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ASP 
which is a great miflake, for the fweetefl afpnragus is that 
which grows upon the richeft ground; tor poor land oc- 
calions that rank tafte fo often complained of, the ivveet- 
r.efs of afparagus being occafioned by the quicknefs of its 
growth, which is always proportionable to the goodnefs 
of the ground, and the warmth of the feafon. In order 
to prove this, two beds of afparagus were planted, upon 
ground which had dung laid a foot thick; and thefe beds 
were every year dunged extremely thick, and the afpara¬ 
gus produced from them was much fvveetcr than any that 
could be procured, though they were boiled together in 
the fame water. 
The quantity of ground neceflary to be planted with af¬ 
paragus, to fupply a final 1 family, fliould be at lead eight 
rods; lefs than that will not do: for, if you cannot cut a 
hundred at a time, it will fcarcely be worth while, for you 
mult be obliged to keep it after it is cut two or three days, 
efpecially in cold feafons, to furnifh enough for one mefs; 
but, for a larger family, fixteen rods of ground Ihould be 
planted, which, if a good crop, will furnifh two or three 
hundred eacli day in the height of the feafon. 
But, as there are feveral people who delight in having 
early afparagus, which is become a very great trade in the 
kitchen gardens near London, we fliall give proper direc¬ 
tions for the obtaining it any time in winter. You mud 
firft be provided with a quantity of good roots, (either of 
your own railing, or purchafed from fuch gardeners as 
plant for fale,) fuch as have been two or three years plant¬ 
ed out from the feed-bed; and, having fixed upon the 
time you would willingly have your afparagus fit to cut, 
about fix weeks before, you fliould prepare a quantity of 
new (table horfe-dung, which Ihould be thrown in a heap 
for ten days or more, to ferment, mixing forne fca-coal 
allies with it; then it fliould be turned over into a heap, 
where it mull lie another week, when it will be fit for life. 
Then dig out a trench in the ground, where you intend to 
make the bed, one foot and a half deep, the widtli of the 
frames that are defigned to cover it, and the length in pro¬ 
portion to the quantity you intend to have : it defigned 
only to fupply a fmall family, tiiree or four lights at a time 
will be diffident, but, for a larger family, fix or eight 
lights will not be too much: then lay down your dung in¬ 
to the trench, working it very regularly, and beat it down 
very tight with a fork, laying it at leal! three feet in thick- 
nets, or more, when the beds are made in December ; then 
put your eartli thereon about fix inches thick, breaking 
the c'lods, and laying it level; and, at one end, begin lay¬ 
ing your roots againft a little ridge of eartli, raifed about 
four inches high : your roots mud be laid as clofe as pof- 
fible one to the other, in rows, with their buds (landing 
upright: and between every row lay a fmall quantity of fine 
mould, obferving to keep the crown of the roots exactly 
level. When you have finiflied laying your bed with roots, 
you mud lay fome did'earth up to the roots, on the out- 
fides of tire bed, which are bare, to keep them from dry¬ 
ing; and timid two or three (harp-pointed dicks, about 
two feet long, down between the roots, in the middle of 
the bed, at a diftance from eacli other. The life of thefe 
(licks is to inform you what temper of heat the bed is in, 
which you may find by drawing up the fucks, and feeling 
the lower part; and if, after the bed has been made a week, 
you find it does not heat, you may lay a little draw or litter 
round the lides, and alfo upon the top, which will greatly 
help it; or, if you find it very hot, fo as to endanger lcorcli- 
ing tiie roots, it will be advifeable to let it remain wholly 
uncovered, and to thrud a large dick into the dung, on 
each fide of the bed in two or three places, to make holes 
for the great (team of the bed to pafs off, which in a fliort 
time will reduce the bed to a moderate heat. After the 
bed lias been made a fortnight, you mud cover the crowns 
of the roots with fine eartli, about two inches thick; and, 
when the buds begin to appear above ground through that 
earth, you mud again lay on a frefli quantity, about three 
inches thick ; fo that in the whole, it may be five inches 
above the crowns of the root,which will be diffident. 
