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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Asparagus, its culture for home use and for
+market:, by F. M. Hexamer
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Asparagus, its culture for home use and for market:
+       a practical treatise on the planting, cultivation,
+       harvesting, marketing, and preserving of asparagus, with
+       notes on its history
+
+Author: F. M. Hexamer
+
+Release Date: March 14, 2010 [EBook #31643]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ASPARAGUS, ITS CULTURE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Tom Roch, Matt Whittaker and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images produced by Core Historical
+Literature in Agriculture (CHLA), Cornell University)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+***********************************************************************
+* Transcriber's Note: Obvious typos were fixed and use of hyphens was *
+* normalized throughout, but all other spelling and punctuation was   *
+* retained as it appeared in the original text.                       *
+***********************************************************************
+
+
+
+
+ASPARAGUS
+
+ITS CULTURE FOR HOME USE AND FOR MARKET
+
+A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE PLANTING, CULTIVATION, HARVESTING,
+MARKETING, AND PRESERVING OF ASPARAGUS, WITH NOTES ON ITS HISTORY AND
+BOTANY
+
+
+BY
+
+F. M. HEXAMER
+
+
+_ILLUSTRATED_
+
+
+NEW YORK
+ORANGE JUDD COMPANY
+1914
+
+
+
+
+_Printed in U. S. A._
+
+
+[Illustration: BEGINNING OF THE ASPARAGUS INDUSTRY IN CALIFORNIA]
+
+
+
+
+TABLE OF CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                 PAGE
+
+      PREFACE                                      vi
+   I. Historical Sketch                             1
+  II. Botany                                        4
+ III. Cultural Varieties                           17
+  IV. Seed Growing                                 26
+   V. The Raising of Plants                        30
+  VI. Selection of Plants                          38
+ VII. The Soil and Its Preparation                 43
+VIII. Planting                                     49
+  IX. Cultivation                                  61
+   X. Fertilizers and Fertilizing                  72
+  XI. Harvesting and Marketing                     83
+ XII. Forcing                                     100
+XIII. Preserving Asparagus                        112
+ XIV. Injurious Insects                           126
+  XV. Fungus Diseases                             137
+ XVI. Asparagus Culture in Different Localities   145
+      INDEX                                       167
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+Beginning of the Asparagus Industry in California
+                                                  _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                            PAGE
+
+Asparagus Plumosus Nanus                                       5
+Asparagus Sprengeri                                            7
+Asparagus Laricinus                                            9
+Asparagus Racemosus, var. Tetragonus                          11
+Asparagus Sarmentosus                                         12
+Crown, Roots, Buds, Spear                                     14
+Stem, Leaves, Flowers, Berries                                14
+Flowers                                                       15
+Palmetto Asparagus                                            21
+Pot-Grown Plant                                               37
+Horizontal Development of Roots                               51
+Trenches Ready for Planting                                   57
+Hudson's Trencher                                             58
+Root in Proper Position for Covering                          59
+Cross-section of Trenches After Planting                      60
+Asparagus Field Ridged in Early Spring                        67
+Leveling the Ridges After Cutting Season                      69
+Fertilized Asparagus Plot                                     75
+Unfertilized Asparagus Plot                                   77
+Basket of Asparagus                                           85
+Cutting and Picking Up Asparagus                              86
+Horse Carrier for Ten Boxes                                   87
+Asparagus Knives                                              89
+End and Side View of White Asparagus Bunches                  90
+Conover's Asparagus Buncher                                   91
+Watt's Asparagus Buncher                                      92
+Rack and Knives Used in New England                           93
+At the Bunching Table                                         94
+Box of Giant Asparagus                                        97
+Southern Asparagus Crate                                      98
+Tunnel for Forcing Steam Through the Soil                    107
+A Long Island Asparagus Cannery                              113
+Sterilizing Tank                                             115
+Sterilizing Room                                             117
+Interior View of a California Asparagus Cannery              119
+Perspective View of a California Asparagus Cannery           121
+Cannery in Asparagus Fields                                  123
+Common Asparagus Beetle                                      127
+Asparagus Attacked by Beetles                                129
+Spotted Ladybird                                             131
+Twelve-spotted Asparagus Beetle                              134
+Asparagus Stems Affected with Rust                           138
+Portion of Rusted Asparagus Stems                            139
+Asparagus Field on Bouldin Island                            161
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+The cultivation of asparagus for home use as well as for market is so
+rapidly increasing, and reliable information pertaining to it is so
+frequently asked for, that a book on this subject is evidently needed.
+While all works on vegetable culture treat more or less extensively on
+its cultivation, so far there has been no book exclusively devoted to
+asparagus published in America. Asparagus is one of the earliest, most
+delicious, and surest products of the garden. Its position among other
+vegetables is unique, and when once planted it lasts a lifetime; it may
+be prepared for use in great variety, and may be canned or dried so as
+to be available at any time of the year; and yet in the great majority
+of farm gardens it is almost unknown. The principal reason for this
+neglect is based upon the erroneous idea that asparagus culture requires
+unusual skill, expense, and hard work. While this was true, in a
+measure, under old-time rules, modern methods have so simplified every
+detail connected with the cultivation of asparagus as to make it not
+necessarily more expensive and laborious than that of any other garden
+crop. To describe and make clear these improved methods, to demonstrate
+how easily and inexpensively an asparagus bed may be had in every
+garden, and how much pleasure, health, and profit may be derived from
+the crop have been the principal inducements to writing this book.
+
+In a popular treatise on so widely distributed a vegetable as asparagus,
+the cultivation of which had been brought to a high state of development
+many centuries before the Christian era, there is little opportunity for
+originality. All that the author has endeavored in this little volume
+has been to collect, arrange, classify, and systematize all obtainable
+facts, compare them with his own many years' experience in asparagus
+culture, and present his inferences in a plain and popular manner. Free
+use has been made of all available literature, especially helpful among
+which has been the Farmers' Bulletin No. 61 of the United States
+Department of Agriculture, by R. B. Handy; also bulletins of the
+Missouri, New York, Ohio, New Jersey, North Carolina, Maryland,
+Massachusetts, and South Carolina and other experiment stations; the
+files of _American Agriculturist; Gardener's Chronicle_, from which
+descriptions of several ornamental species by William Watson were
+condensed; Thome's "Flora von Deutschland;" "Eintraegliche
+Spargelzucht," von Franz Goeschke; "Braunschweiger Spargelbuch," von
+Dr. Ed. Brinckmeier; "Parks and Gardens of Paris," by William Robinson;
+"Asparagus Culture," by James Barnes and William Robinson; "Les Plantes
+Potageres," by Vilmorin-Andrieux; the works of Peter Henderson, Thomas
+Bridgeman, J. C. Loudon, and others.
+
+The author desires to express his grateful acknowledgments to Mr.
+Herbert Myrick, editor-in-chief of _American Agriculturist_ and allied
+publications, for critically reading the whole manuscript; to Prof. W.
+G. Johnson, Charles V. Mapes, C. L. Allen, A. D. McNair, Superintendent
+Southern Pines Experimental Farm; Prof. W. F. Massey, Robert W. Nix,
+Robert Hickmott, Charles W. Prescott, Joel Borton, and all others who by
+their help, suggestions, and advice have aided him in the preparation of
+this work.
+
+F. M. HEXAMER.
+
+_New York, 1901._
+
+
+
+
+ASPARAGUS
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+HISTORICAL SKETCH
+
+
+The word "asparagus" is said to be of Persian origin. In middle Latin it
+appears as _sparagus_; Italian, _sparajio_; old French, _esperaje_; old
+English, _sperage_, _sparage_, _sperach_. The middle Latin form,
+_sparagus_, was in English changed into _sparagrass_, _sparrow-grass_,
+and sometimes simply _grass_, terms which were until recently in good
+literary use. In modern French it is _asperge_; German, _spargel_;
+Dutch, _aspergie_; Spanish, _esperrago_.
+
+The original habitat of the edible asparagus is not positively known, as
+it is now found naturalized throughout Europe, as well as in nearly all
+parts of the civilized world. How long the plant was used as a vegetable
+or as a medicine is likewise uncertain, but that it was known and highly
+prized by the Romans at least two centuries before the Christian era is
+historically recorded. According to Pliny, the Romans were already aware
+of the difference in quality, that grown near Ravenna being considered
+best, and was so large that three spears weighed one pound. The elder
+Cato has treated the subject with still greater care. He advises the
+sowing of the seed of asparagus in the beds of vine-dressers' reeds,
+which are cultivated in Italy for the support of the vines, and that
+they should be burned in the spring of the third year, as the ashes
+would act as a manure to the future crop. He also recommends that the
+plants be renewed after eight or nine years.
+
+The usual method of preparing asparagus pursued by the Roman cooks was
+to select the finest sprouts and to dry them. When wanted for the table
+they were put in hot water and cooked a few minutes. To this practice is
+owing one of Emperor Augustus's favorite sayings: "_Citius quam asparagi
+coquentur_" (Do it quicker than you can cook asparagus).
+
+While the indigenous asparagus has been used from time immemorial as a
+medicine by Gauls, Germans, and Britons, its cultivation and use as a
+vegetable was only made known to the people by the invading Roman
+armies. But in the early part of the sixteenth century it was mentioned
+among the cultivated garden vegetables, and Leonard Meager, in his
+"English Gardener," published in 1683, informs us that in his time the
+London market was well supplied with "forced" asparagus.
+
+The medicinal virtues formerly attributed to asparagus comprise a wide
+range. The roots, sprouts, and seeds were used as medicine. The fresh
+roots are diuretic, perhaps owing to the immediate crystalizable
+principle, "asparagine," which is said to be sedative in the dose of a
+few grains. A syrup made of the young shoots and an extract of the roots
+has been recommended as a sedative in heart affections, and the _species
+diuretica_--a mixture of asparagus, celery, parsley, holly, and sweet
+fennel--was a favorite preparation for use in dropsy and gravel. Among
+the Greeks and Romans it was one of the oldest and most valued
+medicines, and to which most absurd virtues were attributed. It was
+believed that if a person anointed himself with a liniment made of
+asparagus and oil the bees would not approach or sting him. It was also
+believed that if the root be put on a tooth which aches violently it
+causes it to come out without pain. The therapeutic virtues of asparagus
+seem to have been held in almost as high esteem by the ancients as those
+of ginseng are esteemed by the Chinese to this day.
+
+
+
+
+II
+
+BOTANY
+
+
+The genus Asparagus belongs to the Lily Family. It comprises about one
+hundred and fifty species, and these are spread through the temperate
+and tropical regions of the Old World. One-half of these species are
+indigenous to South Africa, and it is from this region that the most
+ornamental of the greenhouse species have been obtained.
+
+All the species are perennial, with generally fleshy roots or tubers.
+The stems are annual in some, perennial in others, most of them being
+spiny, climbing shrubs, growing to a length of from five to twenty or
+even fifty feet. The true leaves are usually changed into spines, which
+are situated at the base of the branches and are often stout and woody.
+The false leaves, termed cladodia, are the linear or hair-like organs
+which are popularly called leaves; they are in reality modified
+branches. These cladodia are nearly always arranged in clusters at
+intervals along the branches, and the flowers generally spring from
+their axils. They usually fall off the hardy species in winter, and they
+are easily affected by unfavorable conditions in all the species. Most
+of them flower and fruit freely under cultivation, so that seeds are
+available for propagation.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 2--ASPARAGUS PLUMOSUS NANUS]
+
+
+ORNAMENTAL SPECIES
+
+_A. medeoloides_ (_Myrsiphyllum asparagoides_), popularly known as
+Smilax.--For many years this has been, and is yet, one of the most
+commonly grown and the most serviceable of the plants used by florists
+as "green." It is readily grown from seed in the greenhouse. While a few
+other species of asparagus have been close rivals, it is yet unexcelled
+for many purposes of floral decorations.
+
+_A. plumosus_ (the plumy asparagus).--A very graceful climbing plant
+which for finer decoration has largely taken the place of smilax, its
+foliage being finer than that of the most delicate ferns, and will last
+for weeks after being cut. The whole plant is of a bright, cheerful
+green. Its branches spread horizontally, and branch again in such a
+manner as to form a flat, frond-like arrangement, the leaves being very
+numerous, in clusters of about a dozen, bright green, and one-half inch
+long. A native of South Africa, where it climbs over bushes and branches
+in moist situations. There are several named varieties of this, most of
+which have originated in gardens. The most distinct are _A. tenuissimus_
+and _A. plumosus nanus_, the fern-like appearance of which is seen in
+Fig. 2.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 3--ASPARAGUS SPRENGERI]
+
+_A. Sprengeri._--This is one of the best and most attractive house
+plants of recent introduction. It is of graceful form and habit when
+grown as a pot plant, but it is equally well suited for planting in
+hanging baskets. Its fronds are frequently four feet long, of a rich
+shade of green, and very useful for cutting, retaining their freshness
+for weeks after being cut. As a house plant it has exceeded
+expectations, as it stands dry atmosphere better than the older kinds of
+ornamental asparagus, and is not particular as to any special position.
+It delights in a well-enriched soil, rather light in composition, with
+plenty of drainage, and grows very rapidly. It is decidedly pretty when
+in bloom, its little flowers being pure white on short racemes, and the
+anthers are of a bright orange color. Fig. 3 gives a good idea of its
+graceful habit.
+
+_A. falcatus._--One of the most striking twining plants for a large,
+temperate house. At the Kew Gardens, in London, England, is an enormous
+specimen of this species which is trained against the northern
+staircase, where it has formed a perfect thicket two yards through and
+twenty-five feet high, of long, rope-like, intertwining, spinous,
+fawn-colored stems, some of them fully fifty feet long, and clothed with
+wiry, woody branches, bearing whorls of leaves from two to three inches
+long and nearly one-fourth of an inch wide, falcate and bright green.
+The young stems are thick and succulent and gray-green, mottled with
+brown. For large conservatories, and particularly in moist, shady
+corners, where ordinary climbers will not thrive, this is an ideal
+plant. It is a native of the tropics of Asia and Africa, as well as the
+Cape.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 4--ASPARAGUS LARICINUS]
+
+_A. laricinus_ (Fig. 4).--This handsome species has been in the Kew
+collection at least twenty years. It is grown in the succulent house,
+where, from a vigorous root system, it sends up annual stout succulent
+shoots, which grow to a length of about twelve feet, and when fully
+developed are decidedly ornamental. The stems are perennial, terete,
+dark brown, woody, one-half inch in diameter at the base, very spinous,
+freely branched, and branches zigzag and gray, the leaves in clusters
+one-fourth inch apart, hair-like, one and one-half inches long, bright
+green, persistent. Flowers axillary, many in a cluster, small,
+campanulate, white. Berries globose, dull red, one seeded, one-sixth of
+an inch in diameter. Common in various parts of South Africa. It is an
+excellent pillar plant.
+
+_A. racemosus._--This species is spread throughout the tropics of Africa
+and Asia; the Cape form of it is represented at Kew under the name of
+variety _tetragonus_, as shown in Fig. 5. This is a vigorous grower,
+with woody stems nine feet long, prickly at the base, fawn colored,
+freely branching above, each branch having at its base a sharp spine
+three-quarters of an inch long. The leaves are of a gray-green hue,
+four-angled, one-quarter of an inch long. Flowers in racemes two inches
+long, whitish, very fragrant. Berry red, globose, pulpy, one-seeded. An
+excellent climber for rafters, pillars, etc., growing vigorously under
+ordinary treatment. Its root system is a dense mass of tubers.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 5--ASPARAGUS RACEMOSUS, VAR. TETRAGONUS]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 6--ASPARAGUS SARMENTOSUS]
+
+_A. sarmentosus_ (Fig. 6).--An elegant evergreen species from South
+Africa, where it grows freely in moist situations, forming dense, brushy
+stems with short prickles, and studded with white, starry, fragrant
+flowers, which are followed with bright scarlet, pea-like berries; has
+stems four feet high, freely branched and clothed with dark green flat
+leaves three inches long. It is also grown in pots and baskets for
+the Cape-house, and when in flower it is greatly admired.
+
+_A. Broussoneti._--A beautiful hardy perennial climber from the Canary
+Islands, growing ten feet high; feathery foliage and scarlet berries. In
+the autumn this is very ornamental.
+
+Among the most noteworthy of other ornamental species are: _A.
+Aethiopicus_, _Africanus_, _Asiaticus_, _Cooperi_, _crispus_,
+_declinatus_, _decumbens_, _lucidus_, _retrofractus_, _scandens_,
+_tenuifolius_, _trichophyllus_, _umbellatus_, _verticillatus_,
+_virgatus_, etc., etc.
+
+
+EDIBLE SPECIES
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 7--ASPARAGUS CROWN, ROOTS, BUDS, AND SPEAR]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 8--ASPARAGUS STEM, LEAVES, FLOWERS, AND BERRIES]
+
+_Asparagus officinalis._--While the young sprouts of a few other species
+may be used as food, this is the only one which has found a permanent
+place in cultivation. It is a branching, herbaceous plant, reaching a
+hight of from three to seven feet; the filiform branchlets, three to
+seven inches long, less than one-quarter inch thick, are mostly
+clustered in the axils of minute scales. The rootstock, or "crown," is
+perennial, and makes a new growth each year of from one to three inches,
+extending horizontally, and generally in a straight line. It may
+propagate from both ends, or from only one, but in either case the older
+part of root stalk becomes unproductive and finally dies. Fig. 7 shows
+the new portion of the rootstock crowned with buds for the production of
+new shoots, while the older portion bears the scars and dead scales of
+previous growths. From the sides and the lower part of the rootstock
+numerous cylindrical, fleshy roots start and extend several feet
+horizontally, but do not penetrate the soil deeply. In the course of
+time the older roots become hollow and inactive without becoming
+detached from the rootstock. The young root formation always takes place
+a little above the old roots, which circumstance explains why the
+asparagus plants gradually rise above the original level, thus
+necessitating the annual hilling up or the covering of the crowns with
+additional soil.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 9]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 10]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 11]
+
+The asparagus flowers are mostly solitary at the nodes, of
+greenish-yellow color, drooping or filiform, jointed peduncles;
+perianth, six-parted, campanulate, as seen in Fig. 8. Anthers, introrse;
+style, short; stigma, three-lobed; berry, red, spherical, three-celled;
+cells, two-seeded. While the flowers are generally dioecious--staminate
+and pistillate flowers being borne on different plants--there appear
+also hermaphrodite flowers, having both pistils and fully developed
+stamens in the same flower. Fig. 9 shows a pistillate, Fig. 10 a
+staminate, and Fig. 11 a hermaphrodite or bisexual flower.
+
+In one case, at least, the author has also observed that a plant which
+has been barren of seed at first changed into a seed-bearing plant the
+following year. Similar changes in the sexuality of strawberries have
+been observed under certain conditions. These facts may explain, in a
+measure, the difficulty experienced in raising permanently sterile
+asparagus plants.
+
+_Asparagus acutifolius._--A native of Southern Europe and Northern
+Africa. It has a fleshy rootstock, hard, wiry, brown stems, five to
+seven feet high, with rigid branches three to six inches long, thickly
+closed, with tufts of gray-green, hair-like, rigid leaves, which in
+exposed situations are almost spinous. Flowers yellow, a quarter of an
+inch in diameter, fragrant. The young sprouts are tender, and, when
+cooked, of a peculiar aromatic flavor. In their native home they are
+used like the cultivated kind.
+
+_A. aphyllus._--Indigenous to Greece, where the young shoots are
+commonly used as food, especially during Lent.
+
+
+
+
+III
+
+CULTURAL VARIETIES
+
+
+Although but one species of edible asparagus has found its way into
+general cultivation, many varieties and strains are recognized.
+
+Up to within a comparatively recent period it was thought that there
+existed only one distinct kind, or variety, of asparagus. As late as
+1869 so keen an observer as Peter Henderson believed that "the asparagus
+of our gardens is confined to only one variety, and the so-called giant
+can be made gigantic or otherwise, just as we will it, and the purple
+top variety will become a green top whenever the composition of the soil
+is not of the kind to develop the purple, and _vice versa_. All
+practical gardeners know how different soils and climates change the
+appearance of the same variety. Seeds of cabbage taken from the same bag
+and sown at the same time, but planted out in soils of light sandy loam,
+heavy clayey loam, and peat or leaf-mold, will show such marked
+differences when at maturity as easily to be pronounced different sorts.
+This, no doubt, is the reason why the multitude of varieties of all
+vegetables, when planted side by side to test them, are so wonderfully
+reduced in number."
+
+But after inspecting an acre of ordinary asparagus and an acre of
+Abraham Van Siclen's Colossal--which was afterward introduced as
+Conover's Colossal--at Jamaica, L. I., N. Y., Mr. Henderson wrote: "A
+thorough inspection of the roots of each lot proved that they were of
+the same age when planted. The soil was next examined, and found to be
+as near the same as could be, yet these two beds of asparagus showed a
+difference that no longer left me a shadow of a doubt of their being
+entirely different varieties."
+
+In but few vegetables do the conditions of soil, locality, mode of
+cultivation, and other circumstances affect the quality, size, and
+appearance as much as in asparagus. It is therefore difficult to
+distinguish fixed and permanent varieties from mere local strains and
+forms secured by selection.
