74 PICTORIAL PRAGTIGAL VEGETABLE GROWING. 



Cbapter ^♦-Jlsparaaus* 



AsPAEAGUS, often corrupted in country districts tj sparrow (or 

 sparrer !) grass, is the old plant Asparagus officinalis, which has been 

 known for thousands of years, grows wild in some parts of Britain, 

 and was forced for market in this country upwards of two centuries 

 ago. 



It is often looked upon as a rich man's vegetable, and where the 

 natural conditions are against it possibly the production of a crop is 

 not economical. Given fairly favourable circumstances, however, it 

 yields w^ell with very little trouble, and I know of excellent beds on 

 allotments. 



Asparagus undoubtedly likes a well- drained, rather light and 

 porous soil. It dislikes clay, and abhors stagnant moisture. It 

 appreciates a saline^ atmosphere. On deep, sandy loams near the 

 sea it thrives exceedingly well. It may be, and is, well grown inland, 

 but it is not so easy to get a heavy crop on stiff as on light soils. On 

 tenacious, ill-drained land it is almost essential to raise the beds 

 above the surface. 



Asparagus may be grown from seed with ease, and the only draw- 

 back to the plan is that the plants are not strong enough to cut from 

 under three years, and it is best to allow four. The seed may be 

 sown in April, in a drill 1 inch deep, and the plants thinned. In 

 the following spring they may be transplanted to the beds. 



It is a good plan to allow two rows to a bed, planting 1 foot from 

 the edge at each side, and allowing 2 feet in the centre. This means 

 a bed 4 feet wide. The stools may be 18 inches apart in the rows. 

 It is a common and good plan to form a small ridge of soil where the 

 rows are to be, set the stools on it, spread the fibrous roots well out 

 on each side, and cover the crowns 4 inches deep. 



Those who want to cut Asparagus a year after planting must 

 procure three or four year old crowns. These are clumps of growing 

 points and fibrous roots, 6 inches or more across. If planted in 

 showery weather in spring, they will soon be established. They may 

 be procured from nurserymen or seedsmen. These crowns are rather 

 expensive, but those who want to have a bed in bearing very quickly 

 do not always let the cost stand in the way. 



The life of an Asparagus bed is a very uncertain quantity. I 

 have known beds very elaborately made, with faggots or rubble for 

 drainage, soil well cultivated, and alleys lined out with geometrical 

 accuracy, yet failure has followed. And I have known the plants 

 "thrown in," as gardeners say, and the bed succeed. ^ In these cir- 

 cumstances I will draw attention to a few points which seem to me 

 to have a rather important bearing on the question. 



In the first place, rubble and faggots can only be required in wet, 

 sticky soil ; they would be out of place, and harmful, in a soil that 

 was naturally drained. 



