126 The Kitchen Garden. [Mar. 



But it muft be obfefved, that if two pieces of ground 

 are to be laid down the fame year in afparagus, and iup- 

 pofe one piece to be planted with young plants, the other 

 fown with feed, that piece which was planted will be 

 ready to cut a year before that fown with feed. 



However, to fuch as choofe to raife a plantation of 

 afparagus at once from the feed, as above, the method is 

 this : 



The beds to be four feet and a half wide, and prepared 

 -2s before direfted for the plants ; then mark out four lines 

 lengthways the beds ; then along thefe lines, at the dif- 

 tance of every nine or ten inches, dot .in a few feeds, 

 covering them half an inch deep. When the plants have 

 been come up feme time, they mull be thinned, leaving 

 only one of the ftrongelt in each place ; and carefully clear 

 them from weeds. 



A plantation of afparagus thus raifed, will produce 

 buds iit to cut the fourth fpring after fowing, but will be 

 very large and fine the fifth year. 



As the method of cutting afparagus may not be fami- 

 liar to every one, I will here explain it. You fhould be 

 provided with a knife, whofe blade is about eight or nine 

 inches long, and about an inch and a half broad at the 

 ■ haft, narrowing to about half an inch at the point, which 

 fhould be rounded off from the back, and made fomewhat 

 blunt, and the edge fhould be made full of fmall teeth 

 like a faw : then obferving, when the buds arc from about 

 two to three or four inches high, they fhould be then cut, 

 obi'erving to flip the knife down clofe to the bud, and cut 

 it off about three or four inches within the ground, taking 

 great care not to v/ound or break off any young buds com- 

 ing up near it from the fame root, for there are always 

 fevcral buds in different flages of growth, advancing at 

 the fame time from the fame root. 



Solving Jfparagui Seed. 



This is now the feafon to fow afparagus feed, to raife 

 plants to make new plantations as above, or to raife plants 

 lor forcing in hot-beds. 



This feed fhould be, fown in the beginning or mJddle of 

 €)i the month, on beds four feet wide of rich earth. Sow 

 it broad-cail on the furface, then tread it in, and call fome 

 of the earth out of the alleys evenly over the bed,_and then 



rake 



