Asparagus Culture in France. 233 



[It should be borne in mind that the use of these knolls is to 

 blanch the asparagus ; but as this is well known to be no improve- 

 ment to the vegetable, the piling up of little knolls need not be 

 performed except where fashion requires the cultivator to furnish his 

 asparagus in a blanched state. One secondary advantage of the 

 knolls should be stated, however. When cutting the asparagus, the 

 fine mould of the little mound may be easily removed, and the shoots 

 taken off low down, and without any injury to the plant. 



" From the other plants, three, or at most four, asparagus heads 

 may be gathered - } but they are not to be cut off with an asparagus- 

 knife, but removed with the fingers. However, there is a particular 

 sort of knife, square-shaped at the end, and having teeth on one 

 side, forming a saw, which will be useful to take away the earth 

 about the stalk, and will make it easy for the fingers to reach the 

 subterranean stock, which care must be taken not to injure. 



"With regard to the gathering, one finger must be got behind 

 the asparagus stem at its base, and by bending it, it will easily 

 come off the stock. In this manner all injury to its neighbours, 

 which may easily happen with an asparagus-knife, will be avoided ; 

 and there will not be left any wounded ends, from which the sap will 

 flow and spread around, occasioning rapid decay. Care should 

 be taken to close up the hole made for the gathering of the 

 asparagus, and the knoll is at once to be formed anew. 



" In the month of April, the stakes are to be again used, and 

 the stems fastened to them in due time. After having, in fine 

 weather, done all that is necessary in the way of cleaning, in the 

 month of October the dry stalks are to be cut off about ten inches 

 above the ground, and the dead rubbish thrown out of the aspa- 

 ragus plantation. From the whole surface of the trenches, and to 

 a depth of four inches, the earth is to be taken away and thrown 

 upon the ridges ; this earth is to be substituted by a layer of very 

 good manure, which layer is to be of a thickness of about an inch 

 and a half, if night-soil is made use of, or of about two inches if 

 it is only common manure. At the same time a portion of the 

 end of the old stalks is to be taken away, preserving that nearest 



