ASPARAGUS 



ASPARAGUS 



409 



408. 

 Strong new 

 shoot of 

 Asparagus Sprengeri 



from seed, which germinates in a temperate house in 

 about 4 weeks. The best asparagus for a house 

 plant. A.G. 18:86, 883; 19:101. B.M. 7728 (as A. 

 lernifolius), 8052. F.E. 9:11. F.R. 4:95. G. 21:123. 

 On. 54, p. 88; 58, p. 109. G.L. 17:175. Mn. 8, p. 151. 

 Gn.W.20:117; 23:607. G.W. 4, p. 109; 13, p. 

 462. Gng. 4:167. G.C. III. 37:10. Var. com- 

 pactus, a dwarf variety seldom over 18 in. long. 

 Var. variegatus, a form having variegated 

 Ivs; otherwise like the type. Gn. .59:145. 

 F.E. 14:885. Var. falcatoides, a large strong- 

 growing form : phylloclades solitary to .5-6 more 

 or less falcate. -4. sarmentosus, Hort., not 

 Linn., is a short, compact form of A. 

 Sprengeri. The true .4. sar7ne7itosiis is quite 

 a different plant and not in cult. 



15. falcatus, Linn. A large spreading 

 woody vine with stout gray or brown sts. 

 20-40 ft. long, much branched above: 

 cladodes 3-5, or more at ends of twigs, fal- 

 cate, linear-lanceolate, with undulate 

 margins, rich dark green, 2-3 in. long: 

 If. -scales with stout basal spines: 

 sweet-scented fls. in loose racemes 

 2-3 in. long, produced in great pro- 

 fusion in midsummer; perianth pure 

 white, }4^n. diam., segms. lanceolate; 

 stamens yellow: fr. duU 

 brown. Trop. Asia and 

 Afr. — One of the largest 

 and finest species of the 

 genus ; thrives under 

 temperate conditions, 

 growing outdoors in the 

 absence of frost. G.C. 

 in. 2.S:123; 41:82. Ref. 

 Bot. 261. G.W. 5:334. 

 16. virgatus, Baker (.4. elongatus, Hort.). Fig. 

 409. Roots fibrous, crown with long semi-woody 

 rhizomes: sts. erect (3-6 ft.), much branched above, 

 branches long, straight or drooping: cladodes in 

 3's, stiff, J^-Ji'in. long, angled, not very abundant; 

 cladodes and sts. dark green: If .-scale white, de- 

 veloped basally into an appressed bract-like extension 

 similar to upper part: fls. solitary at nodes on droop- 

 ing pedicels, no cladodes in axils with fls.; perianth 

 greenish white, wide-spreading, 

 y^in. diam. ; stigma capitate: berry 

 1-2-seeded, dull orange-red, J^in. 

 in diam. S. Afr. F.E. 27:114.— 

 Easily grown from seed, which ger- 

 minates in 3 weeks, or from cut- 

 tings of rhizomes. Not highly 

 ornamental, but of value in decora- 

 ti\-e work on account of its erect 



V iv' \ ^'^- asparagoides, Wight (Myr- 



siphf/llum asparagoides, Willd. A. 

 mcdcolmdcfs, Thunb.). .Smilax of 

 florists. Fig. 410. Tall slender 

 glabrous twiner: sts. slender, much 

 branched: cladodes single in axils 

 of If.-scales, ovate, about 1 in. 

 long, usually spreading horizontally: If. -scale small, not 

 developed into a spur at base: fls. solitary or paired in 

 axils on slender pedicels, greenish white; perianth-lobes 

 spreading or recurved from beyond middle: berries 

 dark purple, 1-3-seeded. S. Afr. B.M. 5584. R.H. 

 1895:177. S.H. 1:417; 2:160. Gn. 42, p. 536. G.W.I, 

 )). 206. — Much grown for florists' use in decorations, 

 .•^(■ed small, germinating in about 3 weeks (see cul- 

 tural notes under Smilax in a succeeding volume). 

 \'ar. myrtifolius, Hort. "BabV" Smilax, an extremely 

 light and elegant variety with much smaller Ivs. than 

 the type, becoming popular. 



A. acuttfdlius, Linn. Semi-hardy, becoming a woody shrub in 

 the .S., zigzag, branching. 5 ft.: cladodes short, stiff, terete, spiny- 

 tipped in fascicles of 5-12, ?4in. long: fis. dioecious, yellow: berry 

 waxy olive-green. — A dark green cedar-like ornamental. Medit. 

 region. — A. sethidpicus, Linn. Tropical vine: cladodes 3-5 ft., 

 linear falcate, 1-2 in. long; If. -base spiny: fls. in racemes, near A. 