+
+Through natural and artificial selection, through use of seed of strong
+shoots from superior roots, there has been improvement in the size and
+yield of asparagus; from the peculiar adaptability of soil and climate,
+and the effect of manure and high cultivation, there have appeared
+certain variations in the product of different beds which have led to
+the bestowing of a new name; but the effect of this care and these
+favorable conditions is not sufficiently strong to produce distinct
+varieties with fixed characteristics. Therefore, with correct and
+rational treatment of the plant from the time of seeding through all the
+stages of culture, satisfactory results may be reached with almost any
+of the varieties on the market.
+
+
+AMERICAN VARIETIES
+
+_Barr's Mammoth_ (Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth).--Originated with
+Crawford Barr, a prominent market gardener of Pennsylvania. It is one of
+the earliest varieties, is very productive, and grows to the largest
+size. In Philadelphia it is much sought after, and brings the highest
+prices.
+
+_Conover's Colossal_ (Van Siclen's Colossal).--Originated with Abraham
+Van Siclen, of Long Island, N. Y., and was introduced by S. B. Conover,
+a commision merchant of West Washington Market, New York City, some
+thirty years ago. The superiority of this variety over all other kinds
+known at that time made it soon supplant all other varieties, and it is
+to this day better and more favorably known than any other sort.
+
+_Columbian Mammoth White._--This was introduced by D. M. Ferry & Co., in
+1893. The immense shoots are clear white, and, in favorable weather,
+remain so until three or four inches above the surface, without earthing
+up or any other artificial blanching. The crown or bud of the young
+stalk is considerably smaller than the part just below it, thus further
+distinguishing the variety. All but a very few of the seedlings will
+produce clear white shoots, and the green ones can be readily
+distinguished and rejected when planting the permanent bed.
+
+_Donald's Elmira._--Originated by A. Donald, Elmira, N. Y., and was
+first introduced by Johnson & Stokes, Philadelphia, Pa. This is
+characterized by the delicate green color of its stems, different from
+any other kind. Its stalks are very tender and succulent, while its size
+is all that can be desired.
+
+_Eclipse_ (Dreer's Eclipse).--A light green mammoth strain of excellent
+quality and attractive appearance. The stalks, not rarely, measure two
+inches in diameter, and even when twelve to fifteen inches long are
+perfectly tender and of a delicate light green color.
+
+_Hub._--Originated in New Hampshire several years ago, and was
+introduced by Joseph Breck & Sons, Boston, Mass. Although not generally
+catalogued, it is a distinct and valuable variety that has made a
+decided record for itself in the tests of the Kansas Experiment Station,
+where its yield, by weight, was greater than any other.
+
+_Mammoth._--This is a somewhat indefinite term, as almost any prominent
+seedsman and grower who has a particularly good and large strain of
+asparagus suffixes it to his own name. Among the best known of these are
+Vick's Mammoth, Maule's Mammoth, Prescott's Mammoth, etc.
+
+_Moore's Cross-bred._--This originated with J. B. Moore, who for twenty
+years was awarded the first prize on asparagus at the exhibitions of the
+Massachusetts Horticultural Society, at one of which the weight of
+twelve stalks was 4 pounds 6-1/4 ounces. It retains the head close until
+the stalks are quite long, and is of uniform color, while for tenderness
+and eating quality it is excelled by none. It is particularly
+recommended for cultivation in New England.
+
+_Palmetto._--A variety of Southern origin, but suitable for the North
+also. At the South it is somewhat earlier than Conover's Colossal, but
+its great advantage is that it is almost destitute of, what dealers
+call, culls, nearly all shoots being of a uniform and large size. The
+bunch from which the engraving (Fig. 12) was made measured twenty-two
+inches in circumference, and contained forty-eight stalks of nine
+inches in length and remarkably uniform in size. It was taken on March
+30th from a field of fifty acres, near Charleston, S. C. But the
+greatest point in its favor is its comparative security from the attacks
+of rust.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 12--BUNCH OF PALMETTO ASPARAGUS]
+
+_Purple Top_ and _Green Top_.--These were the only distinct sorts in
+cultivation before the introduction of Conover's Colossal, but are now
+almost unknown to the trade and cultivators.
+
+
+EUROPEAN VARIETIES
+
+The named varieties of asparagus of European origin are very numerous,
+as almost every locality in which asparagus is cultivated extensively
+and successfully has given its name to a strain more or less distinct.
+Generally these varieties differ only in a single characteristic, and
+these differences, for the most part, are so little that they are lost
+when grown under different climatic and soil conditions. The
+best-informed authorities recognize three cultivated varieties, which
+have distinct commercial characteristics and whose seeds reproduce them
+in the seedlings.
+
+_German Giant._--This variety embraces most of the German and French
+sorts--the Giant Dutch Purple, Ulm Giant, Giant Brunswick, Large Erfurt,
+Early Darmstadt, and many others.
+
+_Argenteuil._--Of this three sub-varieties are recognized--the early,
+intermediate, and late; and these are the kinds grown almost exclusively
+in the vicinity of Paris, France, where its culture and improvement have
+steadily developed for centuries. Under good culture the late Argenteuil
+produces stalks from three to six inches in circumference, at eight
+inches below the tips.
+
+_Yellow Burgundy._--The distinctive characteristic of this variety is
+that the young shoots below the surface of the soil are light yellow
+instead of white to tips, being greenish-yellow. It is also claimed to
+be more rust-resisting than other European sorts.
+
+
+VARIETY TESTS
+
+To determine the comparative effects of manuring on different varieties
+of asparagus, and also their comparative earliness, Prof. S. C. Mason
+and his assistant, W. L. Hall, of the Kansas Experiment Station, have
+made some interesting and instructive experiments, the results of which
+are given in Bulletin 70, as follows:
+
+"The seed of ten varieties of asparagus was planted. A good stand was
+secured, and the young plants were cultivated during the summer in the
+usual way. Early the following spring the entire patch was dug up and
+the roots heeled in. The same ground was then prepared for a permanent
+plantation, by plowing it deeply and marking it with furrows four feet
+apart. These furrows were made as deep as possible, but after the loose
+soil had run back into them they were on the bottom hardly six inches
+below the level of the ground. In these furrows the roots of the
+seedlings were planted (240 feet of row for each variety), making
+altogether a patch of 35.25 square rods, or a little more than one-fifth
+of an acre (.22 of an acre). The plants were set about a foot apart in
+the row, and covered only an inch or two above the crown, leaving along
+the rows depressions some two inches deep, which were gradually filled
+up during the summer, by the many cultivations. During the winter the
+stalks were cleared off, but nothing was done with the patch in the
+spring more than to cut and note the earliest shoots, the first cutting
+of which was made April 13th. The patch was cultivated during summer as
+before, except that the size of the plants interfered somewhat--many of
+the plants growing six feet high and correspondingly broad. During the
+fall the north half of each variety was manured, at the rate of fifty
+loads per acre, with strong barnyard manure, and in the spring the
+effect was noted.
+
+"The following table gives results as shown by the records of ten
+cuttings made the spring of 1897, from April 20th to May 19th,
+inclusive; varieties averaged in order of yield:
+
+========================================================================
+VARIETIES                                 |      YIELDS IN POUNDS
+240 feet of row in each, one-half manured +---------+-----------+-------
+and one-half unmanured                    |_Manured_|_Unmanured_|_Total_
+------------------------------------------+---------+-----------+-------
+ 1 Hub                                    |   31    |    27     |  58
+ 2 Donald's Elmira                        |   29    |    29     |  58
+ 3 Vick's New Mammoth                     |   26    |    20     |  47
+ 4 Palmetto                               |   20    |    18     |  39
+ 5 Moore's Cross-bred                     |   19    |    15     |  35
+ 6 Conover's Colossal                     |   16    |    17     |  33
+ 7 Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth            |   17    |    16     |  33
+ 8 Columbian Mammoth White                |   18    |    13     |  32
+ 9 Dreer's Eclipse                        |   16    |    14     |  30
+10 Giant Purple Top                       |   15    |    14     |  29
+                                          +---------+-----------+-------
+   Totals                                 |  207    |   183     | 394
+========================================================================
+
+"Of the two heaviest yielding varieties, Hub and Donald's Elmira, the
+last named is the earliest, though Hub is also quite early. As nearly as
+can be judged from the notes, the ten varieties rank for earliness about
+as follows, though all kinds yielded something at the first cutting:
+
+{10 Giant Purple Top.
+{ 7 Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth.
+{ 2 Donald's Elmira.
+
+{ 6 Conover's Colossal.
+{ 3 Vick's New Mammoth.
+{ 1 The Hub.
+{ 9 Dreer's Eclipse.
+
+  4 Palmetto.
+  5 Moore's Cross-bred.
+  8 Columbian Mammoth White.
+
+"Those included within a brace have little or no difference of season.
+The numbers mark their rank with regard to yield, 1 being the highest.
+The ground occupied by this plantation is a rather low bottom-land,
+being built up of a clay silt from the former overflow of two creeks,
+mixed with vegetable mold. It is rather too compact for the best growth
+of asparagus, as it contains very little sand."
+
+
+
+
+IV
+
+SEED GROWING
+
+
+The asparagus plant begins to produce seed when two years old. When
+fully developed the stalks are from five to six feet in hight, with
+numerous branches upon which are produced a profusion of bright scarlet
+berries, containing from three to six seeds each. It is not advisable,
+however, to harvest seed from plants less than four years old.
+
+To save the seed the stalks are cut close to the ground as soon as the
+berries are ripe, which may be known by their changing color, from green
+to scarlet, and softening somewhat. The entire stalks are then cut off,
+tied in bundles, and hung up in a dry place safe from the attacks of
+birds, some kinds of which are very fond of this seed. After the berries
+are fully dried they are stripped off by hand, or thrashed upon a cloth
+or floor, and separated from the chaff. They are then soaked in water
+for a day or two to soften the skin and pulp of the berries, after which
+they are rubbed between the hands, or mashed with a wooden pounder, to
+break the outer shells. The separation of the pulp from the seed is
+accomplished by washing. When placed in water the seeds will settle with
+the pulp and the shells will readily pass away in pouring off the water.
+To clean the seeds thoroughly the washing has to be repeated three or
+four times. It is then spread on boards or trays to dry in the sun and
+wind. After the first day it should be removed from the sun, but exposed
+to the air in a dry loft, spread thin for ten days or more. When
+thoroughly dried the seed is stored in linen or paper bags until needed.
+
+When cheapness of the seed is the main consideration such promiscuous
+harvesting may be permissible, but when only the best is desired careful
+selection and preparation becomes necessary. Even if the parent plants
+are of choice types, not all the seeds from them are equally good. The
+seed, for instance, which has been gathered from a stool which has
+flowered side by side with an inferior kind, and at the same time, may
+be worthless, because it has been fertilized badly. Then the last heads
+generally yield nothing but doubtful seed which seldom reproduces the
+proper type. The seeds which grow at the end of the shoots also, as well
+as those produced by the upper and lower extremities of the stem, have
+the same defect.
+
+In order to insure the production of the very best asparagus seed a
+sufficient number of pistillate or seed-bearing plants, which produce
+the strongest and best spears, should be selected and marked so that
+they may be distinguished the following spring when the shoots appear.
+These clumps should be close together and near some staminate or male
+plants which have to be marked likewise, as without their presence
+fertile seed can not be produced. The number of the male to the female
+plants should be about one to four or five. The following spring all the
+sprouts of the selected male plants are allowed to grow without cutting
+any. On each hill of the female plants the two strongest and earliest
+stalks are allowed to grow, cutting the later appearing spears with the
+others for market or home use. Thus these early stalks of both male and
+female plants bloom together before any other stalks, and the blooms on
+the female plants will be fertilized with the pollen of the selected
+male plants. This last is of prime importance, for on proper
+fertilization depends the purity of the seed as well as the vigor of the
+resultant plant. Not all seed of even a good plant properly fertilized
+should be used for reproduction, as of the seeds gathered from any plant
+some will be better than others. Only the largest, plumpest, and best
+matured seeds should be used, for by saving these the most nearly
+typical plants of the sort will be most certainly produced. The
+selection of the best seed from typical plants is as essential to
+success as are good soil, thorough cultivation, and heavy manuring.
+
+The best seeds are produced from the lower part of the stalk, hence it
+is well to top the plant after the seed is well set, taking off about
+ten inches, and to remove the berries from the upper branches, that all
+the strength may go to the full development of the more desirable
+berries. If, after this has been done, there is more than sufficient
+seed for the purpose desired, a second discrimination can be made
+between the seed of plants which produce numerous berries and those
+which are shy bearers, the latter being desirable, as this indicates a
+tendency in the plant to produce stalk rather than seed, and it is as a
+stalk producer that asparagus is valuable.
+
+Harvesting, cleaning, and preserving the seed is, of course, to be done
+carefully; the separation of the heavy and the light seeds can be
+accomplished by means of water, while the larger can be selected from
+the resultant mass by the use of a properly meshed sieve.
+
+
+
+
+V
+
+THE RAISING OF PLANTS
+
+
+Asparagus can be propagated by division of the roots, but this method
+gives so unsatisfactory results that it is rarely practiced. Raising the
+plants from seed is therefore the only method worth considering. The
+seed may be sown either in the fall or spring. But far more important
+than the time for sowing is the quality of the seed. While asparagus
+seed retains its vitality for two or more years, it is not safe to use
+seed older than one year. Fresh seed may be recognized by its glossy
+black color and uniform smooth surface, while old seed has a smutty gray
+color and its surface is generally rough and wrinkled. Yet even with
+this as a guide it is not easy to distinguish bad from good seed, and
+still more difficult, if not impossible, is it to distinguish the seed
+of different varieties. It is therefore advisable to procure seed only
+from dealers of undoubted reliability and pay a fair price for it rather
+than to accept poor seed as a gift. A uniformity of the individual
+plants in the asparagus bed or field is a matter of prime importance;
+only large, fully developed seeds should be used, screening out and
+rejecting all small and inferior ones.
+
+In northern latitudes spring sowing is preferable to fall sowing. The
+ground of the seed-bed should be well drained and fairly retentive of
+moisture. As soon as the soil admits of working it should be well
+pulverized and enriched with decomposed manure. On a small scale a
+spading-fork is the best implement for preparing soil for nursery rows
+of asparagus plants.
+
+Straight lines should be marked about fifteen inches apart and drills
+made about an inch deep when the sowing is done very early in the
+season, and one-half to one inch deeper when the sowing is done later.
+In these drills the seed should be dropped two or three inches apart.
+The covering may be made with a hoe, after which the soil should be well
+pressed down with the foot. As the seed is slow to germinate--in from
+four to six weeks, according to weather conditions--it is well to sow
+with it a few radish seeds, which will soon appear and mark the lines of
+the drills, so that cultivation may begin at once. Soaking the seed in
+luke-warm water for twenty-four hours before sowing will hasten its
+germination.
+
+The cultivation of the young plants consists in keeping the soil about
+them light, and free from grass and weeds. Most of this work can be done
+with a garden cultivator, or a hoe and rake or prong hoe, but some hand
+weeding is generally necessary in addition. Strict attention to this
+will save a year in time, for if the seed-bed has been neglected, it
+will take two years to get the plants as large as they should be in one
+year if they had been properly cared for. In consequence of this very
+frequent neglect of proper cultivation of the seed-bed, it is a common
+impression that the plants must be two years old before transplanting.
+One pound of seed will produce about 10,000 plants, but as many of these
+will have to be thinned out and poor ones rejected, it is not safe to
+count upon more than one-half of this number of good plants. The number
+of plants required for an acre varies according to the manner of
+planting. If planted in rows three feet apart and two feet in the rows,
+it will require 7,260 plants per acre; if planted three by four, 3,630
+per acre.
+
+
+SOWING THE SEED WHERE THE PLANTS ARE TO REMAIN
+
+Growing asparagus without transplanting is gradually finding many
+advocates among those who raise only the green article. It is not only a
+cheaper but in some respects a better method than the raising of the
+plants in a special seed-bed, from which they are transplanted after a
+year or two. "The plan is very simple," wrote Peter Henderson in
+_American Agriculturist_, "and can be followed by any one having even a
+slight knowledge of farming or gardening work. In the fall prepare the
+land by manuring, deep plowing, and harrowing, making it as level and
+smooth as possible for the reception of the seed. Strike out lines three
+feet apart and about two to three inches deep, in which sow the seed by
+hand or seed-drill, as is most convenient, using from five to seven
+pounds of seed to each acre. After sowing, and before covering, tread
+down the seed in the rows with the feet evenly; then draw the back of
+the rake lengthwise over the rows, after which roll the whole surface.
+
+"As soon as the land is dry and fit to work in the spring, the young
+plants of asparagus will start through the ground, sufficient to define
+the rows. At once begin to cultivate with hand or horse cultivator, and
+stir the ground so as to destroy the embryo weeds, breaking the soil in
+the rows between the plants with the fingers or hand weeder for the same
+purpose. This must be repeated at intervals of two or three weeks during
+the summer, as the success of this plan is entirely dependent on keeping
+down the weeds, which, if allowed to grow, would soon smother the
+asparagus plants, that, for the first season of their growth, are weaker
+than most weeds. In two or three months after starting, the asparagus
+will have attained ten or twelve inches in hight, and it must now be
+thinned out, so that the plants stand nine inches apart in the rows. By
+fall they will be from two to three feet in hight and, if the directions
+for culture have been faithfully followed, strong and vigorous.
+
+"When the stems die down (but not before) cut them off close to the
+ground, and cover the lines for five or six inches on each side with two
+or three inches of rough manure. The following spring renew cultivation,
+and keep down the weeds the second year exactly as was done during the
+first, and so on to the spring of the fourth year, when a crop will be
+produced that will well reward all the labor that has been expended.
+Sometimes, if the land is particularly suitable, a marketable crop may
+be secured the third year, but as a rule it will be better to wait until
+the fourth year before cutting much, as this would weaken the plants. To
+compensate for the loss of a year's time in thus growing asparagus from
+seed, cabbage, lettuce, onions, beets, spinach or similar crops that
+will be marketable before the asparagus has grown high enough to
+interfere with them, may be planted between the rows of asparagus the
+first year of its growth with but little injury to it."
+
+
+GOOD CROPS TWO YEARS FROM SEED
+
+In answer to the many inquiries as to how asparagus can be grown to
+weigh two and three-fourths pounds per bunch of twenty-six stalks from
+plants two years old from seed, as exhibited at a recent American
+Institute spring exhibition, George M. Hay, of Connecticut, writes in
+_American Gardening_ as follows:
+
+"Select a piece of ground where the soil is light, but of a good depth,
+and plow thoroughly. About the 1st of May mark off the rows three or
+four feet apart--for myself I prefer the latter distance as giving
+plenty of room for cultivation. Run a two-horse plow over the same
+furrow two or three times and you will have a depth of from fourteen to
+eighteen inches.
+
+"Trenches having been all made, we come to the most important
+part--namely, manuring. In order to give the young plants a good start
+after germination we have to use liberal quantities of well-rotted
+stable manure, and in this the young plants make roots that in a short
+time are surprising. I use a one-horse load of manure to every
+seventy-five feet of drill, tramping it well down, and with a rake draw
+from each side of the trench soil to cover the manure to a depth of from
+two to three inches. The surface is raked level, and with the end of a
+rake or hoe a furrow one inch deep is drawn.
+
+"We are now ready for the seed, which should have been soaked in tepid
+water for at least twenty-four hours. This will insure the immediate
+starting of the seed when the soil is moist and has not had a chance to
+dry out. If unsoaked seed is used and we have a dry spell for two or
+three weeks, the seed will be almost useless by the time it receives
+moisture enough to start.
+
+"When the asparagus is two or three inches high thin out to one foot
+apart, being very careful not to disturb the plants left. A piece of a
+stick cut to the shape of a table-knife is an ideal tool for thinning
+out the young plants. It will be necessary to weed the rows by hand,
+while the plants are very small, for a distance of six inches on each
+side, as the cultivator, if run too close, will cover up the young
+plants. Keep the horse cultivator at work as often as possible to
+maintain moisture for the young roots.
+
+"By fall you will be surprised to learn how far the young roots have
+traveled and the crowns prepared for next year's crop. Cover the rows
+with stable manure for the winter, and in spring give a dressing of one
+pound of nitrate of soda to one hundred feet of drill, and you will be
+well repaid for the extra labor and outlay by being able to cut
+asparagus of extra size in two years from the time of sowing the seed,
+doing away with the transplanting of two-year-old roots, and then
+waiting two more years before the first crop can be cut."
+
+The principal objection which has been made against this system of not
+transplanting is that it does not admit of a careful choice of plants,
+as the plants must be kept in the places where sown, while in the
+transplanting method we need use only the choicest plants; then, if two
+or three seeds come up close together, it is very difficult to thin
+them out, and if left they will produce an inferior growth.
+
+
+POT-GROWN ASPARAGUS PLANTS
+
+In the tests made at the Missouri Experiment Station, Prof. J. C.
+Whitten found that it is much better to plant the seeds in six inches of
+rich, sandy soil in the greenhouse or hotbed, in February or early
+March, than to wait two or three months for outdoor planting. Professor
+Whitten advises to "sow liberally, for seven-eighths of the seedlings
+should be discarded. When the seedlings are three inches high, select
+those which have the thickest, fleshiest, and most numerous stems, and
+pot them. They vary more than almost any other vegetable. Many that
+appear large and vigorous will have broad, flat, twisted, or corrugated
+stems. Discard them. Beware, also, of those that put out leaves close to
+the soil. These will all make tough, stringy, undesirable plants. The
+best plants are those which are cylindrical, smooth, and free from
+ridges. They shoot up rapidly, and attain a hight of two inches before
+leaves are put out. They look much like smooth needles. This matter of
+selecting the best plants for potting, and subsequent planting out, is
+of the greatest importance in asparagus culture.
