62 ASPARAGUS 
trenches from time to time, but during the early part 
of the season great care must be exercised not to 
cover the crowns too deeply. 
Some growers advise tc work the soil away instead 
of toward the plants, considering the four inches of 
soil with which the roots are covered at planting suf- 
ficient for the first year. While this may be true ina 
wet or moderately moist summer, in a season of drouth 
the additional mulch of mellow soil can not but be 
beneficial to the young and tender plants. Especial 
care is required when working around the young 
sprouts, so as not to cover, break, or in any way 
injure any of them. 
In the garden bed it pays to stake the canes when 
they are but a foot high, so as to prevent the wind 
from disturbing the stools in the soil by swaying the 
shoots backward and forward. Careful gardeners 
insert stakes for this purpose at the time of planting, 
before the roots are covered with soil, so as to guard 
against the danger of injuring any of them. The best 
material for this tying is raffa, or Cuban bast. In 
field culture staking is usually not practicable, partly 
on account of the cost, and also because where there 
are many plants growing close together they furnish 
some mutual protection to one another. The same 
end may also be accomplished—partly, at least—by 
throwing up a furrow on each side of the rows of 
plants. Precautions of this kind are important in 
localities exposed to high winds, as their neglect may 
often cause greater loss than it would have cost to 
provide proper protection. 
Another important work in the asparagus bed 
