LEAVES AND STEMS WE EAT 129 



Common spinach is a cool weather crop, and needs 

 moist air and soil. The summer plantings in hot 

 climates soon run to seed, instead of producing the 

 broad, crumpled leaves normal in all cultivated 

 varieties. 



ASPARAGUS 



Asparagus is a member of the Lily Family, as 

 the tiny, bell-shaped flowers, and the fleshy ber- 

 ries declare, but the narrow leaves, and the needle- 

 branched plant, when it reaches four feet in 

 height, suggest any other family than the lily. 

 I think the species, which stands alone, must have 

 originated by the sea (or risen like Venus from 

 the waves). You may pour brine on your aspara- 

 gus bed, or scatter dry salt on the soil until the 

 weeds lie down and die. The asparagus shoots 

 come up refreshed and invigorated by the salt 

 bath furnished their roots. 



The edible parts of this vegetable are the fleshy 

 shoots rising from vigorous crowns, that have 

 been storing for some years the reserve food to 

 produce the crop. The French gardeners have 

 been very successful in producing choice vari- 

 etiesj" ! They like best those whose stalks are thick, 

 short, and rosy at the tip. In Holland and Bel- 

 gium, a perfectly blanched stalk is the ideal. In 