+
+"These young plants should first be put in small pots and moved into
+larger ones as soon as they are well rooted. They may need to be shifted
+twice before they are planted out-of-doors, which should be done when
+danger of frost is over. Started in this way they continue to grow from
+the time they are planted out and reach very large size the first
+season. In the case of nursery-grown plants, where seeds are sown
+directly out-of-doors, the young seedlings start very slowly, are very
+tender during their early growth, and if the weather is unfavorable they
+hardly become well established before autumn."
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 13--ONE-YEAR-OLD POT-GROWN ASPARAGUS PLANT]
+
+Fig. 13 shows a one-year-old plant started in February in the greenhouse
+and transplanted to the field the first of May. Plants grown in this way
+reach as good size in one year as the nursery-grown plants usually do in
+three years.
+
+
+
+
+VI
+
+SELECTION OF PLANTS
+
+
+That strong, healthy, one-year-old plants are in every way to be
+preferred to two or three year old ones has been demonstrated by many
+carefully conducted experiments, and is now universally recognized by
+intelligent and observant asparagus growers. The most noteworthy and
+accurate experiments in this line were made by the famous French
+asparagus specialist M. Godefroy-Leboeuf, who planted twelve stools of
+one, two, and three years old respectively in the same soil under the
+same conditions and at the same time. Calling those plantings Nos. 1, 2,
+and 3, the following are the results obtained:
+
+     _First Year._--No. 1.--All the stools came up before May 4th, and
+     were well grown.
+
+     No. 2.--Ten stools showed above ground before May 4th, one on the
+     10th, and one appeared to be dead. The asparagus heads were very
+     fine--finer, indeed, than those of No. 1.
+
+     No. 3.--Eight stools showed above ground before May 4th, one on the
+     12th, and three gave no signs of life. The heads were very fine at
+     first, but they became bent toward the end of the year (September
+     15th), and were much weaker than those of No. 2.
+
+            *       *       *       *       *
+
+     _Second Year._--No. 1.--Well-grown, regular, and strong heads,
+     which measured on September 15th one inch in circumference.
+
+     No. 2.--Well-grown but irregular heads, somewhat weaker than those
+     of No. 1.
+
+     No. 3.--Only pretty well-grown heads, very irregular, some of the
+     stools having as many as eight or ten, but all very weak. One stool
+     died after growing two heads.
+
+            *       *       *       *       *
+
+     _Third Year._--No. 1.--Magnificent growths, the heads measuring on
+     April 10th from two inches to three and one-quarter inches in
+     circumference.
+
+     No. 2.--Growth passable only, but very irregular. Some of the
+     stools were very small. The finest of them produced heads which
+     from April 8th to 10th only measured two and one-half inches in
+     circumference.
+
+     No. 3.--Growth very poor and very irregular. Some of the stools
+     continued to produce small heads not much thicker than a quill pen,
+     the largest being from one and one-half inch to two inches in
+     circumference.
+
+            *       *       *       *       *
+
+     _Fourth Year._--No. 1.--Growth very remarkable. The heads began to
+     show on April 3d, 4th, 5th, 7th, and 10th. Some were from three and
+     one-quarter inches to four inches in circumference, and measured
+     four and three-quarter inches. Fifty of the heads formed a bundle
+     which weighed seven pounds.
+
+     No. 2.--Growth passable, but later than No. 1. The heads made their
+     first appearance on April 6th, 10th, and 11th. Many of them were
+     very small; fifty of them barely made half a bundle, and only
+     weighed three and three-quarter pounds.
+
+     No. 3.--Growth but poor, and somewhat late. The heads made their
+     appearance on April 4th, 6th, 9th, and 11th; one did not show till
+     the 22d. Fifty heads barely formed half a bundle and only weighed
+     two and one-half pounds.
+
+     To sum up, it is clear that the plants of a year old in their
+     fourth season--that is to say, after having been planted out for
+     three years--gave a bundle weighing seven pounds, while those of
+     two years old only gave three and three-quarter pounds, and those
+     of three years old only two and one-half pounds; in other words,
+     taking round numbers, the plantation made with the one-year-old
+     plants produced double the crop of the two-year-old plants and
+     treble that of the three-year-old plants. The reader may easily
+     draw his conclusions from the preceding facts.
+
+Equally important is a careful selection of the individual plants to be
+set out. A crown with four or five strong, well-developed buds is far
+better than one with a dozen or more of weak and sickly ones, as the
+latter will always produce thin and poor spears of poor quality. It is
+therefore highly to be recommended to select only plants with not over
+six buds and discard all others. The roots should be strong and of
+uniform thickness, succulent and not too fibrous. Dry or withered roots
+have to be cut off, and plants with many bruised or otherwise damaged
+roots should be rejected entirely. The best roots are the cheapest.
+
+
+MALE AND FEMALE PLANTS
+
+It has long been observed that all of the asparagus plants in a bed do
+not produce seeds, owing to the fact that the male and female flowers in
+asparagus are nearly always borne on separate plants. Seed bearing is an
+exhaustive process, and, as might be supposed, those plants that have
+produced seed have less vigor than those that have not. In order to
+determine the difference in vigor between the seed bearing and non-seed
+bearing plants, Prof. William J. Green, horticulturist of the Ohio
+Experiment Station, staked off fifty of each in a plantation of half an
+acre. When the cuttings were made the shoots taken from male and female
+plants were kept separate, and the weight of each recorded in Bulletin
+No. 9, Volume III., of the Ohio Station, as follows:
+
+"The cuttings were made at regular intervals and in the ordinary manner,
+as for market purposes. The weight of shoots taken at each cutting is
+not given in the table, since the facts are quite as well shown by
+stating the aggregate weight for periods of ten days each. The division
+into periods is made for the purpose of showing comparative earliness.
+This could be shown in a more marked degree by taking the first and
+second cuttings alone, but they were too limited in quantity to admit of
+conclusions being drawn from them; hence they are included with the
+other cuttings in the same period.
+
+PRODUCT FROM FIFTY PLANTS EACH, MALE AND FEMALE
+
++========================+=============+============+
+                         |_Product from|_Product from
+                         | fifty male  | fifty female
+                         |   plants_   |   plants_
++------------------------+-------------+------------+
+                         |  _Ounces_   |  _Ounces_
+ First period, 10 days   |     37      |     21
+ Second period, 10 days  |    104      |     68
+ Third period, 10 days   |    266      |    164
+ Fourth period, 10 days  |    203      |    154
+                         +-------------+------------+
+ Total for the season    |    610      |    407
++========================+=============+============+
+
+"This shows a gain of the male over the female plants of seventy-six per
+cent. for the first period, and a fraction less than fifty per cent. for
+the whole season. Reversing the standard of comparison, it will be seen
+that the female plants fall below the male forty-three per cent. for the
+first period, and a little more than thirty-three per cent. in the
+total. In no case did the female plants produce equally with the male.
+
+"If comparative earliness is determined by the date of first cutting
+alone, there is no difference between the male and female plants, since
+the first cutting was made on both at the same date; but taking quantity
+of product into consideration, which is the proper method, there is a
+decided difference, the gain of the male over the female plants being
+seventy-six, fifty-two, sixty-three, and thirty-one per cent. for the
+four periods respectively. The difference in yield between the two was
+greatest at first, and diminished toward the last, which practically
+amounts to the same thing as the male being earlier than the female.
+There is a still further difference between the two in quality of
+product, the shoots of the female plant being smaller and inferior to
+those of the male.
+
+"It is not safe to draw conclusions from such limited observations as
+these, further, at least, than to accept them as representing the truth
+approximately. Allowing a wide margin for possible error, there would
+still seem to be sufficient difference in productive capacity between
+the male and female plants to justify the selection of the former and
+rejection of the latter when a new plantation is to be started. If the
+figures given in the table are taken as a basis, the gain in the crop,
+if the male plants alone were used, would each season pay for all the
+plants rejected, and leave a handsome margin at the end of the term of
+years when an asparagus bed has served its period of usefulness. Male
+plants can be secured by division of old plants, or by selecting those
+that bear no seed, after they have attained the age of two years."
+
+In summing up the results of this experiment, Professor Green states
+that male asparagus plants are about fifty per cent. more productive
+than female plants, and the shoots being larger have a greater market
+value.
+
+
+
+
+VII
+
+THE SOIL AND ITS PREPARATION
+
+
+As asparagus in its wild state is usually found growing in light and
+sandy soils along or near the seashore, it has long been supposed that
+it could not be cultivated in other localities and soils. While it is
+true that asparagus succeeds best in a sandy, rich, and friable loam,
+naturally underdrained and yet not too dry, there is not another
+vegetable which accommodates itself more readily to as varying soils and
+conditions. There is hardly a State in the United States in which at
+present asparagus is not grown more or less extensively and profitably,
+and the most famous asparagus districts of France and Germany are
+situated at great distances from the seashore.
+
+The question of what soil to use is, as a rule, already settled; we have
+to use the soil we have. Any good garden soil is suitable for asparagus,
+and if it is not in the most favorable condition, under existing
+circumstances, it can easily be made so. The soil should be free from
+roots, stones, or any material that will not readily disintegrate, or
+that will interfere with the growth of the spears, and with the knife in
+cutting. Fruit or other trees, or high shrubs, must not be allowed in
+the asparagus bed, because of the shade they throw over the beds, and
+because their roots make heavy drafts upon the soil. Nor should high
+trees, hedges, hills, or buildings be so near as to shade the beds,
+because all the sunshine obtainable is needed to bring the spears
+quickly to the surface. Whenever practicable the asparagus bed should be
+protected from cold winds, and so slope that the full benefit of the
+sunshine will be obtained during the whole day. Brinckmeier, in his
+"Braunschweiger Spargelbuch," gives the following three rules for
+guidance in selecting a location for asparagus beds:
+
+"1. One should choose, in reference to ground characteristics, open,
+free-lying land, protected to the north and east [which, for American
+conditions, should be north and west], of gradual slope, free from trees
+or shrubbery.
+
+"2. The field should be exposed to the rays of the sun all day long;
+therefore, a southern exposure is desirable, or, if that is not
+obtainable, a southwesterly or southeasterly slope, because either east,
+west, or north exposure will cause shade during a greater or less
+portion of the day.
+
+"3. Standing, stagnant ground water, which cannot be drawn off by
+drainage, is to be avoided, the requirements of the plants indicating a
+somewhat damp subsoil, but not too high ground water."
+
+For commercial purposes on a large scale, and when the trucker has the
+choice of location, a well-drained, light, deep, sandy loam, with a
+light clay subsoil, is to be preferred to any other. Heavy clay soil, or
+land with a hard-pan subsoil, or, in fact, any soil that is cold and
+wet, is totally unfit for profitable asparagus growing, unless it is
+thoroughly underdrained and made lighter by a plentiful addition of sand
+and muck.
+
+Freedom from weeds is very desirable, even more so than great
+fertility, for the latter can be produced by heavy manuring, which the
+future cultivation will require; and to the end that weeds may be few,
+it is well that for a year or two previous to planting the land should
+have been occupied by some hoed crop, such as potatoes, beets, cabbage,
+etc. Land on which corn has been growing for two or three years is in
+excellent condition for an asparagus field, provided it has been heavily
+manured one year previous to the planting of the roots.
+
+
+PREPARATION OF THE GROUND
+
+Asparagus differs from most other vegetables in that it is a perennial,
+and when once planted properly, in suitable soil, it will continue to
+produce an annual crop for a generation if not for an indefinite period,
+while if the work is done carelessly and without consideration for the
+plant's requirements the plantation will never prove satisfactory and
+will run out entirely in the course of a few years. The establishing of
+an asparagus bed is naturally more expensive than the planting and
+raising of annual vegetables. In addition to this, the plants have to be
+taken care of for three years before a crop can be harvested. On the
+other hand, an asparagus bed is an investment for a lifetime, and the
+dividends derived from it increase in proportion to the care and
+thoroughness bestowed upon the preparation of the land.
+
+It is at once apparent, then, that nothing should be neglected to bring
+the soil into the best possible condition before planting. This truth
+was fully recognized by the gardeners of former years who practiced
+most extraordinary methods in order to bring the land into the most
+favorable condition for asparagus. Even now in some European countries,
+where labor is cheap, the entire ground is trenched to a depth of three
+or four feet, turning in at the same time all the available manure,
+seaweed, and other fertilizing material.
+
+A famous old-time asparagus bed in England was made in this manner: "The
+land was trenched three feet deep in trenches three feet wide and cast
+up into rough ridges, after a crop of summer peas. All decaying
+vegetation in the rubbish yards and corners was at the same time well
+sorted and turned up. Early in autumn also were added some old mushroom,
+melon, and cucumber bed material, a lot of manure from piggeries, cow
+houses, and stables, a quantity of road-grit and sand, a quantity of
+ditch and drain parings, turfy loam and sods, quite three feet thick.
+These were all turned over four times and well incorporated together,
+between Michaelmas and Lady Day, as one would a dungheap, the whole
+being left in large ridges exposed to the frost. By April this compost
+was in a kindly state; it was, therefore, laid down and planted with
+good, clean one-year-old asparagus plants, which certainly grew in a
+most extraordinary way."
+
+Another elaborate way of making an asparagus bed, formerly practiced in
+France, is described by Dr. Maccullogh as follows: "A pit the size of
+the intended plantation is dug four feet in depth, and the mold taken
+from it must be sifted, taking care to reject all stones, even as low in
+size as a filbert nut. The best part of the mold must then be laid aside
+before making up the beds. The materials of the bed are then to be laid
+in the following proportions and order: Six inches of common dunghill
+manure, eight inches of turf, six inches of dung as before, six inches
+of sifted earth, eight inches of turf, six inches of very rotten dung,
+eight inches of the best of earth. The last layer of earth must then be
+well mixed with the last of dung. The compartment must now be divided
+into beds five feet wide by paths constructed of turf two feet in
+breadth and one foot in thickness."
+
+A bed prepared in this manner, and planted and cultivated with as much
+painstaking care, will no doubt produce asparagus of unsurpassed
+quality, and may last forever. Yet the use of modern implements and a
+better knowledge of the nature and requirements of the plant have
+demonstrated that first-class asparagus can be produced with far less
+expense and labor. While a deep and loose soil produces earlier and
+better crops than a heavy and shallow one, indiscriminate deepening of
+the soil by trenching or other means is not always desirable, even where
+the cost does not come into consideration. When the subsoil is very
+light and poor and deficient in humus, the placing of the better surface
+soil below and the infertile lower strata above, trenching would be a
+positive detriment. The same would be the case where the subsoil
+consists of heavy impervious clay.
+
+In the fall preceding planting the land should be plowed deeply and left
+in the rough state during the winter. Subsoiling has often been
+recommended, yet practical growers but rarely make use of the subsoil
+plow in the preparation of asparagus plantations, although the value of
+subsoiling where the subsoil is heavy can not be doubted. Where stable
+or barnyard manure can be had cheaply, and the soil is heavy, a liberal
+coat spread broadcast over the surface and left to the action of the
+weather during winter will ameliorate the ground considerably. In most
+cases, however, the same object may be obtained by applying the manure
+in spring. Joseph Harris mentions a case in which a bed was plowed and
+subsoiled in the fall and the soil filled with manure, while another bed
+near by was planted without manure, or extra preparation of any kind,
+relying entirely on artificial fertilizers after planting, and the
+latter was by far the better bed. As early in spring as the ground is in
+suitable condition to be worked it has to be plowed and harrowed and
+brought into as perfect condition as possible.
+
+
+
+
+VIII
+
+PLANTING
+
+
+Throughout the Middle and Northern States, spring, as soon as the soil
+can be worked to good advantage, is decidedly the most favorable time
+for planting asparagus. If it is not practicable to plant thus early,
+the work may sometimes be delayed up to the middle of June. In planting
+thus late, however, preparation has to be made for watering the plants
+in case of drouth, else failure be inevitable. It is also necessary to
+do the work as expeditiously as possible, so as not to expose the roots
+to the drying influences of the sun and wind. Fall planting is advisable
+only in climates where there is no danger of winter-killing of the
+roots.
+
+After the ground has been plowed and harrowed, or spaded and raked over,
+and brought into as mellow a condition as possible, the rows for
+planting are to be laid out. It is usually recommended to have the rows
+run north and south, so as to readily admit the sunlight. When this is
+not practicable, however, it need not deter any one from making an
+asparagus bed, as it is more important to have the rows run with the
+slope of the land than in any particular direction of the compass, in
+order to provide ready surface drainage.
+
+
+DISTANCE TO PLANT
+
+As to the best distance between the rows and the plants in the rows
+there is a wide difference of opinion, more so than with almost any
+other cultivated plant. No unvarying rule can be laid down on this
+point, as it depends largely upon the mechanical condition, depth, and
+fertility of the soil. In a rich, moderately heavy soil, the roots may
+be planted closer than in a poor, light soil. The tendency of the
+present day is for giving the plants considerably more room than what
+formerly was thought to be ample. Intelligent observers could not fail
+to notice that crowded asparagus beds produce later and smaller crops,
+and of inferior size and quality; that they do not last as long; and
+that they are more liable to attacks from insects and fungi than when
+more room is given to the plants.
+
+Gardeners of but a few decades ago had no idea of the possibility of
+raising a profitable crop of asparagus planted four or five feet apart,
+and would have looked with derision upon any one advocating so wild a
+scheme. The remains of run out, old-time asparagus beds are still in
+evidence in many old farm gardens. The rows in these were originally one
+foot apart and the plants in the rows even closer than this, and perhaps
+after every third or fourth row there was a path two feet wide. Of
+course, in such a bed, after a few years, the entire ground became a
+solid mass of roots, and the stalks became smaller and tougher from year
+to year.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 14--HORIZONTAL DEVELOPMENT OF A FOUR-YEAR-OLD
+ASPARAGUS ROOT]
+
+In most asparagus sections special customs prevail, and even in these
+different growers have their individual preferences; but all agree that
+asparagus should never be planted closer than two feet in rows three
+feet apart. For the home garden there is no better plan than to plant
+but a single row, with the plants two or three feet apart, along the
+edge or border of the ground, but not nearer than four or five feet to
+other plants, and in case of grape-vines even more room should be given.
+Here they require but little care, and the plants have an unlimited
+space for the extension of their roots in search of moisture and food.
+Asparagus needs considerable water, and an acre of land will hold so
+much water and no more. The more plants there are on an acre the less
+water there will be for each plant, and what is true of water is also
+true of plant food.
+
+In field culture the distance adopted by asparagus growers varies from 3
+x 3 feet (4,840 plants per acre); 3 x 4 feet (3,640 plants per acre); 4
+x 4 feet (2,722 plants per acre); 4 x 5 feet (2,178 plants per acre); 5
+x 6 feet (1,452 plants per acre); 6 x 6 feet (1,210 plants per acre),
+and even more. If the idea is to have the plants so far apart that their
+roots can not interlace, twenty feet each way would not be too
+extravagant a distance, under favorable conditions, as will readily
+become apparent by a glance at Fig. 14. This illustration is an exact
+reproduction of the root system of an asparagus plant four years from
+the seed. The roots spread out upon a level floor measured thirteen feet
+from tip to tip, the single roots averaging the thickness of a lead
+pencil. This root grew in Madison County, Ill., and was washed out of
+the ground--without having any of its roots torn--by the unusually heavy
+spring rains which caused the Piasa River to overflow its banks and sent
+a current rushing through the asparagus field in which it grew. If the
+plant had remained in its position a few years longer its roots would
+probably have extended ten feet in each direction.
+
+From this it does not follow, however, that asparagus should be planted
+twenty or even ten feet apart to produce the largest returns, but it
+plainly shows why the roots should not be planted as closely together
+as was customary in former years; and it obviously demonstrates that
+when land is cheap and manure and labor high, asparagus can not be hurt
+by giving it plenty of room. It should also be considered that
+earliness, size, and quality make a great difference with the price and
+profits when early and large shoots are in demand. It might be possible
+to get double the number of shoots per acre from thick than from thin
+planting, but they might be so small and spindling as not to be worth
+the labor and expense of cutting and marketing.
+
+
+DEPTH OF PLANTING
+
+Contrary to the all but universal belief, asparagus is not a deep-rooted
+plant. In the wild state its most frequent habitat is on the fertile
+marshes of the shoreline in Europe, on ground but a few inches above the
+tidewater which permeates the sandy subsoil. As the roots can not live
+in water, they naturally grow to long distances parallel with the
+surface and retain this habit under cultivation. The tendency of growth
+in the asparagus roots in this direction is obviously demonstrated in
+Fig. 14.
+
+The proper depth of planting asparagus roots varies somewhat, according
+to the character of the soil, the method of cultivation, and the kind of
+spears desired, whether white or green. As the new crowns rise somewhat
+above the old ones annually, it seems but rational that the plants
+should have sufficient room for the new growths before their crowns
+become even with the surface of the land. When the crown once comes near
+the level of the soil it is impossible to give proper cultivation,
+unless the entire bed be raised by adding soil to the whole surface.
