ASPARAGUS. 55 



about the size of a pea. When the berries are ripe 

 they turn a bright red, and in a short time are liable 

 to fall from the plant. When the seed is desired, it 

 will be necessary to collect the plants containing the 

 seed for storing and preserving. As stated before, if 

 one does not want to save the seed, all plants bearing 

 flowers or green seed should be cut off to keep the bed 

 from being crowded by seedlings that would spring up 

 from these seeds if allowed to fall. Another way of 

 getting the seed is to go into the field and strip off the 

 ripe seed by hand. If the plants are cut to obtain the 

 seed, they should be dried, when the seed may be 

 beaten off on a cloth. The seed is so common that 

 there is no sale for it. 



Prepare a rich piece of land by plowing deeply, and 

 lay off rows about twenty inches apart ; drop the seed 

 about an inch apart in a drill and cover an inch deep. 

 When the plants are four or five inches high, thin .out 

 to one in four or five inches. If the plants are to re- 

 main two years in the seed drills, thin out to six inches 

 apart. In this case drop the seed farther apart. It is 

 quite certain that it is more profitable to grow the 

 plants to two years old before setting out to the field. 



CANNING. 



Much of the asparagus used in the South has been 

 canned. The operation is similar to that for other 

 vegetables and fruit. 



VARIETIES. 



Giant Brunswick is one of the best for the South ; 

 Palmetto is also very productive and a general favorite. 

 The variation in the different varieties is probably less 

 than in most vegetables. The same variety under 

 different treatment often varies more than different 

 varieties under similar treatment. 



