90 THE AMATEUR’S KITCHEN GARDEN. 
making a dense mass of herbage over the bed, and saying, 
as plainly as they could speak, “ We want more room.” 
Therefore two more beds in another garden were prepared 
for them. For this purpose a piece of pasture on a heavy, 
clay-like loam, was broken up. The ground was first trenched 
two spits deep, and a great body of vegetable refuse of the 
nature of coarse hay — the result of trimming up with scythe 
and sickle amongst long grass, and such weeds as “ fat hen,” 
etc., etc. — was laid between the two spits. Then fifty barrow- 
loads of lime and plaster rubbish, mixed with an equal quan- 
tity of rotted grass mowings and grit from the rubbish-yard, 
was spread on the surface. The next thing was to lift and 
plant. When lifted they were cut back to about three feet, 
and carefully planted in rows eighteen inches apart, the 
plants the same distance in the rows, and so regularly op- 
posite each other as to form rows across the bed, for con- 
venience of hoeing, the beds now being six feet wide. They 
were then moulded up with half-rotted grass-mowings and 
grit from the rubbish-yard. This mode of growing asparagus, 
it will be seen, is scarcely more costly than the ordinary 
growing of parsnips and carrots. Seakale may be grown in 
the same manner. 
Good old garden soil will grow asparagus well with very 
moderate manuring. Clay is the worst soil for the plant, 
and rich, well-drained sandy loam the best. It loves sand, 
and stones, and salt, and alkaline manures ; but if the beds 
be of good texture, deep, well-drained, and somewhat sandy, 
there is no occasion at all for extravagant manuring ; there- 
fore, a poor man who loves asparagus may grow it to his 
heart’s content, in spite of the elaborate directions of the 
books. It is a wild weed on the sandy and rocky shores of 
these islands, and therefore can “pick up a crust” in a com- 
paratively poor country. 
To Raise a Stock of Plants, sow in March in drills one 
foot apart, and one inch deep. In the following spring trans- 
plant them to the beds, when they are growing freely, taking 
advantage of showery weather for the operation. Put them 
out a foot apart every way, unless the ground is particularly 
well adapted for asparagus, in which case put them eighteen 
inches asunder every way. In common with all other plants, 
asparagus will pay for manure and water where these can be 
provided in plenty, but if either of them are costly articles. 
