THE VEGETABLE GAKDEN. 107 



taste of spring " long before other green things appear. 

 A bed three feet wide and twenty feet long will supply 

 an ordinary family. It must be spaded to three feet in 

 depth, richly manured, and sprinkled with salt. Aspara- 

 gus can be raised from the seed ; or the young plants 

 can be purchased and so hasten the harvest by a year. 

 Conover's Colossal is one of the best sorts. The plants 

 should be set two and a half feet? apart each way. The 

 first spring after planting they should not be cut at all ; 

 the second spring half the shoots can be used ; afterward, 

 the whole bed can be drawn upon. Always cut the shoots 

 a little below the surface of the ground, and when they 

 are three or four inches high. Every fall the bed must 

 be manured, and stirred up with a fork, disturbing the 

 roots as little as possible. 



BEANS. 



Dwarf German Wax is one of the best and earliest 

 of String Beans. Its pods are cream color, and are ten- 

 der and rich. The Giant Wax a later variety will 

 supply String Beans until late in the season, requiring 

 more time for cooking than the dwarf variety. 



The Cranberry, or Wren's Egg, is the best Pole- 

 bean extant. It is earlier than the Lima, and has a richer 

 flavor. It is an excellent sort for winter cooking being 

 particularly good when mixed with canned corn as suc- 

 cotash. 



BEETS. 



Sow the Dark Red Egyptian for early roots, and 

 the Sea Kale for greens. The latter sends up new 

 leaves as fast as the old ones are cut. 



CABBAGE. 



The Early Dwarf York, and Jersey Wakefield, for 

 summer use, and the Flat Dutch, for winter, are excel- 



