HOME VEGETABLE GARDENING 
ASPARAGUS— THE CARE OF THE BED AND 
BEST VARIETIES 
r I ''O KEEP an asparagus bed in good bearing condition 
it should have thorough cultivation between seasons 
and a liberal fertilization each fall. After the stalks 
turn yellow in the fall they should be cut off, burned, 
and the whole bed given a coat of four inches of manure. 
By spring most of this will be rotted so it can be dug into 
the surface without disturbing the crowns of the plants. 
Should the asparagus rust attack the plants, spray them 
with Bordeaux Mixture. If only a few stalks seem affected, 
cut them off and burn them. Where the whole bed seems 
attacked, fight the rust and prepare to start a new bed in 
another part of the garden. Air-slaked lime, dusted 
on the new shoots, will combat the asparagus beetle. 
Early Argenteuil is a splendid early French sort. Pal- 
metto is a large, vigorously growing dark green sort, while 
Columbian Mammoth White is the best known of the easdy 
blanched sorts with naturally white shoots. 
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