+
+While it is true that the deeper the crowns are planted the later they
+will start in the spring, this is of account only during the first few
+years. Besides, the factor of earliness is not of nearly as much
+importance now as it was before northern markets were so bountifully
+supplied with the southern grown crops several months before the opening
+of the northern season. Shallow-planted asparagus sprouts earlier, but
+soon exhausts itself, sending up spindling, tough shoots, while the
+deeper-planted crowns produce large and succulent sprouts throughout the
+season. When green asparagus is desired, and there is no danger of the
+beetles eating the sprouts before they are fit for use, a depth of two
+or three inches is sufficient, but for white or blanched asparagus a
+depth of from eight to ten inches is necessary.
+
+
+MANNER OF PLANTING
+
+As in other details of asparagus culture, the methods of planting have
+undergone very material changes. The formerly usual practice of digging
+deep trenches was not well founded--in the light of our present
+experience and knowledge--and could be useful only for drainage. How
+little regard was paid to the nature and requirements of the plant may
+readily be perceived by reading the following directions for making an
+asparagus bed, but little over half a century ago, in Bridgeman's "Young
+Gardeners' Assistant":
+
+"The ground for the asparagus bed should have a large supply of
+well-rotted dung, three or four inches thick, and then be 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 two or three inches of thoroughly rotted manure over the whole
+surface, and dig the ground over again eight or ten inches deep, mixing
+this top-dressing, and incorporating it well with the earth.
+
+"In family gardens it is customary to divide the ground thus prepared
+into beds, allowing four feet for every four rows of plants, with alleys
+two feet and a half wide between each bed. Strain your line along the
+bed six 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
+to the line nearly upright; when one trench is opened, plant that before
+you open another, placing the plants upright ten or twelve inches
+distance in the row, and let every row be twelve inches apart.
+
+"The plants must not be placed flat in the bottom of the trench, but
+nearly upright against the back of it, and so that the crown of the
+plants must also stand upright, and two or three inches below the
+surface of the ground, spreading their roots somewhat regularly against
+the back of the trench, and at the same time drawing a little earth up
+against them with the hand as you place them, just to fix the plants in
+their due position until the row is planted; when one row is thus
+placed, with a rake or hoe draw the earth into the trench over the
+plants, and then proceed to open another drill or trench, as before
+directed, and fill and cover it in the same manner, and so on until the
+whole is planted; then let the surface of the beds be raked smooth and
+clear from stones, etc.
+
+"Some gardeners, with a view to having extra large heads, place their
+plants sixteen inches apart in the rows instead of twelve, and by
+planting them in the quincunx manner--that is, by commencing the second
+row eight inches from the end of the first and the fourth even with the
+second--the plants will form rhomboidal squares instead of rectangular
+ones, and every plant will thus have room to expand its roots and leaves
+luxuriantly."
+
+In diametrical contradistinction, and as an example of the very plainest
+and simplest of modern methods, Joseph Harris wrote: "If you are going
+to plant a small bed in the garden, stretch a line not less than four
+feet from any other plant, and with a hoe make holes along the line,
+eighteen inches or three feet apart, four inches deep, and large enough
+to hold the plants when the roots are spread out horizontally. Do not
+make deep holes straight down in the ground and stick the roots in as
+you would a cabbage, but spread out the roots. After the roots are set
+out cover them with fine soil, and that is all there is to it. Then move
+the line three feet from the first row and repeat the planting until the
+bed is finished. In the field make the rows with a common corn-marker,
+three feet apart each way, and set out a plant where the rows cross. It
+is but little more work to plant an acre of asparagus than an acre of
+potatoes."
+
+Between these extreme methods many different directions for planting
+asparagus have been given and practiced. Modern methods have not only
+greatly simplified the planting, but have also materially reduced the
+expense, increased the crop, and improved the quality of the product.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 15--TRENCHES READY FOR PLANTING]
+
+After the ground has been properly prepared, it is marked off in
+parallel rows from three to five or more feet apart, according to the
+preferences of the grower. The easiest way to open these trenches is by
+plowing a furrow each way, and, if necessary, going over the ground a
+sufficient number of times to make the furrows from eight to ten inches
+deep. After this the loose soil is thrown out with a shovel or a wide
+hoe, so as to leave the trenches at a uniform depth of ten to twelve
+inches and of the same width at the bottom, as seen in Fig. 15. By
+rigging a piece of board on the mold-board of the plow more soil is
+thrown out, so that usually it will not be necessary to go over the
+ground oftener than twice. The Messrs. Hudson & Son, of Long Island,
+have devised for their own use a "trencher" (Fig. 16), which with a good
+team opens the trench to the desired depth in one operation and at a
+great saving of labor.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 16--HUDSON'S TRENCHER]
+
+If the entire ground has been heavily fertilized, plowing manure in the
+trenches will not be necessary, yet many experienced asparagus growers
+think that it pays to scatter some fertilizing material into the
+trenches before planting. A favorite plan with Long Island growers is to
+mix half a ton of ground bone, or fish scrap, with one hundred pounds of
+nitrate of soda per acre, and thoroughly incorporate this mixture with
+the soil to a depth of three inches before setting the plants. Others
+prefer thoroughly decomposed manure spread over the bottom of the
+furrow, to a depth of about three inches, before setting the plants.
+Others prefer thoroughly decomposed manure spread over the bottom of the
+furrow, to a depth of about three inches, and covering it with two
+inches of fine soil. If the roots are to be planted four or more feet
+apart it will be sufficient to throw a shovelful of manure where the
+roots are to be placed. This is then spread out so as to make a layer
+of about three inches, which is then covered with soil.
+
+
+PLACING THE ROOTS
+
+The proper planting of the roots is the most critical point in asparagus
+culture, as upon the manner in which this is performed--more than upon
+other detail--depends the success, yield, duration, and profit of the
+plantation. Almost any other neglect can be remedied by after-treatment,
+but careless and faulty planting, never. Whatever care and personal
+attention the grower may give to this work will be repaid manyfold in
+future returns.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 17--ASPARAGUS ROOT IN PROPER POSITION FOR COVERING]
+
+As stated before, only strong, healthy one-year-old plants with three or
+four strong buds should be used, so as to insure an even growth over the
+entire field, and at every stage of the work great care must be taken
+not to expose the roots to the drying influences of sun and winds. When
+everything is in readiness for planting, the roots are placed in the
+trench, the crown in the center and the rootlets spread out evenly and
+horizontally, like the spokes of a wheel, and at once covered with three
+inches of fine, mellow soil, which is pressed around them. If the ground
+is dry at planting-time it should be pressed down quite firmly about the
+roots, so as to prevent their drying out, and to hasten their growth.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 18--CROSS-SECTION OF ASPARAGUS BED AFTER PLANTING]
+
+To still more insure success it is an excellent plan to draw up little
+hills of soil in the bottom of the trench over which to place the roots
+with the crowns resting on the top, thus raising the crowns a few inches
+above the extremities of the roots and providing for them a position
+similar to what they stood in before transplanting, as seen in Fig. 17.
+
+The subsequent covering of the roots can usually be done with a
+one-horse plow, from which the mold-board has been removed, passing down
+the sides of the row. This leaves the plants in a depression, the soil
+thrown out in opening the rows forming a ridge on each side, as shown in
+Fig. 18. This depression will gradually become filled during the process
+of cultivation the succeeding summer.
+
+
+
+
+IX
+
+CULTIVATION
+
+
+As generally understood, the chief object of cultivation is to kill
+weeds. This is an erroneous idea, however, as the appearance of weeds
+serves simply as Nature's reminder of the necessity of immediate
+cultivation. On ground cultivated as thoroughly as it should be for the
+best development of the crop there will rarely be any weeds to kill, as
+their germs have been destroyed by the process of cultivation before
+they could make their appearance above the ground.
+
+
+CARE DURING THE FIRST YEAR
+
+The cultural work in the asparagus bed during the first year consists in
+loosening the soil at frequent intervals, and especially as soon after
+rain as the ground becomes dry enough for cultivation. Frequent and
+thorough cultivation is necessary not only to keep down the weeds, but
+also to prevent the formation of a crust on the soil after rain, and to
+provide a mulch of loose earth for the retention of moisture. In field
+culture the work is best done with a one-horse cultivator or a
+wheel-hoe, and on a small scale with a scuffle-hoe and a rake. As the
+sprouts grow up small quantities of fine soil should be drawn into the
+trenches from time to time, but during the early part of the season
+great care must be exercised not to cover the crowns too deeply.
+
+Some growers advise to work the soil away instead of toward the plants,
+considering the four inches of soil with which the roots are covered at
+planting sufficient for the first year. While this may be true in a wet
+or moderately moist summer, in a season of drouth the additional mulch
+of mellow soil can not but be beneficial to the young and tender plants.
+Especial care is required when working around the young sprouts, so as
+not to cover, break, or in any way injure any of them.
+
+In the garden bed it pays to stake the canes when they are but a foot
+high, so as to prevent the wind from disturbing the stools in the soil
+by swaying the shoots backward and forward. Careful gardeners insert
+stakes for this purpose at the time of planting, before the roots are
+covered with soil, so as to guard against the danger of injuring any of
+them. The best material for this tying is raffia, or Cuban bast. In
+field culture staking is usually not practicable, partly on account of
+the cost, and also because where there are many plants growing close
+together they furnish some mutual protection to one another. The same
+end may also be accomplished--partly, at least--by throwing up a furrow
+on each side of the rows of plants. Precautions of this kind are
+important in localities exposed to high winds, as their neglect may
+often cause greater loss than it would have cost to provide proper
+protection.
+
+Another important work in the asparagus bed during the first year is to
+keep close and constant watch over the asparagus beetle, and at its
+first appearance to apply the remedies recommended in the chapter on
+injurious insects. Plants deprived of their foliage at this early stage
+of their life have but a poor chance to recover from the loss.
+
+If it is found that some of the plants have not started by the middle of
+June, it is best to replace them with growing plants of the same age,
+which should have been kept in a reserve bed for this purpose. If this
+replanting is done carefully, so as not to mutilate any of the roots,
+and on a cloudy day, it is best not to cut back the tops very severely.
+Unless a copious rain sets in soon after planting, the roots have to be
+heavily watered, after which they will keep on growing at once without
+suffering any setback.
+
+The formerly all but universal practice was to cover the roots with
+manure after the stalks had been removed in the fall for fear of frost
+injuring or killing the roots. In sections where winters are very severe
+this may still be desirable, as may be seen from the statement of so
+keen an observer as Professor J. C. Whitten, of the Missouri Experiment
+Station: "Most writers advise applying dressing of old fine manure
+during the growing season when the plants can use it. In our soil better
+results are obtained by applying it in winter. It prevents the soil from
+running together and hardening, and also prevents the sprouts from
+coming through, as they otherwise often do, too early in spring, and
+becoming weakened by subsequent severe freezing."
+
+As the reverse of this plan, M. Godefroy-Leboeuf, the famous French
+authority, recommends "to clear out of the trenches the soil which has
+fallen into them from the sides of the mounds, and also remove from
+above the stools a portion of that with which they were covered at the
+time they were planted--say, to a depth of one and one-half inches--so
+that the action of the frost may open the soil and that the rain may
+penetrate and improve it; also that during the first fine days of spring
+the sun may warm the surface of the soil and penetrate as far as the
+stools. There is no fear that the action of the frost should hurt the
+plants. Asparagus will never freeze as long as the stool is covered with
+a layer of soil one and one-half to one and three-fourth inches in
+depth."
+
+If the rows are not less than four feet apart a crop of some other
+vegetables may be raised between them. Beans, dwarf peas, lettuce,
+beets, or any kinds which do not spread much, are suitable for the
+purpose. These by-products will help considerably toward paying the cost
+of cultivating the main crop, besides having a tendency to keep the soil
+cool and moist, a condition of no little importance to the asparagus.
+
+
+CARE DURING THE SECOND YEAR
+
+The treatment of the asparagus plantation during the second year does
+not differ materially from that of the first season after planting. The
+ground has to be stirred frequently and kept scrupulously clean, and a
+sharp lookout must be kept for the advent of injurious insects. As soon
+as berries appear on the tops they should be stripped off and destroyed,
+as the ripening seed absorbs a large share of the nourishment which
+ought to go to the development and strengthening of the crowns which are
+to produce the following year's crop.
+
+Even with the best of care, some plants will die out from time to time,
+although the more thoroughly the ground has been prepared at the time of
+planting, and the better the quality of the roots planted, the fewer
+failures of this kind will occur. These blank spaces are not only
+constant eyesores to the methodical gardener, but in the course of
+several years the aggregate shortage of crops will be considerable,
+while the amount of labor and fertilizer will be the same as in a fully
+stocked plantation. Therefore, such vacancies should be filled in the
+spring, not only of the second year, but whenever they occur in future
+seasons.
+
+The best way to replant these dead or dying roots is to go over the rows
+each fall, before the ground freezes, and drive a stake wherever there
+is a plant missing, as in the spring, before the plants have started, it
+would be difficult, if not impossible, to indicate the blank spaces. For
+replanting in the second year good strong two-year-old roots should be
+used. For the third and future years it is best to raise and keep a
+supply of a sufficient number of reserve plants for this special purpose
+in a similar manner as is done for forcing. As early in spring as the
+season permits these clumps should be carefully lifted and transferred
+to the permanent plantation. For three-year and older beds good strong
+three-year-old roots should be used, as younger ones would have but a
+poor chance between two older and well-established clumps.
+
+
+CARE DURING THE THIRD AND FUTURE YEARS
+
+The third year cutting may begin in a moderate way, but too much should
+not be attempted. If all the conditions of growth have been favorable
+half a crop may be cut without injuring the roots, but under no
+circumstances should cutting in the third year be continued for more
+than three weeks. The general care of the bed during the third year is
+similar to that of the second, with the exception that the soil is
+worked more toward the rows, ridging them slightly.
+
+In the spring of the third and each succeeding year, as soon as the
+ground can be worked it should be plowed between the rows, turning the
+soil toward and over the crowns, leaving a dead furrow between the rows,
+as seen in Fig. 19. If bleached asparagus is desired, these ridges over
+the rows should be twelve inches higher than the bottom of the dead
+furrows between the rows, and when the soil is very light and sandy a
+hight of fifteen inches is preferable. For green asparagus the ridges
+are left lower, and the shoots are allowed to grow several inches above
+the ground before cutting, provided the asparagus beetle does not
+appropriate them sooner.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 19--PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF AN ASPARAGUS FIELD PROPERLY
+RIDGED IN EARLY SPRING MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION]
+
+After the furrows are plowed out between the rows a home-made ridger is
+used to smooth the ridges and complete the work. This is formed of two
+heavy oak boards shod with tire iron, sloping upward and backward,
+attached to a pair of cultivator wheels. This requires a good team, one
+horse walking on either side of the row. On the light soils of Long
+Island this implement works to perfection, but on stiff lands a
+two-horse disk-wheel cultivator, with two disks on each side, going
+astride of each row and throwing up fresh soil upon the ridge, proves
+more effective. The same implements are used for renewing the ridges
+during the cutting season, which will be required about once a week, as
+the rains beat them down and the sun bakes a crust upon the top.
+
+Immediately after the cutting season is over the ridges are leveled, by
+plowing a furrow from each side of the center (Fig. 20), after which the
+land is harrowed crosswise until the surface is level and smooth. As
+long as practical, surface cultivation should be given, especially after
+rains, but usually at this time the plants make such rapid and vigorous
+growth that there will be little time for the work. Their tops and
+branches soon fill the entire space and quickly shade the ground so
+densely as to keep down weed growth. Of course, whatever tall weeds may
+spring up here and there have to be pulled out by hand.
+
+
+FALL TREATMENT
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 20--LEVELING THE RIDGES AFTER THE CUTTING SEASON]
+
+The fall clearing of the plantation is an important part of asparagus
+culture. As soon as the berries are turning red--but not before--the
+stalks should be cut off even with the ground. If left longer the
+berries will drop off, their seeds will soon become embedded in the
+ground and fill the soil with seedling asparagus plants, which are about
+the most obstinate weed in the asparagus bed. If cut sooner they are not
+sufficiently matured, and the roots are deprived of their nourishment.
+All the brush should be removed at once to an open field and burned, so
+as not to provide lodging-places for injurious insects and fungi. Some
+recommend leaving the seedless plants as a mulch during the winter, but
+the possible benefit of this is so insignificant that it is not worth
+while to leave them for a second cleaning in spring, when time is far
+more valuable.
+
+
+RENOVATING OLD ASPARAGUS BEDS
+
+The principal causes of asparagus beds running out are that in the first
+place ten plants are set out in a space where only one could thrive;
+then that the ground is not rich enough and had no proper cultivation;
+and last, but not least, that the cutting of the stalks has been carried
+to excess. What to do with the old bed is sometimes a perplexing
+question, especially when a place changes hands and the new proprietor
+has more progressive ideas than the former one had.
+
+Let the old bed stay, and set out a new one according to rational
+methods. Some years ago the writer came into possession of an asparagus
+bed which was known to be forty years old, and may have been much older.
+It was a solid mass of roots without any distinguishable rows. The
+spears produced were so small and tough that the first impulse was to
+dig up the roots. But as this proved to be a more formidable task than
+was anticipated, another plan was pursued. In autumn the bed was thickly
+covered with fine yard manure. The following spring the bed was marked
+out into strips of two feet in width. When the sprouts appeared those in
+every alternate strip were cut clean off during the entire summer, and
+the others allowed to grow. In the autumn of the year another heavy
+application of manure was given to the entire bed. The following year
+but few shoots appeared in the strips which had been cut all through the
+summer. These were treated the same as before, and in the third year not
+a sprout appeared in the alleys. The stalks left for use improved
+greatly during the first year and the third year were of good
+serviceable size and quality, so that even after the new bed, which had
+been planted at the time this experiment was commenced, came into
+bearing, the old one was retained for several years longer. Probably if
+the vacant strips had been made three or four feet wide the result would
+have been still better. This experience suggests the idea that the
+easiest and least expensive way of exterminating an old asparagus bed is
+to persistently mow down all the shoots for a season or two.
+
+
+
+
+X
+
+FERTILIZERS AND FERTILIZING
+
+
+Asparagus is a gross feeder. There is hardly another plant in
+cultivation upon the vitality of which so great a demand is made. The
+cutting of all its sprouts, or shoots, as soon as they appear above the
+ground, for several weeks, is an abnormal and enormous tax upon the
+plant, which is thus forced to extra exertion in order to reproduce
+itself and perpetuate its kind. Therefore, it should have the most
+tender care, and an abundance of nourishing and readily available food.
+The earliness, tenderness, size, and commercial value of the product
+depends principally on the rapidity of its growth, and, as this is
+materially promoted by the richness of the soil, it is evident that the
+plants should receive all the food they can assimilate during the
+growing season.
+
+There is a wide difference of opinion among growers as to which is the
+best kind of manure to use. Whatever the individual preferences may be,
+there is this satisfaction to know that no kind of plant food can come
+amiss on the asparagus bed, although the use of some kinds and
+combinations may be more economical than others. Formerly animal manures
+only were thought to be of any use for asparagus, and there are still
+some growers who cling to this opinion. In recent years, however, there
+has been a decided reaction in this regard in some of the principal
+asparagus sections. The objections made against stable manure are that
+it is more expensive to handle, that it is apt to get the land full of
+weeds, and that it does not contain sufficient phosphoric acid and
+potash. At present many growers use commercial fertilizers exclusively,
+convinced that asparagus needs liberal feeding of potash and more
+nitrogen than is generally supposed to be required.
+
+The composition of 1,000 parts of fresh asparagus sprouts is, according
+to Wolff:
+
+Water                    933   parts
+Nitrogen                   3.2   "
+Ash                        5.0   "
+Potash                     1.2   "
+Soda                       0.9   "
+Lime                       0.6   "
+Magnesia                   0.2   "
+Phosphoric acid            0.9   "
+Sulphuric acid             0.3   "
+Silica                     0.5   "
+Chlorine                   0.3   "
+
+This analysis shows very accurately what a given weight of asparagus
+abstracts from the soil, but it does not, and can not, show or even
+indicate certain indispensable demands. In this, as in other cases, the
+analysis of a crop is a very uncertain guide to its proper
+fertilization. It should be clearly understood by every cultivator of
+the soil that no rigidly fixed formulas can be given for any one crop on
+all soils. The question of quantity of application and of proportion
+must always, in the very nature of the case, remain more or less a
+matter of individual experiment. The following formula, given by Prof.
+P. H. Rolfs, makes a good asparagus fertilizer:
+
+Nitrogen                                  4 per cent.
+Potash                                    5    "
+Available phosphoric acid                 7    "
+
+One thousand five hundred pounds of the above formula should be applied
+per acre. When possible apply twenty to forty tons of vegetable
+material, such as partially rotted rakings of barnyard manure. Where
+such vegetable matter is procurable, the quantity of nitrogen may be
+decreased proportionately. If manure is obtainable, allowance should be
+made for the fertilizing elements contained therein.
+
+An excellent formula for one ton of asparagus fertilizer, given by Prof.
+W. F. Massey, consists of:
+
+200 lbs. nitrate of soda
+700  "   cottonseed-meal
+800  "   acid phosphate (13 per cent.)
