1 56 ASPARAGUS 



of the mineral fertilizers the pea crop will be heavy, 

 and should be allowed to fully ripen and decay on the 

 land, to be plowed under, and the process repeated the 

 following 3^ear. In the mean time the seed should be 

 sown for the growth of the roots for setting the land. 



Two crops of cow-peas allowed to die on the land 

 and turned under will give a store of vegetable 

 matter that would be hard to get in an}' other manner. 

 While heavy manuring with stable manures is very 

 desirable where the material can be had at a reasonable 

 cost, the larger part, and, in facft, nearly all of the 

 Southern asparagus, must be grown by the aid of chem- 

 ical fertilizers, and the storing up of humus in the 

 land from the decaying peas is an important fadlor in 

 the placing of the soil in a condition to render the 

 chemical fertilizers of more use, since the moisture- 

 retaining nature of the organic matter plays an im- 

 portant part in the solution of matters in the soil. 

 Aside from this, there will be a large increase in the 

 nitrogen contents of the soil through the nitrification 

 of this organic matter. 



The second crop of peas should be plowed under in 

 late fall when perfecflly ripe and dead, so that the land 

 can be gotten into condition for planting in early 

 spring. The land should be thoroughly plowed, and 

 if the clay subsoil comes near the surface it should be 

 loosened with the subsoil plow. Furrows are then 

 run out four and a half to five feet apart, going twice 

 in the furrow, and then cleaning out with shovels till 

 there is a trench a foot deep. In the bottom of this 

 trench place a good coat of black earth from the forest, 

 or, if well-rotted manure can be had, use that of course. 



