ASPAEAGUS CULTURE. 



55 



No. 3. — Growth very poor and very irregular. Some of 

 the stools continue to produce small heads not much thicker 

 than a quill pen, the largest being from 1J in. to 2 in. in 

 circumference. 



Fourth Year. — No. 1. — Growth very remarkaHe. The heads 

 began to show on April 3, 4, 5, 7, and 10. Some are from 

 3^ in. to 4 in. in circumference, and measure 4f in. Fifty 

 of the heads form a bundle which weighed 3200 grammes 

 (7 lb.). 



No. 2. — Growth passable, but later than No. 1. The heads 

 made their first appearance on April 6, 10, and 11. Many 

 of them were very small ; fifty of them barely made half a 

 bundle, and only weighed 1700 grammes (31 lb.). 



No. 3. — Growth but poor, and somewhat late. The heads 

 made their appearance on April 4, 6, 9, and 11; one did. 

 not show till the 22nd. Fifty heads barely formed half a 

 bundle, and only weighed 1150 grammes (2^ lb.). To sum 

 up it is clear that the plants of a year old in their fourth 

 season, that is to say, after having been planted out for 

 three years, gave a bundle weighing 3200 grammes (7 lb.), 

 while those of two years old only gave 1700 grammes (3 J lb.),, 

 and those of three years old only 1150 grammes (2 \ lb.) ; in 

 other words, taking round numbers, the plantation made 

 with the one-year-old plants produced double the crop of 

 the two-year-old plants, and treble that of the three-year-old 

 plants. The reader may easily draw his conclusions from 

 the preceding facts. 



Sowing in the Open Ground.— Some authors advo- 

 cate and many persons still adhere to the old-fashioned method 

 of sowing Asparagus in the open ground instead of planting 

 out the stools as already directed. This method of cultiva- 

 tion is defective for two reasons : first, because if all the 

 seeds do not come up we must begin our work all over again, 

 which will not only retard the crop of the year and make the 

 plantation irregular; and secondly, every plant, whether 

 good or bad, must be kept in the place where it was sown, 



