22 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES 



shoots of any length are required, the plants must be 

 earthed up during the cutting season. 



Blanching, which is practiced in many localities, con- 

 sists in earthing up the plants a foot or more. The 

 shoots are broken or cut as above. 



Fertilizing. (1) Fall Manuring. In the old prac- 

 tice, still followed by many, the bed is manured every 

 fall. As many commercial growers use no manure 

 whatever, it is evident that the manure is not needed as 

 a protection, even for shallow-planted roots. Much of 

 the available fertilizing elements is lost by leaching. 

 On the other hand, the manure helps an early start by 

 preventing deep freezing. Fresh manure may be used. 



(2) Spring and summer manuring. Manure is, how- 

 ever, valuable in the Asparagus bed for its humus and 

 its physical benefit to the soil. Early spring manuring, 

 acting as a mulch and keeping the ground cool, may 

 delay the start of the plants, unless the manure is at 

 once worked deeply into the ground. Manure is best 

 applied immediately after the cutting season, and 

 should be spread between the rows, rather than upon 

 them, as thus the food reaches the feeding roots rather 

 than the heavy storage roots surrounding the crown. 

 The manure is then valuable as a summer mulch, and 

 should not be worked in deeply; a mixture of cow 

 and horse manure is preferred by some growers. Appli- 

 cations may be heavy; generally speaking, Asparagus 

 will take twice the amount of fertilizer usually given 



