PLANTING 53 
the roots should not be planted as closely together as 
was customary in former years; and it obviously demon- 
strates that when land is cheap and manure and labor 
high, asparagus can not be hurt by giving it plenty of 
room. It should also be considered that earliness, 
size, and quality make a great difference with the price 
and profits when early and large shoots are in demand. 
It might be possible to get double the number of shoots 
per acre from thick than from thin planting, but they 
might be so small and spindling as not to be worth the 
labor and expense of cutting and marketing. 
DEPTH OF PLANTING 
Contrary to the all but universal belief, asparagus 
is not a deep-rooted plant. In the wild state its most 
frequent habitat is on the fertile marshes of the shore- 
line in Europe, on ground but a few inches above the 
tidewater which permeates the sandy subsoil. As the 
roots can not live in water, they naturally grow to long 
distances parallel with the surface and retain this habit 
under cultivation. The tendency of growth in the 
asparagus roots in this direction is obviously demon- 
strated in Fig. 14. 
The proper depth of planting asparagus roots varies 
somewhat, according to the character of the soil, the 
method of cultivation, and the kind of spears desired, 
whether white or green. As the new crowns rise 
somewhat above the old ones annually, it seems but 
ratiosial that the plants should have sufficient room for 
the new growths before their crowns become even with 
the surface of the land. When the crown once comes 
near the level of the soil it is impossible to give proper 
