SECTION IX 



MISCELLANEOUS VEGETABLES 



IN this section I have placed those vegetables which cannot 

 be said to possess any decided cultural affinity with other 

 occupants of the kitchen-garden, having peculiar and exclu- 

 sive demands in the way of cultivation. They are cultivated 

 for the use of their leaves, shoots, or flower-buds ; and the 

 inclusion of the unique Mushroom completes a very diverse 

 and yet extremely valuable collection of delicate, choice vege- 

 table growths. 



ASPARAGUS (Asparagus officinalis). Under favourable cir- 

 cumstances the Asparagus-bed may be regarded as a permanent 

 establishment, for, improving with age, its qualities will not 

 become at all impaired for quite ten years, whilst many will 

 last double and treble that time if originally well made. A 

 ten- or twelve-year renewal is, however, advisable. Three- 

 year-old plants are necessary for immediate bearing ; but 

 those raised from seed sown in situ are the best. A sandy 

 loam, deep and rich, suits Asparagus more than any other soil ; 

 but any good soil will answer. The plant can be also grown in 

 chalky soils with success, if well manured. Asparagus is also 

 a seaside plant, and, naturally, is very partial to dressings of 

 salt, and a gritty or sandy soil. Thorough drainage is perhaps 

 the essential factor in Asparagus culture, for stagnant moisture 

 is fatal to good growth ; neither is it sufficient for the surface 

 spit only to be drained the subsoil, too, must be well freed 

 from liquid accumulations. There is no necessity for the heavy 

 manuring that is often indulged in, except on poor ground ; 

 for a rich, deep, well-dug medium will give the best of results 

 with ordinary manuring and annual top-dressings. 



The site for the Asparagus-bed must be an open one. It 



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