78 ASPARAGUS 
from the time of blossoming to the full development of 
its fruit. The plants need a superabundance of plant 
food within easy reach, otherwise the fruit is small and 
inferior. The plant can not bear profitable fruit and 
at the same time be compelled to struggle for exist- 
ence. ‘The same is the case with asparagus. Neither 
of these crops can take up out of the soil all the 
fertilizer that needs to be applied for their successful 
growth, and therefore there is necessarily a large 
quantity of plant food unused and left over in the 
soil.”’ 
For these reasons, asparagus, while not necessarily 
an exhaustive crop, requires heavy manuring. One 
ton of high grade vegetable manure is none too much 
per acre, and is small, particularly in the expense, as 
compared with the larger quantities of stable manure 
per acre, as recommended by some successful growers. 
As already stated, formerly it was thought necessary 
to place large quantities of manure in the bottom of 
the deep trenches in which the young plants were set 
out, in order that sufficient fertility might be present 
for several years for the roots, as after the plants were 
once planted there would be no further opportunity to 
apply the manure in such an advantageous place. 
This theory has been found erroneous and the practice 
has been demonstrated to be rather a waste than other- 
wise, and besides the roots of asparagus thrive better 
when resting upon a more compact soil; nor is it 
necessary that the soil should contain great amounts of 
humus, or be in an extremely fertile condition when 
the plants are first put out, since by the system of top- 
dressing a moderately fertile soil soon becomes exceed- 
