192 THE KITCHEN GARDEN. [March. 
eligible to be furnished with an asparagus knife, having a straight, 
narrow, tapering blade, about six or eight inches long, and about an 
inch broad at the haft, narrovving to about half an inch at the point, 
which should be rounded off from the back.: observing, when the 
shoots are from about two to three or four inches high, they should 
be then cut, slipping the knife down perpendicularly, close to each 
shoot, and cut it off slantingly about three or four inches within the 
ground, taking care not to wound any young buds coming up from 
the same root, for there are always several shoots advancing there- 
from in different stages of growth. 
Planting Asparagus. 
New plantations of asparagus may now be made, this being the 
proper season to remove these plants^ it may be done any time in 
this month, when the weather is mild. 
In making plantations of these plants, one great article to be 
considered, is to make choice of a proper soil; choose the best the 
garden affords; it must not be wet nor too strong or stubborn, but 
such as is moderately light and pliable, so as it will readily fall to 
pieces in digging or raking, &c. and in a situation that enjoys the 
full sun. 
The ground where you intend to make new asparagus beds, 
should have a large supply of rotten or other good dung laid thereon 
several inches thick, and then regularly trenched two spades deep, 
and the dung buried equally in each trench, twelve or fifteen inches 
below the surface. 
When this trenching is done, lay on two or three inches of very 
short well-rotted manure all over the surface, and dig the ground 
over again eight or ten inches deep, mixing this top dressing, and 
incorporating it well with the earth. 
The ground being thus prepared and laid level, divide it into 
beds four feet and a half wide, with alleys two feet wide between 
each bed. 
At each corner of every bed, let a firm stake be driven into the 
ground, to serve as a mark for the alleys. 
Four rows of asparagus are to be planted in each bed, and ten or 
twelve inches distance to be allowed between plant and plant in the 
row, and let the outside rows of each bed be eight inches from the 
edge. 
Next, let it be observed that the plants for this plantation must 
not be more than two years old; but most good gardeners prefer 
those that are only one, which are what I would recommend and 
choose to plant, as from experience I have found they generally 
take root much freer, and succeed everyway better than the former. 
The following is the method of planting them: 
Strain your line along the bed eight inches from the edge, then 
with a spade cut out a small trench or drill close to the line, about 
six inches deep, making that side next the line nearly upright, and 
when one trench is opened, plant that before you open another, 
placing the plants upright ten or twelve inches distant in the row. 
