50 BOARD OF AGRICULTGRE. [Jan. 



late. Before celery blanches, the first thing it does is to 

 root; and if the temperature is low when it is put away, it 

 does not form roots, and consequently stays in the condition 

 in which it is put in until the season comes round for it to 

 root and grow and blanch. Sometimes they will even bank 

 it up and put it away in those narrow trenches, with the 

 object of keeping it late. But I have not the least doubt 

 that, if proper houses are made, as is the case in the vicinity 

 of Rochester, it can be kept as late as any other variety. 



Mr. HowLAND. I want to ask a question in regard to 

 growing asparagus. I have a bed of asparagus that I 

 have fed with nothing but commercial fertilizers since it was 

 set. I have read in the writings of prominent market gar- 

 deners in this country that asparagus can be made to thrive 

 and produce a large crop with no other fertilizer than nitrate 

 of soda. My bed is prepared with a compound made of dis- 

 solved bone, potash and nitrate of soda, — a thousand pounds 

 of bone, five hundred of potash, and five hundred of nitrate 

 of soda. I do not see but it has done as well as a bed close 

 by it, that has been fed with stable manure. Now, the 

 question I would like to ask the speaker is, if he has ever 

 had any experience that enables him to say whether or not 

 asparagus will thrive and yield as large crops if fed with 

 nitrate of soda alone as with a complete manure, — com- 

 mercial fertilizers or stable manure ? 



Mr. Hendeksox. I cannot answer that question. I have 

 had no experience with nitrate of soda. 



Secretary Sessions. Cannot Mr. Hersey answer that 

 question ? 



Mr. Hersey. I have never tried nitrate of soda alone, 

 and cannot answer the question. From other experiments 

 tried on other crops, I should very much doubt Avhether it 

 would be a good plan to use nothing but nitrate of soda. 

 But asparagus can be grown successfully many 3'ears, I 

 know, with commercial fertilizers alone. I think it can be 

 grown better than by the use of barn manure. I am quite 

 satisfied that it is better to feed Avith commercial fertilizers 

 than to depend on l)arn manure ; and I am also quite certain 

 that the cost will not be much more than one-half. 



Mr. HoAVLAND. An eminent authority has stated that 