+300  "   muriate of potash
+
+This will yield 4.9 per cent. ammonia, 6.1 per cent. available
+phosphoric acid, 8.4 per cent. potash.
+
+The effects of the application of a scientifically balanced fertilizer
+ration upon asparagus is clearly illustrated in Fig. 21, which presents
+a photographic reproduction of an experimental plat of the North
+Carolina State Horticultural Society at Southern Pines, N. C.,
+fertilized with
+
+250 lbs. nitrate of soda
+400  "   acid phosphate
+160  "   muriate of potash
+
+per acre, while Fig. 22 shows a plat of equal size which remained
+unfertilized.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 21--NORTH CAROLINA'S EXPERIMENT FARM ASPARAGUS PLOT;
+FERTILIZED]
+
+The following table gives the amounts of different fertilizer materials
+necessary to give the desired quantity of each element:
+
+_Element_                _Pounds of different materials for one acre_
+                         { 800 to 1,000 lbs. cottonseed-meal; or
+Nitrogen                 { 350 to    400  "   nitrate of soda; or
+                         { 275 to    300  "   sulphate of ammonia; or
+                         { 400 to    600  "   dried blood.
+
+                         { 300 to 500 lbs. kainit; or
+Potash                   { 150 lbs. muriate of potash; or
+                         { 150 to 300 lbs. sulphate of potash
+
+Phosphoric acid          { 750 to 1,000 lbs. acid phosphate; or
+                         { 600 to   800 dissolved bone.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 22--NORTH CAROLINA EXPERIMENT FARM ASPARAGUS PLOT;
+UNFERTILIZED]
+
+"Asparagus requires very heavy manuring, and yet its composition would
+not indicate it," writes Mr. Charles V. Mapes. "The explanation is found
+in the fact that it must grow very rapidly, otherwise it is tough,
+stringy and flavorless, the same as with radishes. If it had a long
+season to grow in, like timothy hay, it might grow successfully in very
+poor soil. A half ton of timothy hay contains about as much plant food,
+and in similar proportions, as two thousand bunches of asparagus, or
+five thousand quarts of strawberries, and yet while this quantity of hay
+will grow on an acre of almost any poor soil, the strawberries or
+asparagus for a fair crop per acre require a rich garden soil. If the
+hay were obliged to make as rapid growth as the asparagus, then it also
+would require rich soil. With the strawberry there is but the lapse of a
+few weeks from the time of blossoming to the full development of its
+fruit. The plants need a superabundance of plant food within easy reach,
+otherwise the fruit is small and inferior. The plant can not bear
+profitable fruit and at the same time be compelled to struggle for
+existence. The same is the case with asparagus. Neither of these crops
+can take up out of the soil all the fertilizer that needs to be applied
+for their successful growth, and therefore there is necessarily a large
+quantity of plant food unused and left over in the soil."
+
+For these reasons, asparagus, while not necessarily an exhaustive crop,
+requires heavy manuring. One ton of high grade vegetable manure is none
+too much per acre, and is small, particularly in the expense, as
+compared with the larger quantities of stable manure per acre, as
+recommended by some successful growers. As already stated, formerly it
+was thought necessary to place large quantities of manure in the bottom
+of the deep trenches in which the young plants were set out, in order
+that sufficient fertility might be present for several years for the
+roots, as after the plants were once planted there would be no further
+opportunity to apply the manure in such an advantageous place. This
+theory has been found erroneous and the practice has been demonstrated
+to be rather a waste than otherwise, and besides the roots of asparagus
+thrive better when resting upon a more compact soil; nor is it necessary
+that the soil should contain great amounts of humus, or be in an
+extremely fertile condition when the plants are first put out, since by
+the system of top-dressing a moderately fertile soil soon becomes
+exceedingly rich and equal to the demands which the plants make upon
+it.
+
+The plan of top-dressing beds during the fall or early winter is
+gradually giving way to the more rational mode of top-dressing in the
+spring or summer. It was believed that autumn dressing strengthened the
+roots and enabled them to throw up stronger shoots during the following
+spring. This is a mistake, however. In the Oyster Bay region formerly
+all manuring was done in the spring, but the practice of applying all
+fertilizers immediately after the cutting is finished is rapidly
+increasing. The reason for this is found in the fact that, during the
+growth of the stalks, after the cutting season is over, the crowns form
+the buds from which the spears of next season spring, and it is probable
+that it is principally during this period that the roots assimilate and
+store up the materials which produce these spears. This being true, the
+plant food added to the soil and becoming available after the cessation
+of vegetation in the autumn can have little, if any, effect upon the
+spears which are cut for market the following spring; it first becomes
+of use to the plant after the crop has been cut and the stalks allowed
+to grow. Thus the manuring of the autumn of 1901 will not benefit the
+grower materially until the spring of 1903.
+
+Nevertheless, some highly successful asparagus raisers continue to apply
+fertilizers in the spring, as evidenced by the following directions
+given by one of the most prominent growers in the Oyster Bay district.
+"After the roots have been set in the drill, put enough soil on them to
+cover about two inches. Then sow about 500 pounds of high grade potato
+fertilizer per acre in the drill. As the weeds commence to grow,
+cultivate and hoe, letting the soil cave down in the drill. About the
+middle of the season sow about 500 pounds more of fertilizer in the
+drill. Continue to cultivate and hoe the remainder of the season. At the
+end of the season the drill should be entirely filled up. The second
+year sow about 2,000 pounds of fertilizer per acre broadcast, plow the
+ground and harrow it down level, and keep the ground clean. The third
+year open the drill over the asparagus with a one-horse plow, broadcast
+2,000 pounds of fertilizer per acre about the time the shoots begin to
+show, and back-furrow it up with a plow over the drill to form a ridge.
+Then smooth the ridge down with a home-made implement resembling a
+snow-plow reversed. Cut every morning all the shoots that show through
+the ground. Do not cut more than four weeks in the first cutting season.
+Continue to broadcast 2,000 pounds of fertilizer per acre every year."
+
+From what has been said in regard to the various methods of applying
+fertilizers to asparagus, it will be readily understood that it can make
+but little difference how it is distributed, whether on the rows,
+between the rows, or broadcast, so long as enough of it is put on the
+land. In an established asparagus bed the entire ground is a dense
+network of roots, and wherever the fertilizer is put some of the roots
+will find it, but not those of the plants over the crowns of which it
+has been planted; not more so than the feeding roots of an apple tree
+can reach a heap of manure piled around its trunk.
+
+
+SALT AS A FERTILIZER
+
+Salt is but little used now by commercial asparagus growers, though it
+has been recommended for this crop from time immemorial. About the
+principal advantage to be derived from its use is that of killing weeds
+without injuring asparagus, although it may be applied in sufficient
+quantities to injure the asparagus. The indirect fertilizing value of
+salt is mainly due to the fact that it has the power of changing
+unavailable forms of plant food into available forms; but this object
+may be secured cheaper and better by the use of kainit. In sandy soils
+it may encourage the supply of moisture, but on naturally moist and
+retentive soils heavy dressings of salt may do more harm than good.
+
+Much of the benefits to asparagus for which salt gets credit is its use
+in a small way in the home garden, due to the fact that not dry salt,
+but the brine and residue of the pork and corned beef barrels is applied
+to the asparagus beds. This brine is rich in animal matter extracted
+from the meat, and usually also in saltpeter, which has been used in
+pickling. The latter substance alone, without the addition of salt,
+exerts a strong fertilizing effect upon the plants.
+
+After a series of carefully conducted experiments by Mr. Charles V.
+Mapes, he writes:
+
+"Salt was only effectual as a fertilizer in proportion as the soil
+contained accumulated supplies of plant food, either from previous
+manurings or from natural strength. Asparagus, unlike nearly all other
+crops, will stand almost unlimited quantities of salt without injury. It
+also thrives near the seashore, and it was therefore generally believed
+that liberal quantities of salt were a necessity to its successful
+growth. Experience has shown, however, that its presence is not at all
+necessary for its growth, and that the reason that a bed to which salt
+has been applied shows quickened and improved growth is that the salt
+dissolves out of the soil plant food which, without the presence of the
+salt, would have become too slowly reduced to available condition for
+producing good crops. The salt acted practically as a stimulant and
+added nothing except chlorine and soda, neither of which in any
+considerable quantity is essential for growing this crop. It is this
+dissolving action that takes place in the soil whenever any soluble salt
+or fertilizer, like kainit, potash salts, acid phosphates, etc., be
+applied to the soil, that is often mistaken for a manuring one. The
+result is an exhaustion, not a strengthening, of the soil. The crop is
+grown at the expense of the limited supply of food that the soluble salt
+can act upon. The fertilizer has acted practically as a stimulant."
+
+
+
+
+XI
+
+HARVESTING AND MARKETING
+
+
+The chief labor in asparagus culture is the cutting and bunching. As it
+is of the greatest importance that the work be done promptly and
+expeditiously, it is desirable to have more help than is wanted merely
+for the asparagus, and then, when the asparagus is ready for market,
+they can go to hoeing and tilling other crops. Five acres in full
+bearing will require from six to eight men from four to six hours per
+day to do the cutting and three or four to do the bunching. A successful
+farmer in western New York, who has four acres of asparagus, employs
+eight or ten boys and girls, for from three to six hours per day, to do
+the cutting and three women to bunch it. The women are paid by the
+bunch, and work five to ten hours per day. Piecework, if properly done,
+is nearly always cheaper than day work, and is better for the employés
+and the employer.
+
+
+CUTTING
+
+As has been stated in a previous chapter, cutting should not begin until
+the plants have become strong and vigorous, which requires two or three
+years from the planting. In the latitude of New York City the cutting
+season commences usually the last week in April and closes July 10th,
+although but few growers cut after the 1st, particularly if the season
+has been a favorable one. Except on old and well-established plantings,
+cutting should not extend for more than six or seven weeks. Some growers
+cut asparagus as long as it pays to ship, regardless of the damage done
+to the plants. The old rule to discontinue cutting asparagus when green
+peas are abundant is a safe one to follow, especially in the home
+garden. Unlike other crops, about as much can be cut each day, or at
+each cutting, as the day before, during the season, varying only
+according to the weather.
+
+_Manner of cutting._--The mode of cutting asparagus varies according to
+the requirements of the markets, whether green or white stalks are
+desired. Whatever individual preferences may be, the fact is that in New
+York City, and some other large market centers, 75 per cent. of the
+asparagus sold is white or blanched, and it would be useless to try to
+persuade the buyers to take any other. To show how extreme the
+convictions are in this matter of taste, we quote from Prof. J. F. C. Du
+Pre, of the Clemson Agricultural College: "Why any one should prefer the
+almost tasteless, insipid white to the green 'grass,' into which the
+sunshine has put the flavor of ambrosia, is beyond my comprehension." On
+the other hand, Leboeuf, the famous asparagus expert of Argenteuil,
+writes: "Properly blanched asparagus is infinitely more tender and
+delicate than green. To serve up green asparagus is to dishonor the
+table."
+
+In recent years a compromise has been made between the two styles. By
+allowing the tops of the hilled-up sprouts to grow four inches above the
+surface, the upper half of the stalk is green while the lower half
+remains white.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 23--BASKET OF ASPARAGUS READY FOR THE BUNCHING SHED]
+
+For green asparagus the sprouts are cut when six or seven inches high,
+and then only so far below the surface as to furnish a stalk about nine
+inches long. For the white style the rows have to be ridged twelve
+inches above the crowns, and the stalks are cut as soon as the tops show
+above the ground, the cutting off being eight or nine inches below the
+surface.
+
+Whichever method is followed, it is very important to cut every day
+during the season, and to cut clean at each cutting, taking all the
+small sprouts as well as the large ones. If the weak and spindling
+shoots are allowed to grow they will draw away the strength from the
+roots, to the injury of the crop.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 24--CUTTING AND PICKING UP ASPARAGUS IN A TEN-ACRE
+FIELD OF C. W. PRESCOTT, MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASS.]
+
+When cutting, the sprout is taken in the left hand and the knife run
+down close alongside of it to the proper depth, carefully avoiding other
+spears that are just beginning to push up all around the crown. Then the
+handle of the knife is moved away from the stalk, to give it the proper
+slant, the knife shoved down so as to sever the stalk with a tapering
+cut, and at the same time the stalk is pulled out. After cutting, the
+asparagus should be removed out of the sun as soon as possible to
+prevent its wilting and discoloring. Usually this is done by dropping
+the stalks in a basket which, when full (Fig. 23), is carried to the
+bunching shed. On large plantations, however, the cutters leave the
+stalks on the ground to be picked up by boys following closely, as seen
+in Fig. 24. To facilitate the picking up and carrying away, horse
+carriers are used, as shown in Fig. 25.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 25--HORSE CARRIER FOR TEN BOXES OF ASPARAGUS]
+
+In some sections of Europe, especially at the famous asparagus regions
+of Argenteuil, a knife is never used. According to W. Robinson: "The
+slightly hardened crust around the emerging bud and on top of the little
+mound is pushed aside, the fore and middle finger separated are then
+thrust deeply into the soft soil, pushing the earth outwards. If a
+rising shoot be met with on the way down, it is carefully avoided. A
+second plunge of the two fingers and pushing out of the earth usually
+brings them to the hardened ground about the crest of the root; the
+forefinger is then slipped behind the base of the shoot fit to gather,
+and rushed gently outward, when the shoot at once snaps clean off its
+base. This plan has the advantage of leaving no mutilated shoots or
+decaying matter on the ground. Once gathered, care is taken that the
+shoot is not exposed to the light, but placed at once in a covered
+basket. As soon as the stalk is gathered, the earth is gently and
+loosely drawn up with the hand, so as to leave the surface of the mound
+as it was before, not pressing the earth in any way, but keeping it
+quite free. The shoots are not rubbed or cleaned in any way--it would
+disfigure them, and they do not require it."
+
+_Knives._--There are several styles of knives for cutting asparagus, but
+an ordinary ten-inch butcher-knife with the point cut square off,
+leaving the end about an inch and a quarter wide and ground sharp like a
+chisel, answers the purpose as well as any of the implements made
+especially for the purpose. Another serviceable tool for cutting
+asparagus is a carpenter's thin firmer-chisel, one and one-half inches
+wide, nearly flat, and the thinnest that can be obtained ground on the
+convex side or back, about an inch from the end, which should be rounded
+off on the inside to prevent them from injuring sprouts near by. Other
+styles of asparagus knives are seen in Fig. 26.
+
+
+SORTING AND BUNCHING
+
+In some local markets asparagus is sold loose, by weight, in which case
+but little regard is paid to the size and length and color of the
+stalks, nor to the style of packing. This is the most profitable way for
+the grower to sell, as it saves him all the expense and labor of
+bunching, and as even the smallest stalks are thus salable, there is no
+waste whatever, while the prices obtained are about the same as those
+for first-class bunches--that is, two pounds of loose asparagus sell for
+about the same price as a full-sized bunch. But in city markets
+asparagus could hardly be sold in such a condition, and it is of first
+importance that it should be carefully graded and neatly bunched.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 26--VARIOUS ASPARAGUS KNIVES]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 27--END AND SIDE VIEW OF PRIME WHITE ASPARAGUS
+BUNCHES]
+
+_Sorting._--Careful growers assort into three sizes: extras, primes, and
+seconds. The size and weight of the bunches vary somewhat in different
+markets. Bunches varying from six to twelve inches in length are
+received at wholesale centers, but the most convenient and popular size
+for a bunch of prime white asparagus is eight and one-half inches long,
+averaging thirty spears, and weighing two pounds. The side view of one
+and the end view of three bunches of this size of white asparagus are
+shown in Fig. 27. To assure uniformity some ingenious contrivances have
+been invented, most of which are a great improvement over the old-time
+bunchers, consisting merely of a board with four pins, six inches long,
+and placed about four inches apart each way, to form a square. Two
+strings, usually of bast matting, were laid down on the board, which was
+set on a bench up against the wall, or had a back made of another board
+tacked on it at right angles. The asparagus was laid on the buncher
+between the pins, the tops touching the back or wall to keep them even.
+When the bunch was large enough the strings were tied firmly, and the
+butt end of the bunch cut square.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 28--CONOVER'S ASPARAGUS BUNCHER]
+
+_Bunchers._--The modern bunchers are constructed of cast iron and are
+easily handled. One of the first to come into use was Conover's (Fig.
+28). The principle of the operation is that the stalks are placed
+between two brass strips, a hinged cover is brought down by means of a
+lever and held in place until the strings are tied. Two ties should be
+used, one placed about two inches from either end. The bunch must be
+tied so tightly that it will not loosen in handling and transportation
+to market. The Watt's Buncher (Fig. 29), used extensively in New Jersey,
+is so arranged that the arms may be adjusted to any size bunch desired
+by simply loosening the bolts at either end, and pulling out the arms so
+as to fit the shape of the bunch, and thus both ends can be bunched
+properly. The style of buncher and knives in favor with growers in the
+famous asparagus region near Concord, Mass., are seen in Fig. 30, and
+the process of bunching in Fig. 31.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 29--WATT'S ASPARAGUS BUNCHER]
+
+_Tying materials._--Twine, Cuban bast, sisal, and various other
+materials are used for tying, but nothing is better for this purpose
+than raffia fiber. This is obtained from the raffia or rofia palm, a
+native of the island of Madagascar. The tree sends enormous branches
+from near the ground, the pinnate leaves of which produce this fiber.
+One palm frond will produce eighty to one hundred long, green leaflets
+from two to five feet in length, and from this the fiber is prepared.
+"Silk lamba" is also a product of this palm. Raffia fiber is now
+extensively used for tying up plants, for grafting, and many other
+purposes, as it is very strong, as soft as silk, and is not affected by
+moisture or changes of temperature, and it does not break or ravel when
+folded or knotted.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 30--RACK AND KNIVES USED IN NEW ENGLAND]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 31--AT THE BUNCHING TABLE]
+
+_Rubber bands._--The use of rubber bands for fastening asparagus bunches
+has recently been found to have some advantages not possessed by other
+materials. Prof. W. J. Green, of the Ohio Experiment Station, writes in
+Bulletin No. 9: "The work can be done more rapidly and better. The
+saving in time is fully one-third, which will pay for the increased cost
+of rubber over string, reckoning wages at seventy-five cents per day.
+This difference might be less where expert tyers are employed, or very
+low rates per hundred bunches are paid. In any case, the work can be
+done in a manner that is much more satisfactory to dealers with rubber
+than with string. This is owing to the fact that rubber holds the
+bunches intact, while string allows them to fall apart and to become
+unsightly. Doubtless, in some cases, dealers would be willing to pay
+more for bunches fastened with rubber than for those put up in the
+ordinary manner. Even though no difference is made in price for
+asparagus put up by the two methods, the bunches fastened with rubber
+bands sell more readily than those tied with string.
+
+"Rubber bands can be bought for two dollars per pound, and the size best
+adapted to the purpose run about two thousand bands per pound, or
+sufficient for one thousand bunches. This makes rubber bands cost about
+two cents per dozen bunches more than string, if the saving in labor is
+not taken into consideration.
+
+"The saving in the item of labor depends, of course, upon the kind of
+labor employed. In determining the relative value of the two methods not
+only must cost of labor be taken into consideration, but the character
+of the market as well. When competition is not strong careful bunching
+is not a matter of great importance, but in many markets it is essential
+that the bunches be put up in such a manner that they will not fall
+apart. In such cases rubber bands will more than pay for their extra
+cost, by insuring more ready sales, if not by increasing the price.
+
+"The method employed in bunching with rubber bands is to slip a band
+over an ordinary teacup--one with straight sides and without a handle;
+fill the cup with asparagus shoots, the heads downward, and then slip
+the band from the cup to the bunch. This makes a bunch of about the
+right size, and gives the upper end a nicely rounded appearance. All
+that remains to be done is to slip on another band and to square the
+butts with a sharp knife. Possibly a metallic cup would answer better,
+being thinner, but a teacup is not objectionable in this particular. If
+smaller bunches are desired than the smallest cup that can be found, it
+is not necessary to fill the cup."
+
+
+MARKETING
+
+During the entire process of cutting, sorting, bunching, and packing
+great care must be exercised not to bruise or in any way injure the
+heads, as the gummy juice of these soon heats and spoils the whole. They
+should also be kept cool and dry, else the moisture causes decay. Of
+course if, when cutting, the ground is wet, some of the soil will adhere
+to the lower ends of the stalks; this has to be rinsed off in clean
+water, but not by immersing the entire stalk.
+
+If the bunches are to be kept over night, before packing, the butts
+should be dipped in clean water and stood on end on a cold cellar
+bottom, or upon grass or hay that has been thoroughly wet; but the
+crowns, or the green portions of the sprouts, should never be sprinkled
+or wet. It is a common practice to set the bunches in shallow pans
+containing water, but this is apt to give a bitter taste to the stalks.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 32--BOX OF GIANT ASPARAGUS READY FOR SHIPMENT]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 33--SOUTHERN ASPARAGUS CRATE, CONTAINING 24 BUNCHES
+OF GREEN ASPARAGUS]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 34--END PIECE OF SOUTHERN CRATE]
+
+_Crates._--There is no standard shape or size of crates for shipping
+asparagus, and in the wholesale markets of New York City a great variety
+of styles is found. Of late ordinary twenty-four or thirty-two quart
+berry crates have come into favor with near by growers, as they are
+cheap, light, and easily handled. In these the bunches are laid down
+flat, in tiers, alternating the butt ends so that when the crates are
+full the top row is level with the cover. Some growers, of very fine
+asparagus even, use solid wooden boxes. Fig. 32 shows such a box
+containing three dozen bunches. A crate with the top a few inches
+narrower than the bottom has the advantage that it holds the bunches
+more firmly together than straight-sided boxes. Fig. 33 shows a crate
+containing two dozen bunches of green asparagus ready for shipment, with
+the exception of the slats to be nailed on the side. Fig. 34 shows the
+shape of the end pieces. These crates are made of various sizes,
+according to the length of the bunches. The crate here illustrated was
+24 inches long, 12 inches high, 19 inches wide at the bottom, and 14-1/2
+inches at the top, inside measurement. The end boards were 7/8 of an
+inch thick, and the slats about half an inch.
