1 Aprin, 1898. ] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. _ 258 
and sawn to a circle of 7 feet diameter. Then the 46 necessary slabs, 6 inches 
by 13 inches, and 7 feet high, are placed round the circle and tightened up by 
means of hoops, in the manner previously described, but of lighter flat bar 
iron. Ina small silo of this character it would be unnecessary to have doors, 
but one door has been placed in the lower position. The opening, which is 26 by 
22 inches, is framed by ironwork, bolted through each slab so as to lessen the possi- 
bility of weakness upon cutting out the doorway. Short pieces of bevelled 
slabs are fitted into the opening ; two pieces of iron in the shape of a staple 
are passed through the sides of metal work and slab, and bolted inside. ‘To 
hold the doorway slabs ‘in position strong pieces of wooden cross-ties, shaped 
to the curve of the tub, are dropped between the staples and wall of silo, 
jamming doorway slabs tightly in their place. When the silo is filled, and in 
course of time it is desired to open the doorway, it is only necessary to knock 
the two wooden cross-ties upwards, and the door slabs may be removed., The 
quantity of timber used is about 440 superficial feet. In building this small 
model silo it was not deemed necessary to use 2-inch planking, as is specified 
for a tub silo of larger dimensions. When building the tub silo in its permanent 
position, the lower timbers of floor, &c., should be all tar-painted as a preser- 
vative. Upon the completion of the wooden erection the interior is lined with 
tar-paper as a further means of excluding air and moisture, after which the 
silo is ready to receive the material it is intended to convert into silage. After 
full completion a drain should be cut all round the silo, with an outlet in the 
direction of the natural fall of the ground, thereby preventing water 
gathering and soaking into the floor and lower portion of silo.—Worthern Star 
(Lismore). ; 
ASPARAGUS CULTURE. 
Mr. Wirtras Harry, writing to the Agricultural Gazette (England), says :— 
T have long advocated the more extended, or field, culture of asparagus, and by 
a simpler plan than the very general one adopted of raised beds, so generally 
followed in gardens. Bed culture is, of course, suitable for gardens, and has 
the advantage that it can be formed over all soils, whether they are suitable 
for this particular plant or not. A more extended method, which, for 
simplicity of term, is called “row culture,” is efficient, and more conveniently 
adapted to field culture. 
THE PLANT’S CAPACITIES. 
To arrive at a proper comprehension of this plant’s capacities, it is well to 
emphasise the fact that it is a British plant, and as capable of -resisting cold, 
or severe frost, as any indigenous plant grown on this island. To fully prove 
its enduring qualities in this respect, I once sowed two or three seeds in a small 
pot, grew them therein during the succeeding summer months, and subse- 
quently (during an excessively severe winter) laid the pot on its side upon the 
surface of the ground, fully exposed. The result proved that the roots had not 
suffered in the least. Though the plant is so very hardy in contention with 
frost, it cannot, however, withstand excessive moisture, or stagnant soils in 
winter; owing, no doubt, to the fact that the roots are so long and succulent, 
and the better they are grown, the more so do they become, with increased 
liability to injury. ‘Probably underground peats tend to increase the evil. 
The very fact that the wild plant grows in the wild state amidst the sands on 
these coasts, as also on the sandy hillsides of Southern Russia, proves its 
predilection for perfectly drained ground, and the former sites prove its liking 
for salt, which is taken advantage of by inland growers, who habitually give 
annual dressings of such to their beds. : 
SANDY SOIL AND PERFECT DRAINAGE. 
It is proved, therefore, that asparagus prefers sandy soil and perfect 
drainage; facts it is necessary intending growers should observe. I may add, 
in this connection, that it succeeds well in chalk or calcareous soils. Deep 
