330 General jyotices. 



or even more, in circumference: he also observed, that, at times, the 

 roots of the plants were, at spring tides, under salt water, which the 

 growers considered beneficial. {Gard. Chron-, 1842, p, 159.) 



In an editorial note on the above method of cultivation we find the 

 following useful information upon that no less im[)ortant point, the 

 future treatment of the plants. 



"You cannot have fruit without leaves; and the more abundant the 

 leaves are, provided they are fully exposed to liirht and air, the larg- 

 er and more excellent will be a crop of fruit, within certain limits. 

 This truth we have frequently impressed upon our readers. But if 

 it is true of fruit within certain limits, it is a!)soIutely true of sprouts, 

 such as those which the asparagus |)lant jiroduces; and the reverse 

 of the proposition is equally unexceptionable: that is to say, the few- 

 er leaves are left upon a plant, the more feeble will be its sprouts. 

 To push the illustration to its utmost limits, we may add that the de- 

 struction of the leaves is eventually the destruction of the |)lant. 



Those thread-like bodies which clothe the stems of the asparagus 

 in summer time act as its leaves, and are incessantly engaged in rob- 

 bing air and earth of the matter out of which future sprouts are to be 

 formed. That matter the stems convey down into the roots, where 

 it is stored up until it is wanted. The more stems clothed with 

 leaves, the more of such matter, and, consequently, the stronger the 

 sprouts in the succeeding season; and vice versa. If the summer 

 shoots of asparagus are strong, it is impossible that the sj)routs should 

 be weak; if the summer shoots are weak, it is iiiipossible that the 

 sj)routs should be strong. 



These are facts about which there can be no mistake; but we 

 fear they are far from being always sufticienlly considered. We 

 know very well that, in practice, gardeners vv ill continue to cut sprout 

 after sprout of asparagus, until the roots are so much weakened, that 

 the latter shoots, which are allowed to grow, are thin, feeble, and 

 evidently struguling with exhaustion. Such debilitated shoots can do 

 little for the roots during the summer; the}'^ can barely maintain their 

 own existence, and are, consequently, preparing no new matter out 

 of which sprouts can be formed the succeeding spring, when the crop 

 is therefore necessarily weak and worthless. 



The conclusion to be drawn from this is obvious. No one should 

 cut too many sprouts from his as|)aragus beds; no one should re- 

 move limb after limb of his ])lants, until they produce nothina but 

 what is too small for the table. On the contrary, the gardener should 

 take care to leave at least two or three strong sprouts to grow from 

 every root; or, what is better, his beds should be rested one year, 

 and cut another; for he may be certain, from the strength of the 

 summer shoots, what sort of sprouts he will have to cut the succeed- 

 ing year — remembering always that it is useless to manure asparagus 

 beds for sprouts independently of summer shoots. If a l)e(l of as- 

 paragus is weak, manure in the autumn will do but little for making 

 it bring strong sprouts the next season. All that the manure can 

 then do is to feed abundantly the summer shoots of the succeeding 

 summer, and so enable them to prepare j)lenty of materials out of 

 which a second season's strong sprouts may be ])ushed forth. {Id., 

 1842, p. 283. 



