184 



SILK MANUAL, AND 



TSEW MODE OF REARING ASPARAGUS. 



The asparagus seed should be sown from the 

 middle of March to the last of April, in a rich 

 spot, (not too much exposed to the mid-day sun,) 

 one inch deep, and the seed one inch apart ; after 

 they come up, to be kept clear of grass and weeds 

 during the summer, by hand weeding, to be dug 

 up the next fall or. spring — (I prefer the spring, 

 as the roots do not grow during the winter, if sot 

 out in the fall, and are liable to be killed by a se- 

 ■~vere winter) — and set in beds prepared as follows : 

 Dig out the size of the beds nine inches deep — 

 cover the bottom three inches deep with rich marl, 

 (which has been my practice,) though I believe 

 that oyster shells half burned will be as good, as 

 it is intended as a lasting heating manure to pro- 

 tect the roots in winter, and force the vegetable 

 early in the spring: then put three inches deep of 

 coarse stable )nanure, then three inches of rich 

 earth. This brings the beds on a level with the 

 surface of the earth. Next lay off the beds in 

 rows eighteen by tw dve inches apart, and put a 

 single eye or spire in each spot where the lines 

 interecct, and cover them three inches deep with 

 rich earth. Plank the sides of the beds, as tliis 

 prevents grass and other roots from running into 

 the beds, and also keeps the outside roots from 

 being exposed, by the sides of beds washing away. 

 The beds should be kept clean by hand weeding, 

 and all the earth and manure used in making 

 them, should be perfectly free from grass roots 

 and noxious weeds. In the fall of the year, after 

 the seeds have matured, cut the tops off close to 

 the beds, (being caret'ul that not a single seed is 

 left to vegetate on the beds,) as they have already 

 as many roots as the space they occupy should 

 contain, and if additional roots are suffered to form 

 from j^ear to year from the falling of the seed 

 every fall, the beds will soon be so much clustered 

 with roots that the vegetable must degenerate, at 

 least in size and length, as the new roots form 

 near, or on the surface. Some prevent this by 

 buriiing, but I think the best way is to pick them 

 off by hand, before the ball that contains the seed 

 breaks. You then top dress the beds with coarse 

 stable manure, let it lia on all winter, and in the 

 following spring rake off the coarsest part, and 

 fork in the remainder, Wiog careful that the fork 

 does not touch tlie roots. Pursue this course two 

 feUs, and early in the thii-d spring, before the beds 

 are forked up, put on two inclijes of light well 

 rotted manure — fork it in with the stable manure, 

 then put on from three to four inches deep of 

 clean sand from the river shore, and you will cut 

 in the month of April the best vegetable we have 

 in Virginia. 1 would not give my beds for the 

 balance of my garden. 1 think there is much in 

 the kind of seed. I obtained mine from New 

 York — they were marked " Giant Asparagus." 



The cover of sand is important on several ac- 

 counts ; it being a great absorber of heat and 

 moisture, so soon as the vegetable gets through 

 the soil, it is hastily thrown through the sand to 

 the surface in a bleached tender state, and the 

 cutting from day to day is more uniformly of the 

 same tender delicious vegetable. The sand also 

 prevents grass from growing on the betls, which 

 obviates the necessity of so much hand weeding 

 during the season for cutting, by which the beds 

 frequently become trampled, and tlie vegetable 

 that is about to come through the surface mashed 

 down, which not only destroys the spires that are 

 so trampled on by the gardener in the process of 

 hand weeding, but, I think, injures the roots. — 

 The sand should be laid in the rlleys between the 

 beds, in the fall, when the beds are about to 

 recttive the top-dressing of stable litter to keep 

 them warm through the winter ; and when the 

 sand is about to be replaced in the spring, it 

 should be passed through a sieve of such size as 

 will not let the balls (that contain the seed) pass 

 through. This will be another means of prevent- 

 ing the seed from vegetating on the beds. There 

 is a practice very prevaletrt with gardene4's to plant 

 lettuce, radishes, and other early vegetables on the 

 beds; this should never be done, and particularly 

 with radishes, as they have a long root that extends 

 to the roots of the asparagus, and nnist seriously 

 interfere with them. 



I frequently cut asparagus from three to five 

 find a half, and once 1 cut a spire six inches in 

 circumference, and from five lo eight inches long; 

 it could have been cut loi;ger, but it is never ten- 

 der near the root. — Correspondent of Farmers' Reg- 

 ister. 



Cockroaches. — A gentlemen has recently dis- 

 covered that spirits of turpentine is an effectual 

 remedy against the depredations of cockroaches, 

 lie recommends to put a l.ttle of it upon the 

 shelves or sides of bookcases, bureaus, armories^ 

 or furniture in which they take shelter, and these 

 troublesome insects will soon quit not only the 

 furniture, but the room. The remedy is simple, 

 and easily obtained by every person wiio wishes it. 

 It is not unpleasant to the smell, soon evaporates^ 

 and does no injury to the furniture or clothing. 



Vital Prknciple ov Seeds. — A smixU por-. 

 tiou of the Royal Park of Bushy was broken up 

 some time ago, for the purpose of ornamental cul- 

 ture, when immediately several flowers sprang up, 

 of the kinds which are ordinarily cultivated in 

 gardens ; this led to an investigation, and it was 

 ascertained that identical spot had been used as a 

 garden not later than the time of Oliver Cromwell, 

 more than one hundred and fifty years before. — 

 Monthly Mag. 



