560 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



they should be carried to a shady place 

 where they are sorted and packed in 

 bunches. These bunches are made uni- 

 form by using wooden boxes open at the 

 top and at one end and of the desired 

 length. The stems are then cut to an 

 even length with the asparagus knives 

 and the bunch is tied with raffia. These 

 hunches usually weigh about one pound. 

 All small, tough, withered stalks should 

 be discarded. To keep the bunches fresh 

 for the local market the bunches should 

 be set upright in pans containing about 

 an inch of water. All cutting should be 

 done bright and early in the morning be- 

 fore the dew is off the plants. 



The bunches are packed in crates hold- 

 ing two dozen bunches and the bases of 

 the bunches are set on a layer of damp 

 moss. The crates are made of 4 slats 

 31/0x22 inches, 2 slats 6i4x22 inches and 

 2 pieces 614x9 inches, the latter for the 

 heads. 



If bleached grass is desired, hill up the 

 rows and cut the stalks 5 inches below 

 the surface. 



If the plants are to be raised from 

 seed a good sunny, well drained slope 

 should be selected and the land should be 

 prepared as for the permanent bed. Sow 

 the seed in February and after the 

 plants come up keep them well cultivated 

 and fertilized. The plants are allowed 

 to remain in the seed rows for one year 

 and are then transplanted to the perma- 

 nent bed. One ounce of seed will sow 

 about 50 feet of drill and this will make 

 about 200 plants. 



It requires 2,900 plants for an acre, and 

 if the plants are purchased they will 

 cost $5.00 to $6.00 per 1,000, the cost for 

 the acre being about $15.00. 



A good patch of asparagus that has 

 been well cared for should last 25 years 

 and a good average yield per season 

 should be 150 crates. If asparagus is de- 

 sired very early in the spring the site for 

 the patch should be selected on a sandy 

 southern slope. 



Varieties to be recommended are Palm- 

 etto, Conover's Colossal and Argenteuil. 



\V. P. Williams 



ASPARAGl S DISEASES 



Antliracnose 



Colletotrichiim sp. 



Is said to have appeared in New Jer- 

 sey and Ohio, but seems not to have 

 spread destructively. It appears as small 

 specks upon the stem. 



Bust 



Puccinia asparagi 



Causes premature death of the bushy 

 tops which grow up after the cutting sea- 

 son, thus injuring the vitality of the 

 plants. The fungus causing the rust 

 shows three different stages, the spring 

 rust, appearing in the form of elliptical 

 patches on the stems of plants which 

 are allowed to grow up early in the sea- 

 son, the summer or red rust, which covers 

 the tops with a reddish, dusty powder 

 of spores during the summer, causing 

 their death, and the black rust stage, 

 which appears on the tops in the form 

 of numerous black pustules following 

 the red rust. 



During the cutting season allow no 

 wild asparagus to grow up. 



Keep the fields well irrigated and cul- 

 tivated during the summer and fall after 

 cutting stops. Dust the tops thoroughly 

 with flowers of sulphur about three weeks 

 after the cutting season ends and repeat 

 this two or three times during the re- 

 mainder of the season. 



Select seed for planting from the most 

 rust-resistant plants. 



R.\LPH E. Smith 



Berkele.v, Cal. 



(The Palmetto variety is said to be more rust 

 resistant than others. — Ed. 1 



Dampins: OlT, Rhizoetonia, Root Rot 

 Fiingns, Stem Rot Fungns 



Corticnnn vagum B. & C. 



This fungus attacks a variety of 

 garden plants and causes a wet rot at the 

 surface of the ground. 



The disease is difficult of control as it 

 seems to live indefinitely in the soil. 



General sanitary measures, good sur- 

 face drainage and lime on acid soils is 

 suggested. 



Tendency to Variation 



We give herewith an illustration of 

 an asparagus stem, which represents the 