+
+In shipping to a distant market some thoroughly wet grass, or sphagnum
+moss, should be put in the bottom of the crate, the bunches stood on
+ends, butt down, and pressed so tightly together that they can not move
+or shift in handling. The crate should have a tight bottom and ends. The
+sides may be tight half way up, and the rest of the sides and the top
+should be slatted. This keeps the butts moist and the tops dry and
+cool.
+
+
+
+
+XII
+
+FORCING
+
+
+The forcing of asparagus in various methods has been practiced for
+centuries, and is rapidly developing into an important industry. The
+forcing may be done in any place where a temperature of 50° to 60° can
+be secured, in the greenhouse, hotbed, pit, cellar, or in the garden and
+field. Whichever plan is pursued, the management of the plants to be
+forced is the same. The roots should not be less than three years old,
+and, if obtainable, four or five-year-old plants are to be preferred.
+These may be dug up from ordinary out-of-door plantations, or, if the
+forcing is to be done on a large scale and as a permanent industry, the
+plants have to be grown from seed for this special purpose. To keep up a
+continuous succession new sowings have to be made every year. The sowing
+of the seed and the management of the plants during the first year is
+the same as described in Chapter V.
+
+The following year, as early as the season permits, the one-year-old
+seedlings are planted out in rows, to develop as much strength as
+possible. As the plants are to remain only two years in the nursery bed,
+they may be placed closer than in a permanent plantation. A distance of
+two and one-half feet between the rows and one foot in the rows is,
+however, the narrowest limit, and, where enough ground is available,
+three by one and one-half or two feet would be still better. By
+purchasing one-year-old plants a year's time may be gained, but
+otherwise there are decided advantages in raising one's own plants.
+During the following two seasons the ground has to be kept in the best
+possible tilth, and at the end of the third season from seed the roots
+may be dug just before the ground is likely to freeze. In lifting the
+roots it is important not to expose them to the drying influence of the
+sun and air more than is unavoidable. It is also important to preserve
+the entire clump intact with as much soil adhering to the roots and
+crown as possible. They are then placed in a shed, pit, or cool cellar,
+and covered with sand or soil to prevent their drying out. Moderate
+freezing does not injure the roots, and some growers think that it even
+adds to their forcing value.
+
+
+FORCING IN THE GREENHOUSE
+
+With florists the forcing of asparagus has this important advantage:
+that the income obtained from it is nearly all gain, as the space under
+the benches, which may thus be utilized, is of but little use for other
+purposes. If the floor under the benches is soil this is dug out so as
+to form a pit about a foot deep, or at least a few inches deeper than
+the clumps are high. Three or four inches of good rich soil is scattered
+over the bottom, and upon this the clumps are placed close together.
+Dry, mellow soil is then scattered between and over the clumps, so that
+the crowns are covered one or two inches, and given a thorough watering.
+If blanched shoots are desired, the crowns will have to be covered with
+six or eight inches of soil. The same object may be obtained by shutting
+off the light, which can easily be accomplished under greenhouse
+benches. Where it is not practicable to make excavations under the
+benches, a pit may be constructed by placing boards against the posts
+and filling in the space thus furnished. To secure a succession, new
+roots from the reserve stock have to be planted every three or four
+weeks.
+
+For the first week or ten days after placing the roots in the
+forcing-pit they should be kept rather cool, so as to give them a chance
+to become established. A temperature of 45° to 50° is best, at first.
+Afterward it should be raised to 55° to 60°, and during the day it may
+rise as high as 80° to 85°. But, as a rule, very high temperatures
+induce a spindling growth. During the entire forcing process asparagus
+requires a large amount of water, but unless it has the chill taken off,
+and ample means for drainage are provided, it may do far more harm than
+good. The interval between the time of planting and the first cutting
+varies greatly, according to the temperature and other conditions.
+
+The following are actual dates of asparagus forcing under benches at
+Cornell University: Plants taken from an old patch November 29th and set
+under benches three days later. December 4th, shoots just pushing
+through. December 8th, first shoots cut, averaging nine inches long.
+December 14th, first good cutting, shoots running from six to fifteen
+inches long. December 18th, second good cutting. December 26th, a good
+cutting, some of the shoots having remained too long and become woody;
+some of these shoots were two feet long. January 10th, a heavy cutting.
+January 19th, cut about half as many shoots as on the 10th. January
+30th, cut about as much as on the 19th, but shoots growing smaller.
+February 10th, small cutting of weak shoots. Beyond this time there were
+no shoots worth cutting.
+
+
+FORCING IN HOTBEDS AND FRAMES
+
+The forcing of asparagus in hotbeds does not differ materially from that
+in the greenhouse, except in the supply of heat. "A most suitable place
+for forcing asparagus," writes William Scott, in _Garden and Forest_,
+"is a frame about four feet deep with one-fourth inch hot-water pipe
+running around it. About two and one-half feet of fresh stable litter
+should be put into the frame and firmly packed, with an inch or two of
+sand spread over it. This bed should be allowed to stand until the heat
+of the manure has declined to about 70°, and not below 65°, before the
+crowns are placed on it. For this work advantage should be taken of a
+day when the weather is mild, as the crowns are easily damaged by frost.
+Large crowns five or six years old are preferable to smaller ones for
+forcing. They may be placed rather closely together in the frame, but
+the distance apart must be regulated by their size. The roots should be
+spread evenly over the surface and covered with six inches of sand.
+Little water will be required, as the steam from the manure affords
+considerable moisture; but if the bed should become dry, it may be
+moistened with water of the same temperature as the soil in the frame. A
+little air may be admitted, when the day is bright and warm, to keep
+the temperature from rising above 80°. When the points of the shoots
+begin to appear above the sand the crop is ready to cut. When ground is
+plentiful, a supply of forcing crowns can be kept up by sowing a little
+seed every year, having five or six successions, the oldest plants being
+forced for cutting."
+
+With French gardeners it is customary to plunge the frames in warm
+stable manure and place the roots directly in the manure, packed as
+closely together as possible. A mere sprinkling of soil is placed over
+them. As a result the shoots come up very thick. Only strong, fine
+three-year-old roots are used, and as many as five crops of roots follow
+each other through the autumn, winter, and spring in the same frame.
+Straw mats are used to cover the frames at night.
+
+
+FORCING IN THE FIELD
+
+Forcing asparagus where it is grown in the field has a twofold advantage
+over removing the roots to a warm place. First, it saves the trouble and
+expense of transplanting them, which must be done with much care; and,
+second, it saves the plants from being ruined by the forcing process.
+Plants forced in the field where they grow will, if given good care,
+regain their vigor in a season or two, and may be used again for
+forcing. By this latter method a better quality and a larger quantity of
+marketable asparagus is also secured.
+
+Various means have been devised to force asparagus in the field, where
+it is so well established that it continues growth in the summer as
+though it had not been forced the previous winter. A simple and rather
+common method of accomplishing this is to place barrels over clumps of
+asparagus very early in the spring and pile fermenting manure about
+them, the warmth from the manure forcing the shoots into rapid growth.
+When the forcing season is over and the danger from frost is past the
+barrels are removed, and the plants continue growth in the open air.
+Sometimes asparagus is forced by placing frames, covered with sash, over
+the plants in the field, the rows of asparagus being set rather close
+together. This is considered a very profitable method by many market
+gardeners. Another method of forcing asparagus in the field is to dig
+ditches between the rows and fill them with fermenting manure. The
+surface of the bed may also be mulched with manure. The latter plan is
+extensively practiced by French market gardeners.
+
+At the beginning of November the pathways between the beds of asparagus
+are dug up about two feet in depth and width. The soil coming from the
+pathway is divided very carefully and put about eight inches thick on
+the surface of the bed. The trench is filled up with fresh stable
+manure, not litter, and frames are placed on the bed. The manure should
+rise as high as the top of the frames and the lights be entirely covered
+with mats and litter to prevent the heat accumulating in the frame from
+escaping. In about two or three weeks the asparagus begins to show
+itself on the surface of the bed. Many market gardeners cover the whole
+of the bed inside the frames to a thickness of three or four inches with
+manure, to force the vegetation more quickly; but in this case the
+manure must be removed when the asparagus begins to shoot. When the
+shoots are about three inches out of the ground they may be cut. The
+mats must be taken off in the daytime, but the heat must be well kept
+up, else the roots and buds will fail to push. The beds are forced every
+second year only. The gathering of the asparagus may continue for about
+two months but no longer, or the plantation would be injured. When the
+gathering is over the frames are taken away, and the soil which was dug
+up from the alleys is put back again.
+
+An ingenious method of forcing asparagus in the field by means of
+shallow tunnels was devised and successfully carried out by Prof. J. C.
+Whitten, at the Missouri Experiment Station, who gives the following
+account in Bulletin No. 43:
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 35--TUNNEL THROUGH THE ROWS OF ASPARAGUS FOR FORCING
+STEAM THROUGH THE SOIL]
+
+"The field selected for the experiment was planted to asparagus about
+ten years ago. The plants were in fair vigor, though of a small variety.
+The first section forced embraced six rows, four feet apart, and fifty
+feet long. Fig. 35 shows this section with one tunnel uncovered.
+Trenches were first made between the rows. This was done by plowing
+between them, twice in a place, throwing the furrows on the plants so as
+to cover each row with two furrows of loose earth. These trenches
+between the rows were then made uniform by means of the spade. When
+finished they were three or four inches lower than the crowns of
+asparagus in the adjacent rows. These trenches were then covered with
+twelve-inch boards, which rested on four-inch blocks, placed at frequent
+intervals along either side of the trenches. This formed tunnels
+between the rows for conducting the steam. To guard against the steam's
+escaping, two or three inches of soil was placed over the boards, and
+the asparagus patch was then covered with five or six inches of horse
+manure. This covering was to prevent the heat from escaping from the
+soil too rapidly. It was then ready for the steam to be turned into the
+tunnels.
+
+"To conduct the steam a one and one-half inch pipe was carried above
+ground from the boiler to one end of the central tunnel, a distance of
+one hundred and eighty-five feet. A steam hose long enough to reach each
+tunnel was attached to this pipe through which to blow steam into the
+tunnels. It was not the idea to give a constant supply of steam, but to
+discharge a little into the tunnels each afternoon, or as often as was
+necessary to maintain sufficient warmth. A piece of tile was inserted
+into the mouth of each tunnel to prevent the discharging steam from
+tearing away the earth.
+
+"The first steam was turned into the tunnels on November 14th. Steam was
+discharged into each tunnel, not to exceed five minutes at a time, in
+order not to heat the earth too hot in any single place. It required
+about one hour of steaming the first day to bring the bed up to the
+required temperature of sixty degrees. The distribution of heat
+throughout the bed was very uniform and satisfactory. The moist steam
+seemed to permeate the soil equally in all directions.
+
+"After the first day very little steaming was necessary until the
+asparagus began to be produced. On an average the bed was steamed about
+twice in three days and then only for about five minutes for each
+tunnel. The soil and horse manure mulch seemed to hold the heat very
+well, the frequent steamings keeping up fermentation in the mulch.
+
+"The first asparagus was cut November 24th, ten days after the first
+steam was applied. The stems were cut just before they got through the
+soil and were perfectly bleached. They were as large as those ordinarily
+produced during the normal period of growth in spring, and were far more
+crisp and delicious.
+
+"Cuttings of asparagus were made almost daily for about a month, when
+the growth became somewhat weak. The last cutting was made on December
+22d. During the month 141 bunches of the ordinary market size, and
+weighing about one-half pound each, were cut from this bed of 25 x 50
+feet. This was equivalent to 300 feet of row or 100 hills of asparagus.
+
+"Exhausting steam into the asparagus bed, instead of returning it to the
+boiler in an inclosed circuit, would at first seem to be a wasteful
+process of heating. Experiment showed, however, that the circumstances
+justified this method. Heating a bed of this kind by a circuit of
+steam-pipes or hot-water pipes is very unsatisfactory. The heat from
+pipes very soon dries out the soil around the tunnels, destroying its
+power to conduct heat. In this way the bed becomes too hot and dry
+adjacent to the tunnels and too cold a short distance from them. It also
+becomes necessary to maintain heat in the pipes a good part of the time.
+
+"By blowing steam directly into the tunnels the soil is kept moist; the
+steam has a penetrating effect, and permeates all parts of the bed,
+giving a uniform heat throughout; this moist steam keeps up a continual
+fermentation of the manure mulch, thus giving heat, and only occasional
+brief steamings are necessary.
+
+"Care must be taken not to use too much steam at one time, or the plants
+may be ruined by overheating. Our asparagus rows were four feet apart,
+the tunnels midway between them were only eight inches wide, and yet we
+found that five minutes at a time was as long as was safe to force steam
+into a single tunnel.
+
+"These experiments have been so successful as to indicate that any one
+provided with a steam-heating plant could successfully force asparagus
+for the markets in this manner."
+
+Another plan of forcing asparagus in the field, devised by Prof. L. H.
+Bailey, is thus described in his "Forcing Book": "The Cornell asparagus
+house--if it may be called a house--is about twenty by fifty feet and
+the frame is made of steam-pipes. The sides, or walls, are only eighteen
+inches high, and the frame consists simply of a ridge and three pairs of
+rafters. The steam-heating pipe or riser is just beneath the ridge, and
+this feeds two returns upon either side of the house, next the walls.
+When it is desired to force the asparagus, canvas or muslin is stretched
+over the frames. No difficulty has been found in starting the asparagus
+into growth in January and February. The cover is left on and the heat
+kept up until all danger of frost is past, when the canvas is removed
+and the plants grow naturally out-of-doors. The secret of this method
+will no doubt be found to lie in allowing the plantation to become very
+thoroughly established (at least, three or four years old) before
+forcing is attempted, in the very best tillage and fertilizing during
+the summer while the plants are growing, in taking off the cover just as
+soon as settled weather comes, and in not cutting the plants until after
+that time."
+
+
+
+
+XIII
+
+PRESERVING ASPARAGUS
+
+
+CANNING
+
+The canning factory has made asparagus a vegetable for every day of the
+year instead of being a luxury for a few weeks, as was formerly the
+case. The canners have made it a farm crop instead of a garden product.
+To a great extent canning has transformed the farm into a garden,
+increasing the profits from every acre planted many fold. In many
+localities an acre of what was formerly considered a sandy waste is now
+yielding more than double the net profit of the best acre under
+cultivation in ordinary farm crops.
+
+_Eastern methods._--The pioneers in this industry on Long Island, N. Y.,
+have been the Messrs. Hudson & Sons, who have extensive plants at
+Mattituck and Riverhead, each of them as complete as mechanical skill
+and enterprise can make them. Each plant consists of a storehouse, 50 x
+150 feet; a packing-house, 40 x 125 feet; and a can manufactory, 25 x 60
+feet. A steam-engine of ten horse-power is required for hoisting,
+pumping, and for generating gas for the soldering-heaters, and a boiler
+of one hundred horse-power to generate steam for sterilizing the
+asparagus. A perspective view of one of the plants is seen in Fig. 36.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 36--PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF A LONG ISLAND ASPARAGUS
+CANNERY]
+
+The asparagus, as it comes from the growers, is in bunches seven and
+one-half inches long and weighing two and one-half pounds each. These
+bunches are put under a cutter and cut to six and five-eighths inches;
+they are then untied and put in a tank four feet wide by eight feet long
+and two feet deep, in which they are washed as carefully as it is
+possible to do it. It is then hoisted up to what is called the blanching
+tank, which contains forty gallons. In this it is kept at a scalding
+heat for one-half hour, when it is ready for the cans. These are filled
+by women who soon become very dextrous, which is always the case when
+the pay is in proportion to the amount of work done. Each can contains
+just one and one-half pounds. Exact weight is imperative, as are details
+in all manufacturing establishments. Great care is exercised in packing,
+so that there are no bruised or broken heads, and that on opening the
+can the stalks may appear as well as if cut fresh from the garden. After
+the asparagus is in the cans they are filled with a weak brine, which
+not only expels the air, but adds materially to the flavor of the
+asparagus.
+
+The cans are then taken to the soldering-bench for sealing up. There
+systematic labor is noticeable, as every detail of canning must be
+carried on systematically to make it profitable. The soldering-irons
+used are hollow and the exact size of the caps, which fit perfectly the
+grooves made for them. A single turn of the iron finishes the work.
+Before the caps are put in their places a small hole is made in each to
+allow the gas, which is generated by the heat from the soldering, to
+escape. Without this precaution it would be impossible to hermetically
+seal the cans. A single drop of solder closes the small opening, and the
+cans are ready for the retorts for sterilizing.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 37--STERILIZING TANK]
+
+Here two methods are employed--dry steam, which is the quicker method,
+and boiling in a closed tank. Most of the first-class stock is
+sterilized in the latter. This tank (Fig. 37) is in three sections, in
+all twenty feet long, each section holding five hundred cans. The cans
+are put in iron cribs and are pushed in and taken out with steam
+elevators. As soon as the cans are lowered the sections are closed
+tightly and the steam is turned on. The first process of sterilization
+lasts twenty minutes, when the tank is opened, the cans taken out, and a
+vent given each. This permits the accumulated gas to escape, which, if
+allowed to remain, would materially injure the quality of the asparagus,
+both in flavor and preservation. For this work a small prick punch is
+used, which makes a hole not larger than a pin's head. This vent is
+almost immediately closed with a single drop of solder and the cans are
+again returned to the tanks, where the same operation of cooking is
+repeated. Another twenty minutes completes the work, when the cans are
+removed to the packing-room, where they are labeled, wrapped, and packed
+ready for shipment. The cans or boxes are seven inches long, four wide,
+and two and one-half deep. A view of the sterilizing-room is presented
+in Fig. 38.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 38--VIEW OF STERILIZING-ROOM]
+
+The culls, which are put up as tips, are small-sized and crooked heads
+which, although of equal value as a vegetable, are not shipped to
+market, as they would detract from the value of the first quality, and
+are considered by both farmers and canners as by-products. These are cut
+to three and one-half inches in length, and then go through the same
+process in canning as the first quality, except that dry steam only is
+used in sterilization. After going through the blanching process the
+tips are put in round cans, four inches in diameter and five inches
+high. After soldering up these cans they are put in the retorts, which
+are three feet square, each containing five hundred cans, and treated
+with steam two hundred and fifty pounds to the inch. The cans remain in
+these retorts half an hour. Then they are taken out, vented, put back
+again, and remain under the same pressure another half hour, when the
+work is completed.
+
+By rigid economy even in the most minute detail, and by the skill
+required in the knowledge of canning, asparagus can now be had at a
+reasonable price at all seasons of the year, which is a boon to both
+producer and consumer. At $14.00 per one hundred bunches for No. 1 and
+$7.00 per hundred bunches for No. 2, or culls, asparagus is one of the
+most profitable of agricultural crops, and even at one-half these prices
+it is a much better paying crop than potatoes at 50 cents per bushel.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 39--INTERIOR VIEW OF A CALIFORNIA ASPARAGUS CANNERY]
+
+_Pacific Coast methods._--Canning and preserving of asparagus in
+California is carried on on as grand a scale as are most other
+undertakings. An idea of the extent and importance of this comparatively
+new industry may readily be conceived when it is considered that one
+establishment alone, The Hickmott Asparagus Canning Co., on Bouldin
+Island, in the San Joaquin River, has recently shipped an entire
+train-load of canned asparagus from San Francisco to New York. This
+train consisted of fifteen freight-cars containing 600 cases each,
+making a total of 9,000 cases, averaging forty-eight pounds each, thus
+making an actual weight of 432,000 pounds. By far the larger portion of
+the yearly asparagus crop in California is canned or preserved in glass,
+and in that shape sent to the East, exported to England and the
+continent of Europe, and, in fact, to every civilized country of the
+world. For canneries where nothing but the white product is put up the
+shoots are cut the instant they show their tips above the surface. The
+canneries are located as near the fields as possible, the effort being
+to get the product in glass or cans before it becomes in any way
+withered, the important point being that asparagus is never allowed to
+become dried.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 40--PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF CANNING PLANTS AT BOULDIN
+ISLAND]
+
+The method employed at Bouldin Island, where a crop of 1,500 acres is
+canned annually, is to have troughs containing running water in shady
+places in the fields. The asparagus, as fast as cut, is brought to these
+troughs, and is thoroughly washed. These troughs are just wide enough to
+take in the shoots of the proper length for canning, and each piece is
+trimmed before being immersed. From the troughs the asparagus is taken
+to the sorting table, then on to the scalding vats until it reaches the
+fillers, where is completed the systematic handling of this product,
+packing it to perfection, nothing remaining except to be labeled, when
+it is ready to be forwarded to the markets of the world. The entire
+process from the time the stalks are taken from the ground to the time
+they are ready for the table consumes less than six hours. The process
+throughout is a marvel of cleanliness, particular attention and stress
+being laid on every detail connected with it. No bleaching agents or
+anything foreign or deleterious whatever is used in the packing of
+this plant. In Fig. 39 is seen the interior of one of these canneries,
+where the especially constructed solderless cans of the company are
+being packed. Everything connected with the growing, harvesting, and
+canning is done on Bouldin Island, save only the printing of the labels.