 Sprengeri. .S. .\fr. — A. a/ricdnus. Lam. Woody semi-climber, spiny: 

 cladodes filiform-terete, stiff, dark green, up to 20 in a cluster 1 in. 

 long: fls. in umbels. S. Afr. — A. albus, hmn. (A. Pastorianus, Webb 

 & Berth.). A white-stemmed branching woody shrub, semi-hardy, 3— 

 4 ft. high: cladodes densely fascicled. 1 in. long: If. -scale with a long 

 sharp spine: fls. in umbels. Medit. region. — Very susceptible to 

 attacks of red-spider. G.Z. 1907:31. — A. asidticus, Linn. A tall 

 branching woody vine: cladodes numerous in clusters, soft -filiform, 

 }2in. long: fls. in umbels. S. Air, — A. decluuitus, Linn. Allied to 

 A. plumosus but with cladodes about \2\n. long: branches slender, 

 drooping: fls. axillary, small, white: berries 1-seeded. S. Afr. — A. 

 laricinus, Burch. A woody shrub suggesting A. retrofractus but 

 with cladodes 1 in. long. S. Afr. G.C. IIL 23:122.— ,-1. Idngipes, 

 Baker. A copiously branched undershrub with subterete slender 

 green cladodes ^2-1 in. long in whorls of 9-12: fls. axillary, soli- 

 tary or paired. S. Cent. Afr. — A, myrioclddus, Hort. {A. Green- 

 fieldii, Hort.). An erect, much-branched shrub, 6 ft., with 

 tuberous roots; st. gray; branches zigzag with dense clusters of 

 light green filiform cladodes ^jin. long, becoming dark green with 

 age. — V^ery ornamental: fls. unknown, but it is closely related 

 in type to A. retrofractus. Natal. G. 25:293; 33:435. Gng. 

 12:547. F.E. 16:637. The true A. myriocladus. Baker, is 

 related to A. Sprengeri and has flat cladodes and racemose fls. 

 This species is apparently not in cultivation. — A. oligocldnus, 

 Maxim. Erect, hardy herbaceous perennial suggesting A. offi- 

 cinalis: cladodes more dense, slender and graceful: 1-2 ft.: fls. 

 dicecious, campanulate. N. Asia. — .4. schoberioides, Kunth. Erect, 

 hardy herbaceous perennial, 1-3 ft.: roots tuberous: cladodes long, 

 3-angled, flat, ascending; fls. nearly sessile, dicecious: berries red. 

 Japan and China. — A. Sieberidnua, Hort. A supposed hybrid 



409. Flower of 



Asparagus virgatus. 



Typical of Kodiastigma, 



410. Asparagus asparagoides, or SmiUx of florists. 



(Natural size.) 



between A. crispus and A. plumosus tenuissimus: sts. slender, rigid, 

 with slightly curved cladodes. Distinct and valuable as a market 

 plant. — .4. tenuifdlias. Lam. Herbaceous perennial: like A. officin- 

 nalis, with very slender, numerous cladodes and large bright red 

 berries. S. Eu. — .4. /r(c/iop/tj///us, Bunge. Hardy herbaceous peren- 

 nial, somewhat twining, 3-G ft.: cladodes like A. officinalis, )i-\ in. 

 long; f3s. dicecious (long-campanulate) on drooping pedicels. N. 



^''''^- J. B. Norton, 



ASPARAGUS, ESCULENT (Aspdragm officinalis, - 

 Linn.). Liliapese. A perennial herb, cult, for the succu- 

 lent young shoots that arise from the crown in spring. 



Asparagus is native to Europe. It has been cultivated 

 2,000 years and more. It was known to the Greeks 

 and Romans. The so-called Ivs. of asparagus are really 

 leaf-like branches. The Ivs. are the scales, which are 

 well shown on the shoot at the left in Fig. 411. From 

 the axils of these scales, branches may arise, a a. At 

 h b are shown clusters of branchlets, or "leaves," issuing 

 from the axils of scales or Ivs. 



Being a rugged pLant, asparagus will live and in a 

 measure thrive on almo.st any kind of soil, even under 

 adverse circumstances and when entirely neglected. 

 Occasionally one may find apparently thrifty plants in 

 fence rows, or strong stalks pushing up through stone 

 heaps or other rubbish piled foot-thick upon an old 

 abandoned asparagus bed. Plants on good soil will get 

 so large, and the immense network of roots so well 

 anchored in the soil, that all the strength of a good team 

 may be insufficient to pull them out, and sometimes 

 several years' persistent efforts may be required to 

 clear them out of a piece of ground once used as an 

 asparagus patch. The stalks that the discriminating 

 growers and fastidious consumers want are those an 



