NOVEMBER. 
847 
fashioned plan of turning out the plants after blooming, and leaving 
them to their fate without any protection against rain. He was 
warned in vain by the grower I have already alluded to, who detected 
the presence of disease by the peculiar smell arising from the plants. 
I make no apology to “ D.” for differing with him. What we want in 
these horticultural works is the experimentac knowledge of others ; and 
ot all I contribute to your useful periodical, I can simply say to my 
brother florists— 
“ Si quid novisti rectius istis 
Candidus iraperti—si non his utere mecum.” 
<t>. 
ON THE CULTIVATION OF ASPARAGUS. 
This excellent vegetable is not so generally grown as it should be, nor 
is it so frequently seen as a forced production as its simple culture and 
good forcing habit would infer it to be. 
Soil and Seed. — Light sandy soils are certainly the most congenial 
for Asparagus, but they should be well manured and deeply worked up. 
For seedling plants, however, a foot of good working soil is sufficient, 
which should be well broken up, and mixed with rotten manure or old 
leaf soil. Sow the seed in March or April, in drills one foot apart, and 
drop the seed three or four inches apart (they are generally sown too 
thickly). Nothing more need be done the first season beyond keeping 
the beds clean from weeds. 
Preparation of Ground. —As before noticed, a deep sandy soil suits 
the Asparagus best. When this has been trenched from twenty to 
thirty inches deep, and well mixed with manure from bottom to top, 
the roots will penetrate to the bottom of the border the first season, and 
the produce the year following will equal that of four-years-old beds 
planted in the ordinary way. Throw out a trench the proper width 
and depth, into this the top soil is thrown, over which a layer of 
manure is mixed and forked in; then follow the next spit and manure, 
aud finally the third; more manure is added to the lower spits, which 
in the new ground will be uppermost, as probably they will be poorer, 
and over the surface I throw burnt ashes, soot, or a dressing of salt. 
This should be done during winter, that it may get forked over once or 
twice in February or March, before planting the roots. Heavier soils 
will be improved by mixing along with the manure road-scrapings or 
scrapings of yards, or indeed any sandy or rubbly materials, as the 
main point is to secure a deep, well-drained, porous earth, through 
which the roots can ramble at pleasure. The manure may be any 
rotten farm or stable manure, decomposed night-soil mixed with leaf- 
mould, or, when near the sea, sea-weed or wrack ; this is one of the 
finest ingredients to mix with the soil for Asparagus, which, being a 
sea-shore plant, enjoys this kind of assistance amazingly. Artificial 
manures, as guano, superphosphate, &c., also answer admirably; to 
which may be added common salt and a small quantity of nitrate of 
soda. From the above list the reader may select one or more, which, if 
