196 HAPPY HOLLOW FARM 



Another of the waste corners now carries 

 our best asparagus bed. Here ran one of the 

 old rail fences, grown up with briars and per- 

 simmon bushes and pokeberry and careless- 

 weed. When we had the row cleaned out it 

 was manured and plowed as deeply as the 

 plows could be sunk, then trenched and ma- 

 nured again and worked over and over. Laura 

 set the young crowns a quarter of an acre; 

 a space larger than a town lot. She wouldn't 

 have help, for that bed was to be one of the 

 permanent assets of her housekeeping. 



That was four years ago. Are you fond of 

 asparagus? Did you ever have all you wanted? 

 Let me ask you this : Did you ever try to keep 

 it eaten as fast as it can come up on a well- 

 tended quarter of an acre? You haven't done 

 any real asparagus eating till you've tried it 

 that way. That store asparagus shucks! 

 Pale, listless, stringy stuff, spindling and 

 wilted, with only a little nubbin at one end 

 that's fit to eat, and you have to make a nui- 

 sance of yourself at the table sucking even that 

 little bit of "goody" out. That's no way. 



When we have asparagus for dinner, it's cut 

 late in the afternoon, so it may go on to cook 

 before the fresh, snappy crispness has gone 