ASP 
Then you mud make a band of draw (or long fitter! 
about four inches thick., w hich mud be fadened round the 
lides of the bed, that the upper part may be level with the 
furface of the ground : this mud be fadened with draight 
dicks about two feet long, fliarpened at the points, to run 
into the bed ; and upon this band you mud fet your frames, 
and put your glades thereon; but if, after your bed has 
been made three weeks, you find the heat decline, you mu ft 
lay a good lining of frefli hot dung round the fides of the 
bed, which will add a frefli heat thereto; and, in bad wea¬ 
ther, as alfo every night, keep the glades covered with 
mats and draw ; but, in the day-time, let it be all taken 
off', efpecially whenever the fun appears; which, fliining 
through the glades, will give a good colour to the afpara¬ 
gus. A bed thus made, if it works kindly, will begin to 
produce buds for cutting in about five or fix weeks, and 
will hold about three weeks in cutting : if rightly planted 
with good roots, it will produce in that time about three 
hundred buds in each light; lo that, w here it is propoled 
to be continued until the feafon of natural afparagus, a 
frefh bed fliould be made every tiiree weeks, until the be¬ 
ginning of March, from the time of the firft bed being 
made; but, if the lad: bed is made about a week in March, 
it will lad till the feafon of natural afparagus; for the lad 
beds will come a fortnight fooner to cut after making, than 
thofe made about Chridmas, and the buds will be larger, 
and better coloured, as they w ill then enjoy a greater (hare 
of tiie fun. Where this method of forcing early afpara¬ 
gus is intended, there fliould be every year fuch a quan¬ 
tity planted as you fliall judge neceflary, unlefs you intend, 
to buy the roots from fome other garden. Tiie quantity 
of roots necelfary to plant one light, is commonly known 
by tiie meafure of tiie ground where they grow ; for, where 
there is a good crop, and few roots are miffing, one rod 
of ground will furniffi enough for a light; but this calcu¬ 
lation is made from the ground planted with roots, which 
are defigned to be taken up after two or tiiree years growth 
in forcing, in which there are fix rows in a bed, at but ten 
inches didance, and the plants eight or nine inches afunder 
in the rows ; but, where there is a greater fpace between 
the rows, and fewer rows in a bed, then there mud be a 
greater quantity of ground allotted for each light. Mod 
of tiie kitchen-gardeners about London take up their af- 
paragus-roots after two years growth from planting ; but, 
where the land is not very good, it will be better to let it 
have tiiree or even four years growth, for, if tiie roots are 
weak, the buds of afparagus will be very fmall, and not 
worth the trouble of forcing. The bed ground for plant¬ 
ing afparagus, to have large roots for hot-beds, is a rnoid 
rich foil; but, for thole that are to remain for a natural 
produce, a middling foil, neither too wet nor too dry ; but 
a frefli fandy loam, when well dunged, is preferable to 
any other. 
Of tiie other fpecies, which have a place among exotic 
plants in botanic gardens, tliofe which are natives of the 
louthern parts of Europe (No. 7, 8, 9, 10) may be propa¬ 
gated by feeds, in tiie fame manner with the common fort: 
but, being more tender, fome plants fliould be fet in pots, 
that they may be flieltered in winter, and the red in a warm 
iituation, where they may be occadonally protected. Tiie 
fpecies from tiie Cape, Sec. rarely producing feeds in Eng¬ 
land, may be increafed by parting tiie roots in April. They 
mud be planted in pots, and removed into the green-houfe 
or dry dove in the autumn. The third and twelfth forts 
mud be placed in a moderate dove. 
Asparagus Draco. See Dracjena. 
Asparagus Scandens. See Mhdeoi.a. 
ASPARN', a town of Germany, in the archduchy of 
Audria, ten miles fouth-ead of Laab. 
ASPA'SIA of Miletus, a courtefan who fettled at 
Athens under the adminidration of Pericles, and one of 
the mod noted ladies of antiquity. She was of admirable 
beauty : yet her wit and eloquence, dill more enchanting 
than her beauty, gained her extraordinary reputation among 
all ranks in the republic. In eloquence flie furpaffed all 
