rows 1 to 5 feet apart, with 12 inches between plants 

 in the row. The roots should be placed in a trench at least 8 inches 

 deep; one of the best practices is to dig the trench 4 or 5 inches deeper 

 and fill it with well-rotted manure, with an inch of dirt over the manure. 

 The plants are then set on the dirt, the crown of the plants being placed 

 slightly higher than the roots. Soil to a depth of 1 to 1^ inch is then 

 tramped down on the roots. The stalks are not used the first or the 

 second year, but cutting may begin with the third year. At that period 

 the trenches are filled nearly level, as surface tillage to keep the garden 

 under clean culture causes some of the dirt to fall into the trench. As this 

 plant is a heavy feeder, liberal applications of manure should be made 

 every winter or spring. In harvesting, the stalks are cut below the ground 



