KITCHEN-GARDEN VEGETABLES. 
the contrary, the lightest soil is kept upper-|a bed to which no manure was given. 
most, and made still more open by the addition 
of manure, sand, &c. Where the soil is not 
so deep, and the subsoil coarse and_ rather 
gravelly, the ground is trenched only one spit 
deep, the bottom of the trench being then 
merely dug over. Above this, however, a large 
quantity of manure is applied, and by this, 
together with good after management, chiefly 
consisting in making the soil fine and light 
for the shoots to push through, good crops are 
produced, but with greater care and expense 
than are requisite where the soil is naturally 
well adapted for the growth of the plants, that 
is, where it is loose and sandy. 
Mr. Errington’s method of preparing the 
ground for Asparagus was by cropping it with 
Peas, and when that crop was cleared off, 
_Celery-beds about 4 or 5 feet wide were marked 
out and excavated to the depth of a foot, the 
soil being thrown out right and left; then 6 
or 8 inches of half-decayed leaves and dung, 
chiefly the former, and which had been used as 
linings to pits or frames, was trenched in, at 
least a foot deep in the excavation. The sur- 
face was then covered once more with 3 inches 
of the best rotten manure, which, when spread, 
was forked in and duly mixed. The bed was 
then planted with Celery, and when this was 
taken up for use, the operation, with a little 
care, left the bed right for planting Asparagus 
in the following May. 
Mr. Behrens, of Travemiinde, near Lubeck, 
in the account of the mode in which Asparagus 
is cultivated in his neighbourhood, says: “It 
is never planted otherwise than in a deep, light, 
and sandy soil, which has been trenched to a 
depth of 3 feet, well drained, and well manured. 
A thick layer of horse-dung is put in the bot- 
tom of the trench, and mixed with the soil. 
Strong loamy or clayey soil is decidedly dis- 
advantageous to the growth of this vegetable. 
The shoots are weak, they do not become tender, 
and they often become brown-spotted, especially 
if the drainage has been neglected.” 
Artificial Manures.—The effect of these on the 
growth of Asparagus is excedingly variable, 
and is greatly influenced by the greater or 
less dryness of the season. This was proved 
by the following experiments with artificial 
manures. 
The substances were applied to separate beds, 
the surface of each being equal to 100 square 
feet, or about 11 square yards, and the result- 
ing growth was estimated by the weight of 
stems produced, as compared with that from 
395 
The 
substances applied, their respective quantities, 
and the manner of their application were as 
follow :— 
Guano and Salt: guano 10 ozs., salt 12 ozs., in 16 gallons 
of water, applied once a week, for 17 weeks. Total— 
guano, 10 lbs. 10 ozs.; salt, 12 lbs. 12 ozs. 
Sulphate of Magnesia, applied at once, spread over the 
bed in the middle of June. Total, 20 lbs. 
Sulphate of Magnesia, applied in 16 gallons of water, 
once a fortnight, commencing in the second week of July. 
Total, 18 lbs. 
Guano, applied like the preceding. ‘Total, 18 lbs. 
Salt, applied at once in the middle of June, like the 
sulphate of magnesia. Total, 20 lbs. 
Nitrate of Soda, applied at once, like the preceding. 
Total, 20 lbs. 
The following table exhibits the increase or 
decrease per cent in the weight of stems pro- 
duced, the comparison being made with the 
bed that had no manure :— 
First Year. | Second Year. 
Increase. | Decrease.| Increase. | Decrease. 
es ——— ees 
INOP Manure seas ee ats 
Guano andecaltareperess eee 51 Mt ae 
Sulphate of Magnesia, ap- 44 43 
[OES OD BG CLINGS oo ndogescaquce aa rag 
Ditto, once a fortnight,...| 44 a ae 37 
GUANO; oatoe oa 42 a 6 ee 
Salts 24 eee teeta tae cts 22 a a 
Nitrate of Soda,..... te ae ROMA. + 84 
221 133 37 
It will be seen from this table that the in- 
crease in produce of the manured beds, over 
that to which nothing was applied, was, on the 
whole, much less in the second than it was in 
the first year; the latter was a wet season, 
whilst the former was very dry up to the end 
of the growing season—a circumstance which 
will doubtless account for the difference be- 
tween the results obtained in the two years. 
Sulphate of magnesia, applied at once, gave 
the steadiest results, being an increase of 43 
or 44 per cent in both years. 
Taking the average of the two years— 
Nitrate of soda gave an increase of ......... 51 per cent. 
Sulphate of magnesia, applied at once.... 435 ,, 
Guano; anaisalt tes. .% oie) sacoasets wendeeeeeeaes 25 x 
GUBTIO pt Sok ese Se ee ane 24 * 
SE) LPR Acre repr ac Sees ee mary ae 11 - 
From the above it appears that common salt 
was inferior as a manure to the other substances 
employed. Of these nitrate of soda is at the 
head of the list, whilst salt ranks the lowest, 
the difference between the two being 40 per 
cent. It follows, according to the above ex- 
periments, that nitrate of soda should be em- 
ployed in preference to salt. The latter, how- 