+That the operators may be lodged in comfort the company has erected
+modern cottages for their employés who have families, besides
+well-equipped boarding-houses. The development and growth of this
+asparagus cannery is one of the marvels of California. Starting ten
+years ago with a rented boiler, under the arched dome of the sky for a
+roof, and nothing but the shade of weeping willows for a storehouse, as
+seen in the Frontispiece, it has developed into a superb plant, equipped
+with all modern appliances. During the active season 1,500 hands are
+employed directly and indirectly by the canning company, and the
+estimated output for the average season is 150,000 cases. Figs. 40 and
+41 present perspective views of some of the asparagus canneries on
+Bouldin Island.
+
+
+DRYING
+
+Although the drying of asparagus is not much practiced in America, it is
+well worth the attention of those who at times have a surplus of fresh
+stalks. Dried asparagus is especially recommended for soups and sauces,
+and if properly prepared it is no less desirable as a table vegetable.
+Dried asparagus keeps indefinitely, and cost of transportation is
+largely reduced. For the latter purpose medium-sized spears are most
+suitable, as they dry more evenly than larger ones. Some recommend the
+peeling or scalding of the stalks before drying, but this is not
+essential, and, if desired, may be done after steaming. On a large scale
+the drying may be done in any modern evaporator.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 41--CANNERY IN ASPARAGUS FIELDS]
+
+For home use the most satisfactory way is to string the stalks with a
+large needle and strong thread through the butt ends of the stalks, and
+hang them along buildings or fences where they are exposed to the full
+rays of the sun. To insure a uniform drying it is important that all the
+spears on the string are of the same thickness, as the thicker ones
+require more time to dry than those of smaller size. When the air is dry
+and warm one day's exposure to the sun will be sufficient to dry them.
+Otherwise the strings will have to be hung up in the kitchen in the
+evening, or in some other dry place over night, to be brought out again
+the following morning, until the asparagus is perfectly dry. It is then
+ready to be put in boxes or loose bags and stored in a dry place. If the
+stalks have been peeled before drying, when desired for use they are
+placed in cold water for half an hour, some salt is added, and they are
+cooked like fresh asparagus.
+
+For preparing dried asparagus that has not been peeled before drying,
+Dr. Brinckmeier recommends taking a sufficient number of the dried
+stalks and place them in water, which, while not boiling, is very near
+the boiling point, and keeping them there until they resume their
+succulent, smooth, fresh appearance. To keep the water just right a
+double boiler is best, with the stalks in the inner one. The water in
+the outer vessel should be kept at a steady boil. As the stalks resume
+the fresh appearance, take them out carefully one by one and place in
+cold water until cooled, after which place on a dish to dry. They should
+be carefully scalded to remove the hard outside skin, done up in a
+bundle, either by tying with strings or wrapping in a piece of netting,
+placed in boiling water, to which a little salt has been added, and
+allowed to remain there a few moments--a very few, for it cooks
+quickly--until done.
+
+These methods are recommended for white asparagus only, and when
+properly dried and cooked asparagus so treated is by many considered to
+be hardly distinguishable from the freshly cut, although it looses its
+white color in the process. Smaller and green stalks may be dried on
+wire frames or wooden racks over the kitchen stove, similar to apples.
+
+
+
+
+XIV
+
+INJURIOUS INSECTS
+
+
+While a number of different insects feed upon the asparagus plant, there
+are only two species which have so far become extensively distributed
+and caused serious damage in the United States. Both of these were
+imported from Europe, and are limited for their food supply to the
+asparagus plant.
+
+
+THE COMMON ASPARAGUS BEETLE[A]
+
+(_Crioceris asparagi_)
+
+This beetle is by far the most important enemy of the asparagus plant.
+It was first noticed in this country at Astoria, L. I., now a part of
+New York City, in 1859, but its actual introduction into that locality
+occurred about 1856. The injury inflicted by this insect is due to the
+work of both adults and larvæ upon the tender shoots, which they render
+unfit for market, early in the season. Later they destroy, by
+defoliation, growing plants, and are particularly injurious to
+seedlings, the roots of which are weakened by having their tops
+devoured. Larvæ, as well as beetles, attack the tenderest portions of
+the plants, but the latter gnaw with seemingly equal relish the
+epidermis, or rind, of the stems. The beetles are also accused of
+gnawing young shoots beneath the surface, causing them to become woody
+and crooked in growth.
+
+The beetle illustrated in Fig. 42 is a most beautiful creature--from the
+entomologist's point of view--slender and graceful in form, blue-black
+in color, with red thorax and lemon-yellow and dark blue elytra or wing
+covers, with reddish border. Its length is a trifle less than one-fourth
+of an inch.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 42--COMMON ASPARAGUS BEETLE
+
+_a_, beetle; _b_, egg; _c_, newly hatched larva; _d_, full-grown larva]
+
+From the scene of its first colonization in Queen's County, N. Y., the
+insect migrated to the other truck-growing portions of Long Island. It
+soon reached southern Connecticut, and has now extended its range
+northward through Massachusetts to New Hampshire. Southward it has
+traveled through New Jersey, where it was first noticed in 1868, to
+southern Virginia. At present it is well established in the principal
+asparagus-growing sections of New England, of New Jersey, Delaware, and
+Maryland, and is present in Pennsylvania, New York, and Ohio. The
+question of distribution is an important one, as this species is rapidly
+extending its range. In a very few years we may expect its spread to
+other portions of the States in which it is now local, and later it will
+naturally move westward to Indiana and other States west and south of
+there.
+
+The insect passes the winter in the beetle state under convenient
+shelter, and toward the end of April or early in May, according to
+locality, or at the season for cutting the asparagus for market, issues
+from its hibernating quarters and lays its eggs for the first brood. The
+eggs are deposited endwise upon the stem or foliage, and in the early
+spring upon the developed stalks, usually in rows of from two to six, or
+more. In from three to eight days the eggs hatch, the young larvæ,
+commonly called "grubs" or "worms," presenting the appearance indicated
+in Fig. 42, _c_. They at once begin to feed, and are from ten days to a
+fortnight, according to Fitch and others, in attaining full growth. When
+full grown the larva appears as in Fig. 42, _d_. It is soft and fleshy,
+much wrinkled, and in color dark gray or olive, which usually becomes
+lighter and yellowish with age. The mature larva enters the earth, and
+here, within a little rounded, dirt-covered cocoon which it forms, the
+pupa state is assumed. In from five to eight or more days the adult
+beetle is produced, which soon issues from the ground in search of food
+and of a suitable place for the continuance of the species. In Fig. 43
+is shown a spray of asparagus, with the common asparagus beetle in its
+different stages, asparagus top at the right showing eggs and injury.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 43--SPRAY AND TOP OF ASPARAGUS ATTACKED BY BEETLES]
+
+The duration of the life cycle is about thirty days from the time the
+eggs are laid until the insects attain maturity, but the time is shorter
+in the hotter parts of a season than in the cooler days of May or
+September. In the District of Columbia the eggs, in the warmest part of
+midsummer, develop in three days and the pupæ in five days. From this it
+may be estimated that, in the very warmest weather, the development of
+the insect may be effected in about three weeks from the time the egg is
+laid. In colder climates and in spring and autumn the development from
+egg to beetle will require from four to perhaps seven weeks. In the
+northern range of the species, two and perhaps three broods are usually
+produced, and farther southward there is a possibility of at least a
+fourth generation. In the latitude of the District of Columbia the
+beetles usually disappear to enter into hibernation in the latter days
+of September.
+
+The common asparagus beetle has very efficient checks in the shape of
+predaceous insects, which prey upon its larvæ and assist in preventing
+its undue increase. One of the most active of these predaceous insects
+is the spotted ladybird (_Megilla maculata_ DeG.), represented in its
+several stages in the illustration (Fig. 44.) The adult of this beetle
+is rose-colored, with numerous black spots. The spined soldier-bug
+(_Podisus spinosus_ Dal.) and the bordered soldier-bug (_Stiretrus
+anchorado_ Fab.) are also useful as destroyers of asparagus beetle
+larvæ, which they catch and kill by impaling them upon their long beaks
+and sucking out their juices. Certain species of wasps and small
+dragon-flies also prey upon the larvæ. Asparagus beetles are very
+susceptible to sudden changes of temperature, and immense numbers of
+hibernating beetles are sometimes killed in winter during severe cold
+spells following "open" weather.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 44--SPOTTED LADYBIRD
+
+_a_, larva; _b_, empty pupal skin; _c_, beetle, with enlarged antenna
+above]
+
+_Remedies._--The common asparagus beetle, under ordinary circumstances,
+may be held in restraint by the simplest means. Chickens and ducks are
+efficient destroyers of the insect, and their services are often brought
+into requisition for this purpose. A practice that is in high favor
+among prominent asparagus growers is to cut down all plants, including
+volunteer growth, in early spring to force the beetles to deposit their
+eggs upon new shoots, which are then cut every day before the eggs have
+time to hatch. Another measure of value consists in permitting a portion
+of the shoots to grow and serve as lures for the beetles. Here they may
+be killed with insecticides, or the plants, after they become covered
+with eggs, may be cut down and burned, and other shoots be allowed to
+grow up as decoys. One of the best and least expensive remedies against
+the larvæ is fresh air-slacked lime dusted on the plants in the early
+morning while the dew is on. It quickly destroys all the grubs with
+which it comes in contact. The lime may be conveniently applied by means
+of a whisk-broom or a Paris green sifter. Even dry road dust applied in
+this manner will have a beneficial effect. The special merit of these
+insecticides is that they can be used without the least danger upon
+young shoots being cut for market or home use.
+
+Paris green and other arsenites, applied dry in powder, mixed with flour
+or plaster, or in solution, answer equally well, after cutting has
+ceased, and possess the advantage of destroying beetles as well as
+larvæ. One pound of Paris green to a barrel of fine plaster makes a
+sufficiently strong mixture. It may be necessary to make two of these
+applications at intervals or as often as the larvæ reappear on the
+plants. Powdered hellebore mixed with flour, one part to ten, or in
+solution of one ounce of hellebore to three gallons of water, is also
+very effective against the young larvæ. Pyrethrum or buhach may be used
+in similar manner, and kerosene emulsion has been highly recommended by
+some experimenters. In hot weather, when the soil is dry, the larvæ may
+be brushed or shaken from the plants so that they will drop to the
+heated ground, where they die, being unable to regain the shelter of the
+plants. Whichever methods for the destruction of this pest are adopted,
+unless the work be done thoroughly and with concerted action by all the
+growers in the section, the relief can not be permanent.
+
+
+THE TWELVE-SPOTTED ASPARAGUS BEETLE
+
+(_Crioceris 12-punctata_ Linn)
+
+The presence of this insect in America was first detected in 1881, and
+it is still much rarer and consequently less injurious than the
+preceding species. In Europe, where it is apparently native, it is
+common but not especially destructive. The chief source of damage from
+this species is from the work of the hibernated beetles in early spring
+upon the young and edible asparagus shoots. Later beetles as well as
+larvæ appear to feed exclusively upon the berries. The eggs are
+deposited singly, and apparently by preference, upon old plants toward
+the end of shoots, which, lower down, bear ripening berries, and they
+are attached along their sides instead of at one end, as in the case
+with the eggs of the common species. Soon after the larva hatches from
+the egg it finds its way to an asparagus berry, enters it, and feeds
+upon the pulp. In due time it leaves the first berry for another one,
+and when full growth is attained it deserts its last larval habitation
+and enters the earth, where it transforms to pupa and afterward to the
+adult beetle. The life cycle does not differ materially from that of the
+common species, and there are probably the same or nearly as many
+generations developed.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 45--TWELVE-SPOTTED ASPARAGUS BEETLE
+
+_a_, beetle; _b_, larva; _c_, second abdominal segment of larva; _d_,
+same of common asparagus beetle]
+
+This species is at present distributed throughout the asparagus-growing
+country of New Jersey, particularly in the vicinity of the Delaware
+River, the whole of Delaware, nearly the entire state of Maryland, the
+District of Columbia, the southeastern portion of Pennsylvania bordering
+the state line of New Jersey, northeastern Virginia in the vicinity of
+the western shore of the Potomac River, Staten Island, and Monroe
+County, N. Y., the last mentioned being the most northern locality known
+for the species. The mature beetle in life rivals the common asparagus
+beetle in beauty, but may be distinguished by its much broader wing
+covers and its color. The ground color is orange red, each wing cover is
+marked with six black dots, and the knees and a portion of the under
+surface of the thorax are also marked with black, as seen in Fig. 45,
+_a_. The beetle as it appears on the plant when in fruit very closely
+resembles, at a little distance, a ripe asparagus berry. The full-grown
+larva is shown in Fig. 45, _b_. It measures, when extended,
+three-tenths of an inch, being of about the same proportions as the
+larva of the common species, but is readily separable by its ochraceous
+orange color. Fig. 45, _c_, shows the second abdominal segment of larva,
+and _d_ same of the common asparagus beetle, much enlarged.
+
+_Remedies._--The remedies are those indicated for the common asparagus
+beetle, with the possible exception of caustic lime and other measures
+that are directed solely against that species, but the habit of the
+larva of living within the berry places it for that period beyond the
+reach of insecticides. The collection and destruction of the asparagus
+berries before ripening might be a solution of the problem, but it is
+questionable if recourse to this measure would be necessary, save in
+cases of an exceptional abundance of the insect.
+
+
+THE ASPARAGUS MINER
+
+(_Agromyza simplex_)
+
+In a recent bulletin from the New York Experiment Station, Prof. F. A.
+Sirrine describes a comparatively new and injurious insect on asparagus.
+It was discovered on Long Island, and injures the young plants by mining
+just underneath the outside surface. The habits of this creature are
+such that there is little chance of applying remedies for its
+destruction. Cultural and preventive measures seem to be the most
+practical, and are suggested. The parent insect is a small fly, which
+deposits its eggs for the first brood early in June, and no doubt much
+can be done toward keeping the pest under control by not allowing small
+shoots to grow during the cutting season. Professor Sirrine is of the
+opinion that where young beds are put out yearly the pest can be kept in
+check by pulling and burning the old stalks. He points out the fact that
+the stalk should be pulled in the fall rather than in the spring, as it
+is difficult to pull them early in the season, and in many cases the
+dormant stage of the insect is left in the ground.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[A] Condensed from an official report by J. H. Chittenden of the United
+States Department of Agriculture.
+
+
+
+
+XV
+
+FUNGUS DISEASES
+
+
+Asparagus is subject to the attacks of a number of fungi, the most
+widespread and destructive being the "rust," the cause of which is a
+fungus described by De Candolle as _Puccinia asparagi_ in the year 1805.
+From this it is seen that the rust upon the asparagus has been known to
+scientists for nearly a hundred years, and it is but reasonable to
+suppose that more or less of this fungus has existed beyond the history
+of man.
+
+The first mention of asparagus rust in the United States was by Dr.
+Harkness, who claimed to have observed it on the Pacific Coast in 1880,
+although it is doubtful whether the genuine asparagus rust was ever
+found there. The first mention of it in the Eastern States was in the
+fall of 1896, and since then its range has been widening each year. Dr.
+Byron D. Halsted, of the New Jersey Experiment Station, was the first to
+call attention to it, and made it the subject of careful study. The
+results and conclusions derived from his experiments were published in a
+special bulletin, and from this the greater part of the following has
+been condensed.
+
+
+RECOGNITION OF THE RUST
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 46--ASPARAGUS STEMS AFFECTED WITH RUST]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 47--PORTION OF RUSTED ASPARAGUS STEMS]
+
+When an asparagus field is badly infested with the rust the general
+appearance is that of an unusually early maturing of the plants (Fig.
+46). Instead of the healthy green color there is a brown hue, as if
+insects had sapped the plants or frost destroyed their vitality. Rusted
+plants, when viewed closely, are found to have the skin of the stems
+lifted, as if blistered, and within the ruptures of the epidermis the
+color is brown, as shown in Fig. 47. The brown color is due to
+multitudes of spores borne upon the tips of fine threads of the fungus,
+which aggregate at certain points and cause the spots. The threads from
+which the spores are produced are exceedingly small and grow through the
+substance of the asparagus stem, taking up nourishment and causing an
+enfeebled condition of the victim, which results in loss of the green
+color and the final rustiness of the plant, due to the multitude of
+spores formed upon the surface. These spores are carried by the wind to
+other plants, where new disease spots are produced; but as the autumn
+advances a final form of spore appears in the ruptures that is quite
+different in shape and color from the first ones produced through the
+summer. The spores of late autumn, from their dark color, give an almost
+black appearance to the spots.
+
+There is another form which the rust fungus assumes not usually seen in
+the asparagus field, but may be found in early spring upon plants that
+are not subjected to cutting. This is the cluster-cup stage, so named
+because the fungus produces minute cups from the asparagus stem, and in
+small groups of a dozen to fifty, making usually an oval spot easily
+seen with the naked eye. This stage of the fungus comes first in the
+order of time in the series, and is met with upon volunteer plants that
+may grow along the roadside or fence row, or in a field where all the
+old asparagus plants have not been destroyed.
+
+
+METHODS OF TREATING THE RUST
+
+All the cultivated varieties of asparagus are readily affected by the
+rust, although it has been found that some varieties, notably Palmetto,
+are less susceptible to its attacks than others. The most effectual
+means of controlling the disease are spraying, burning of the brush,
+cultivation, and irrigation.
+
+_Spraying._--Dr. Halsted, in his first experiments, used soda-bordeaux,
+hydrate-bordeaux, and potash-bordeaux. The spraying began June 2d, and
+ten sprayings were applied during the season. The applications were made
+with a knapsack pump, and therefore were far more expensive than they
+would have been if the sprayings were made with horse-power. With the
+fungicide costing $5.00 per acre, and a machine that would spray two or
+more rows at a time, it would be possible to reduce the cost to $10.00
+per acre, or even less. In effectiveness the soda-bordeaux stood first.
+Between the other fungicides there was but little difference. The best
+results showed a reduction of rust of about one-quarter, which is not as
+satisfactory a result as had been expected.
+
+In the spraying work conducted by Professors G. E. Stone and R. E.
+Smith, at the Massachusetts Experiment Station, the results were more
+encouraging. The solutions used were potassium sulfide, saccharate of
+lime, and bordeaux mixture. The spraying was done with a knapsack
+sprayer, provided with a Vermorel nozzle, and after the first
+application it became evident that the practice was of little importance
+on account of the difficulty in making the solution stick to the plant.
+For successful spraying of asparagus a finer nozzle is required than any
+that is now in the market.
+
+In some other experiments carried out on a small scale the asparagus
+plants were practically covered with solutions, when they were put on
+with an ordinary cylinder atomizer, and the lime solutions showed
+excellent sticking qualities; but with the ordinary coarse nozzle the
+solutions would run off of the glossy epidermal covering of the plant
+very readily. Should the spraying of asparagus ever become a necessity,
+then some apparatus which can be strapped to a horse's back should be
+used. The narrow space between the rows forbids the use of the ordinary
+mounted appliances, and if spraying is to be carried on upon a large
+scale, it would be better to have the spraying mixture carried in some
+manner on the horse's back. In this way it would be possible to carry
+some thirty or forty gallons of mixture through the narrow rows.
+
+_Burning the affected tops._--There can be no doubt that by the burning
+of the infested brush, after the cutting season, innumerable rust spores
+are destroyed. But if this is done before the stalks are entirely dead
+new ones will spring up at once, and in a few days will be as badly
+affected as the first. The burning of the tops in the summer has,
+moreover, a decidedly injurious effect upon the roots, seriously
+weakening their vitality, and making the growth of the following year
+still more susceptible to the infection.
+
+In the autumn, however, after the stalks are dead and dry, this damage
+does not prevail, and the spores upon old brush can be destroyed by
+burning the asparagus stems either as they stand in the field or by
+cutting and throwing the brush into piles. By the latter method many of
+the smaller branches will be broken off and scattered upon the ground,
+giving a suitable place for the spores to remain over the winter. For
+the same reason it is an advantage to burn the brush in autumn instead
+of the spring, and thus prevent the large loss of spores that would
+obtain. In other words, burn the plants as soon as they become brown
+and lifeless, for any delay means the breaking up of the brittle, rusty
+plants, and a heavy sowing of the spores upon the ground. If the fire
+could go over the whole field of standing brush, that would be the most
+effective destruction. At best, with these precautions, many of the
+spores will get scattered upon the soil, and it would be well to
+sprinkle a thin coat of lime upon the ground and leave it there during
+the winter. If this could be followed by a turning under of the surface
+soil in the spring, it would bury the spores that might still be living,
+so that they would be out of reach.
