CULTURE IN DIFFERENT LOCALITIES 159 
deposits, washed by waters that are to some extent 
brackish, or naturally saline. Commercial asparagus 
farming is limited to the reclaimed lands around 
the bay of San Francisco, the marshy deltas of the 
San Joaquin and Sacramento rivers, and the so- 
called peat lands of Orange and San Luis Obispo coun- 
ties. Small beds, however, for local consumption are 
to be found in California as generally and frequently 
as they are in other States. 
There is a fascination about asparagus culture that 
is founded on legitimate financial returns. It is prac- 
tically ‘‘a sure thing’’ when once established, and 
the conditions of climate and soil are such that the 
work attendant on production is a minimum in pro- 
portion to the return. No diseases of the plant have 
yet shown themselves in California, and it is seldom 
that the weather is unsteady enough to be a factor in 
limiting production. The deterring feature is the 
fact that it is not till the third year that a return can 
be expected on the investment. But as other crops, 
such as potatoes and beans, can be grown between the 
rows in the interim, the time of waiting is not so 
entirely an unproductive one as might at first be sup- 
posed. 
The methods of preparing, planting, and working 
are practically the same in all sections of California. 
The proposed beds are plowed as deeply as possible 
and thoroughly fertilized. All of the soils appropriate 
for commercial asparagus farming are so light that 
deep cultivation is a comparatively easy matter. Fur- 
rows for planting are then run and made double depth. 
Some growers think it worth while to distribute fer- 
