CHAPTER IX. 



ASPARAGUS CULTURE. 



ASPARAGUS officinalis, belongs to the Liliaceae 

 Family. 



Asparagus is a native of Europe and Asia and has 

 been cultivated for 2,000 years or more. It was grown by 

 the Greeks and Romans. The so-called leaves are leaf- 

 like branches. The true leaves are scales and in the axils 

 of these branches arise. 



Asparagus is a rugged plant and will live in most any 

 soil. It does best on well-drained, well- manured, and 

 well-tilled soil and for an early crop the land selected 

 should be a warm loam with a southern exposure, if pos- 

 sible. Bulky manures should be used at the start to fur- 

 nish plenty of vegetable matter. I^ater use manures rich 

 in nitrogen and potash. 



Plant the seed thinly in rows one to three feet apart as 

 early as the ground can be worked easily. In setting the 

 new beds use strong, one-year old plants. 



FOR THE GARDEN BED. 



Dig out the space to be devoted to asparagus to a 

 depth of eighteen or more inches. Put six or eight inches 

 of coarse manure or compost into the bottom and spade it 

 in well. The top of the bed will then be about ten inches 

 lower than the surrounding garden. 



Take the freshly dug roots, and set them on a little 

 mound one foot apart each way, spreading the roots as they 

 were growing in the seed bed. Fill in over the roots with 

 two or three inches of loose, rich soil. When the plants 

 start, fill in gradually until level. In the fall as soon as 

 the tops begin to turn brown, cut thein and burn them. 

 Cover the beds in winter with a liberal supply of strawy 

 manure. This should be turned under by shallow spad- 