+
+_Cultivation and irrigation._--It has been observed that the injury to
+asparagus plants, as a result of rust, has been confined to dry soils,
+although there are places where beds in close proximity showed
+remarkable differences as to infection; and that robust and vigorous
+plants, even where cultivated on apparently dry soil, are capable of
+resisting the summer or injurious stage of the rust.
+
+In view of all the experiments so far made, and the experiences of
+practical asparagus growers, Stone and Smith conclude that: "The best
+means of controlling the rust is by thorough cultivation in order to
+secure vigorous plants, and in seasons of extreme dryness plants growing
+on very dry soil with little water-retaining properties should, if
+possible, receive irrigation."
+
+From a knowledge of the occurrences of the rust in Europe, and from
+observations made in Massachusetts, they are led to believe that the
+outbreak of the asparagus rust is of a sporadic nature, and is not
+likely to cause much harm in the future, provided attention is given to
+the production of vigorous plants.
+
+
+ASPARAGUS LEOPARD SPOT
+
+Attention was called to this new disease by Prof. W. G. Johnson, in
+Bulletin No. 50, Maryland Experiment Station, September, 1897. It was
+observed in a limited area in the asparagus growing section on the
+eastern shore of Maryland. The disease belongs to the group of
+anthracnoses, and is regarded by Dr. B. D. Halsted as a new species. In
+some places growers have mistaken it for the work of asparagus beetles.
+In general appearance it is very striking, the characteristic spots
+resembling the coat of the leopard. It has, therefore, been called
+"asparagus leopard spot," to distinguish it readily from rust. The
+disease has been found only in a comparatively small area, but, no doubt
+will be found in other places later. Asparagus growers should,
+therefore, be on their guard and watch it. The remedies thus far
+successfully used are the same as those for rust.
+
+
+
+
+XVI
+
+ASPARAGUS CULTURE IN DIFFERENT LOCALITIES
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN NEW ENGLAND
+
+Asparagus was grown in Concord, Mass., in a limited way as early as
+1825. Mr. Edmund Hosmer used to carry it to market in season on his milk
+wagon. Timothy Prescott and F. R. Gourgas grew garden patches before
+1840. To John B. Moore belongs the credit of growing and improving
+asparagus in this section of the State. Mr. Moore selected the most
+promising shoots, and by a judicious system of culture succeeded in
+placing on the market a valuable variety in the shape of Moore's
+Cross-bred. Most of the "giant" asparagus grown in Concord to-day could
+be traced to the plants produced by his skill. A sample bunch of twelve
+stalks, twelve inches long, from Moore's Cross-bred plants weighed four
+pounds eight ounces. In 1872 the first bed of asparagus of any size was
+set out by Mr. George D. Hubbard, who was laughed at by his neighbor
+farmers, who saw only ruin for the young man. The next year Mr. Hubbard
+set out more, so that for twenty years he was probably the largest
+grower in Massachusetts.
+
+Most of the leading varieties are grown in Concord, but the farmers are
+looking for a rust-proof variety and hope to find one. The Palmetto has
+not rusted as badly as other kinds, but has not been grown so
+extensively. One-year-old roots should be set by all means, as they
+start sooner, grow more vigorously, and in the end pay better. The roots
+should be carefully selected from vigorous stock. A very large part of
+Concord asparagus is planted on sandy soil--_i.e._, good, rich, mellow
+corn land. This kind of land needs more manure, but then the crop is
+more satisfactory and the labor bill is not so high. The land previous
+to setting to asparagus should be well tilled and manured.
+
+Land for asparagus beds should be plowed late in the fall, and if stable
+manure can be afforded should be applied liberally. In the spring plow
+again early and harrow well. The roots should be planted in April as
+soon as the ground can be worked. After determining the direction of the
+rows a number of laths, four feet long, are placed in line where the
+first row is to be. It is very important to get the rows straight and an
+even distance apart. A good strong pair of horses and a large plow are
+used, a board being so placed above the mold-board of the plow that the
+loose soil will not fall back into the furrow. Drive the horses so that
+the middle of the evener will just come to the lath, then change the
+lath over its own length, if the rows are to be four feet apart, and
+that will mark the next row. Change each lath as you come to it, and
+when your first furrow is completed your second row will be all marked
+out. Return in the first row to make it deeper and also to straighten
+any bends. Shovel out the ends for a few feet and you will have a proper
+furrow to set asparagus roots in. Proceed with the other rows in the
+same manner, and you will have a good-looking plantation.
+
+The larger growers in Concord set the plants two feet apart in the row
+and have the rows four feet apart. The plants are set in the bottom of
+the furrow, covered two inches, and should level up by fall so that the
+crowns will be six or seven inches below the surface. The furrows may be
+made very deep, so that manure can be placed in the bottom, or
+fertilizer may be strewn before the plants are set or after. The roots
+should be spread out carefully in the bottom of the furrow, care being
+taken to have them in line. The bed should be cultivated with a
+fine-tooth cultivator or weeder often enough to prevent the growth of
+weeds. Keep the bed clean and do not have the trenches filled in before
+the last of September. The tops should not be cut in the fall of the
+first year, as the snow will be held by them, and thereby protect the
+roots to some extent. Some growers spread coarse manure on their beds in
+the fall to prevent the soil from being blown away and also to prevent
+winter killing, which, however, is rare.
+
+In the second year the bed may be plowed or wheel-harrowed in the spring
+as early as possible. Concord growers use animal manure or chemical
+fertilizers, as the case may be or as the bed may require. The bed
+should be smooth harrowed just before the new shoots appear, and good
+clean cultivation given during the season. After harrowing or plowing in
+the third year, sow your chemicals or fertilizer broadcast and harrow
+in. A good formula for asparagus is: Nitrate of soda, 300 to 400 pounds;
+muriate of potash, 400 pounds; and fine ground bone, 600 pounds per
+acre. The shoots will appear about May 5th, and should be cut for about
+two weeks; then let them grow up and cultivate well during the season.
+
+Home-mixing of fertilizer is practiced by some of the growers in this
+vicinity, as it is cheaper and better. Any intelligent farmer can, with
+a little study, purchase and mix the raw materials to advantage. Not so
+much fertilizer is used as formerly by our growers, who are beginning to
+think that we use more plant food than the crop needs, thus throwing
+away many dollars each year. The cost of an acre of asparagus when
+properly planted and manured is about two hundred dollars, varying with
+the cost of help, manure, etc. The average product of asparagus beds is
+about two hundred and eighty-eight dozen bunches per acre--probably less
+since the rust appeared in 1897.
+
+Asparagus is grown largely on Cape Cod. There the roots are planted in
+rows six feet apart and four or five feet in the row. Seaweed is used
+largely in connection with fertilizer and manure. Various grains, oats,
+rye, etc., are sometimes sown to prevent the soil being blown away. The
+method of culture is much the same as elsewhere.
+
+At Concord the asparagus season opens usually about May 5th. The shoots
+are cut two or three inches under ground and should be about eight
+inches in length. These are laid in handfuls on the ground by the
+cutter, each one cutting two rows. The product of four rows is laid in
+one row, making what is called a "basket row." These "basket rows" are
+gathered in baskets, boxes, or wheelbarrows, and taken to the
+packing-shed. The asparagus is placed on a table and packed in racks of
+uniform size, passed to the person who ties, and then to be butted off.
+The bunches are then washed and set up in troughs ready for market.
+Water is added in season to swell the bunch tight and it is then packed
+in bushel boxes for market, going in by teams each night.
+
+Asparagus was free from pests until 1889, when the asparagus beetle made
+its unwelcome appearance. Methods of fighting the beetle were unknown to
+growers generally at that time, but necessity soon taught us. Chickens
+and hens are used with good results, also Paris green dry was applied
+with an air-gun when the dew was on the foliage. Cutworms sometimes do
+the asparagus crop severe damage, but chickens and hens are a sure
+remedy--in fact, hens are a decided benefit in an asparagus field,
+keeping down many weeds.
+
+After learning to control the asparagus beetle we were visited by the
+rust, which has proved a stubborn foe and absorbs the sap which ought to
+go to the growing plant. Appearing in July, 1897, the rust seriously
+damaged many beds in eastern Massachusetts. Many remedies have been
+suggested, but so far none of them have proved perfectly satisfactory.
+Growers have been advised to cut the infected tops as soon as the rust
+appears, but such a practice is all wrong, however good in theory. Do
+not cut the tops until the sap has left the stalks. This is the advice
+of a large number of asparagus growers and scientific men who are
+engaged in experimental work.
+
+CHARLES W. PRESCOTT.
+
+_Middlesex County, Mass._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS ON LONG ISLAND
+
+The cultivation of asparagus on Long Island does not differ materially,
+in most respects, from that practiced in other localities, other than in
+its extent. But there is probably more to be learned about its
+cultivation there than in any other section of the country, from the
+fact of its being grown under such changed conditions of soil. Here it
+can be shown that the character of soil is not, of itself, of great
+importance, and that on soil usually considered worthless--on land that
+can be bought, uncleared, at from five to ten dollars per
+acre--asparagus can be made as profitable a crop as on land considered
+cheap at one hundred dollars per acre.
+
+Nearly every farm, the northern boundary of which is the Long Island
+Sound, has from two to twenty acres of soil composed very largely of
+fine drift sand, in all respects like quick-sand in character. This,
+when mixed with light loam, as is frequently the case, is the most
+favorable land for asparagus, and in such it is largely grown, being
+unsuited to potatoes or cereals, and where grasses make but a feeble
+struggle for existence. Within five minutes' walk to the south the soil
+is from a lively to a quite heavy loam, in which corn, potatoes,
+cabbage, cauliflower, and, in fact, all other crops revel. In this soil
+the asparagus also finds a congenial home, but no better than in the
+sand, in which but little else can be grown; neither can it be grown
+here more profitably. The expense for fertilizers is a little more on
+the sandy soil, but the cost in labor on the heavy soil will quite
+equal the cost of extra fertilizer required on the light.
+
+Whether away from a saline atmosphere a light soil would be as favorable
+as a heavy one for the asparagus is a question that practical experiment
+only can settle. But it is an important one, as it is not generally
+supposed that it is possible to grow asparagus, at a profit, on such
+soils as are now being devoted to this crop on Long Island.
+
+That which has been called the barren wastes, the dwarf-pine and
+scrub-oak lands of Suffolk County, can be made most profitable farming
+lands may be a surprise to many, but that such is the case does not
+admit of a doubt. As evidence of this, let us state what is being done
+along these lines. Messrs. Hudson & Sons, leading canners of asparagus,
+have bought a farm of 525 acres of as poor land as it is possible to
+find on Long Island, which they are to devote exclusively to this crop.
+They have already more than fifty acres planted, and are getting the
+whole in readiness as rapidly as possible. This is no experiment, but
+simply doing on a large scale what has profitably been done on a small
+one.
+
+On similar soils a low estimate of net profit is $100 per acre, and
+there are many instances where double this profit is made. The price
+paid last season by the canners was $14 per 100 bunches for first
+quality, and $6 per 100 for culls, or "tips," as they are usually
+called. With good cultivation, which means a liberal supply of plant
+food--and there is no crop that requires more--and the surface kept
+clean, free from weeds, and frequently cultivated, so that the surface
+is at all times loose and fine to prevent evaporation, the average yield
+is 2,500 bunches per acre. If we estimate the tips at 25 per cent. of
+the crop, the gross receipts will amount to $200 per acre.
+
+After a given acreage is ready for cutting, which is the third year
+after planting, the annual cost of cultivation is not very much, if any,
+more than that of a crop of potatoes. It is a question whether the
+actual cost of growing and marketing an acre of asparagus is not less
+than that of an acre of potatoes. Some growers assert it is three times
+as much work to take care of a given acreage of asparagus as of
+potatoes; admitting it, the relative cost is stated above.
+
+C. L. ALLEN.
+
+_Nassau County, N. Y._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN NEW JERSEY
+
+An important point in asparagus culture is to remove the top growth in
+the fall of the year. For this purpose I use a mowing-machine, then rake
+up the brush and burn it on the bed. After this I top-dress heavy with
+manure, leaving it lie on the land until spring.
+
+Just as soon as the ground is fit to work at all I put on a disk-harrow,
+and cut it about four times each way until it is thoroughly pulverized.
+Then with a smoothing-harrow I level it, and repeat the smoothing-harrow
+operation about once a week to keep down all weeds coming through. Then
+we let it go as long as we can, possibly two weeks, and at the
+appearance of weeds we take an ordinary sweet-potato ridger having a
+plow on either side and run it astride the row, covering everything in
+the row. Doing this on Saturday afternoon holds the asparagus back over
+the following day. Then we take the middle out with a one-horse
+cultivator. This is done probably three times during the cutting season,
+which is eight weeks. With the help of one of these weeders, which we
+use at least once a week, we keep the bed quite clean of all weeds, and
+this I consider very essential. The cultivation should continue after
+cutting until the top growth becomes so large as to protect the ground,
+and then there will be but little trouble late in the season about
+weeds. It doesn't pay to grow them anywhere, and especially not in
+asparagus beds.
+
+In planting, the ground should be well prepared and furrowed out eight
+inches in depth, four and one-half feet apart, and the plants two and
+one-half feet in the row, with a little fine manure in bottom of row;
+put about two inches of soil on the plants to cover. Then as the sprouts
+come up, keep on filling the furrows by cultivation.
+
+I have been using some commercial manures the past two years, applying
+at the rate of one ton to the acre about the rows in the spring; then
+nearly a ton of salt to the acre applied at any time. It helps keep
+weeds down and gives the asparagus a good flavor. Above all, do not
+forget to apply the fertilizer, and Plenty, with a big "P," of
+it--either stable manure or commercial fertilizers. Probably there will
+be less weeds by using the latter, but there needs to be a great deal of
+the former in the beginning for several years, to give the bed a good
+body of rich earth, from which the plants feed. It appears to me this
+is the secret of success.
+
+Much depends upon how asparagus is put up for the market, making it look
+attractive, in nice, clean, new crates and neatly prepared bunches, and
+the stalks must be large, tender, and of good flavor. Grass from a
+strong bed grown in twenty-four hours is much more tender and better in
+every way than grass grown in forty-eight hours from a poor bed. We are
+compelled to cut every twenty-four hours, or the asparagus would waste,
+and the gathering is accomplished in about three and one-half hours each
+day, early in the morning.
+
+JOEL BORTON.
+
+_Salem County, N. J._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN THE SOUTH
+
+There is no crop grown by the Southern trucker that has paid better than
+asparagus year after year. With many of the other truck crops sent North
+the growers have to contend with a host of planters who rush in at times
+to plant certain crops like early potatoes, peas, and beans, and whose
+inferior crops often glut the market and make the season unprofitable
+all around. These men drop out after a season that their particular
+venture did not pay, and the regular truckers, being well aware that
+they would do so, always redouble their efforts the year after a bad
+season with any particular crop, knowing from experience that then it
+would be certain to be profitable.
+
+But the asparagus crop is one into which the temporary growers can not
+jump in and out of, for the crop requires special preparation of the
+soil and patient waiting and culture pending the time for reaping a
+harvest, and the men who are always ready to jump into the annual crops
+always wish to realize at once, and do not generally have the capital to
+put into a crop that requires several years before realizing. Hence the
+asparagus crop has been left to the regular market gardeners, and has
+been uniformly profitable when well managed.
+
+As regards soil for asparagus in the South, it should be deep, light,
+warm, and well drained, either naturally or artificially. The level
+sandy soils that abound in all the South Atlantic Coast region, having a
+compact subsoil of reddish clay under it at a moderate depth, makes the
+ideal soil for the early asparagus.
+
+In preparing such a soil for the crop, it is well to be thorough in the
+matter, for the crop is to remain there indefinitely, and if success is
+to be expected the previous preparation should be of the most thorough
+character. Hence, as the soils best adapted to the growth of the plant
+are commonly deficient in vegetable matter, which desirable
+characteristic can only be found in abundance on the lands too low and
+moist for the asparagus crop, some preparatory culture should be used
+that will tend to increase the amount of organic decay in the soil.
+
+For this purpose there is nothing better than the Southern field or cow
+pea. The land should be prepared by giving it a heavy dressing of acid
+phosphate and potash; and putting it in peas sown broadcast at the rate
+of a bushel or more per acre. With a heavy dressing of the mineral
+fertilizers the pea crop will be heavy, and should be allowed to fully
+ripen and decay on the land, to be plowed under, and the process
+repeated the following year. In the mean time the seed should be sown
+for the growth of the roots for setting the land.
+
+Two crops of cow-peas allowed to die on the land and turned under will
+give a store of vegetable matter that would be hard to get in any other
+manner. While heavy manuring with stable manures is very desirable where
+the material can be had at a reasonable cost, the larger part, and, in
+fact, nearly all of the Southern asparagus, must be grown by the aid of
+chemical fertilizers, and the storing up of humus in the land from the
+decaying peas is an important factor in the placing of the soil in a
+condition to render the chemical fertilizers of more use, since the
+moisture-retaining nature of the organic matter plays an important part
+in the solution of matters in the soil. Aside from this, there will be a
+large increase in the nitrogen contents of the soil through the
+nitrification of this organic matter.
+
+The second crop of peas should be plowed under in late fall when
+perfectly ripe and dead, so that the land can be gotten into condition
+for planting in early spring. The land should be thoroughly plowed, and
+if the clay subsoil comes near the surface it should be loosened with
+the subsoil plow. Furrows are then run out four and a half to five feet
+apart, going twice in the furrow, and then cleaning out with shovels
+till there is a trench a foot deep. In the bottom of this trench place a
+good coat of black earth from the forest, or, if well-rotted manure can
+be had, use that of course. Set the plants twenty inches apart in the
+furrow, and by means of hand-rakes pull in enough earth to barely cover
+the crowns.
+
+As growth begins, the soil is to be gradually worked in around the
+advancing shoots till the soil is level. Now give a dressing of 1,000
+pounds per acre, alongside the rows, of a mixture of 900 pounds of acid
+phosphate, 500 pounds of fish scrap, 200 pounds of nitrate of soda, and
+400 pounds of muriate of potash, and keep the plants cultivated
+shallowly and flat with an ordinary cultivator till the tops are mature.
+An application of salt may be useful if applied in the fall in making
+some matters in the soil available, but salt in itself is of no use
+whatever to the plants. We would never apply salt in the spring, as it
+has a tendency to lessen nitrification and to retard the earliness of
+the shoots.
+
+The annual dressing of the fertilizer named should now be increased to a
+ton per acre, and it should be applied not later than February 1st in
+each year. After the tops have been cut in the fall it is a good plan to
+plow furrows from each side over the rows and to plow out the middles,
+for the shoots will always start earlier in an elevated ridge, which
+warms up earlier in the spring.
+
+The second year after planting cutting may begin, and the shoots must be
+cut as fast as they show, care being taken to cut down near the crown of
+the roots, but not to injure the other shoots that may be starting.
+After cutting is over--and the length of time the bed should be cut is
+of little importance in the South, for the price at the point where it
+is shipped will always tell you when to stop--the soil should be again
+worked down flat, and if the growth has not been as satisfactory as
+could be wished, a dressing of 100 pounds per acre of nitrate of soda at
+this time will usually pay very well. Asparagus should always be bunched
+in a machine made for that purpose. The bunches are packed in crates
+just deep enough to hold the bunches set upright on a bed of moss, and a
+cover of the same damp moss should be placed on top.
+
+Where there is a demand for green asparagus the planting should be done
+more shallowly in a simple furrow, and the entire culture should be flat
+and shallow. The shoots are cut at the surface of the ground after they
+have attained the proper length. One thing is to be observed in either
+method, and this is that during the cutting season everything long
+enough must be cut daily, and that the little shoots be not allowed to
+run up and branch out. Cull the shoots after they are all out and bunch
+accordingly. Green shoots should be bunched by themselves and not mixed
+with the blanched ones. None but new, light crates should be used, for a
+clean and neat package will always favor its contents in the selling.
+
+W. F. MASSEY.
+
+_North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA
+
+The growing of asparagus for market in California is proving to be one
+of the most successful of its minor industries. There is a large area in
+the State which is exactly suited to the production of this vegetable.
+This is the region of sedimentary deposits, washed by waters that are
+to some extent brackish, or naturally saline. Commercial asparagus
+farming is limited to the reclaimed lands around the bay of San
+Francisco, the marshy deltas of the San Joaquin and Sacramento rivers,
+and the so-called peat lands of Orange and San Luis Obispo counties.
+Small beds, however, for local consumption are to be found in California
+as generally and frequently as they are in other States.
+
+There is a fascination about asparagus culture that is founded on
+legitimate financial returns. It is practically "a sure thing" when once
+established, and the conditions of climate and soil are such that the
+work attendant on production is a minimum in proportion to the return.
+No diseases of the plant have yet shown themselves in California, and it
+is seldom that the weather is unsteady enough to be a factor in limiting
+production. The deterring feature is the fact that it is not till the
+third year that a return can be expected on the investment. But as other
+crops, such as potatoes and beans, can be grown between the rows in the
+interim, the time of waiting is not so entirely an unproductive one as
+might at first be supposed.
+
+The methods of preparing, planting, and working are practically the same
+in all sections of California. The proposed beds are plowed as deeply as
+possible and thoroughly fertilized. All of the soils appropriate for
+commercial asparagus farming are so light that deep cultivation is a
+comparatively easy matter. Furrows for planting are then run and made
+double depth. Some growers think it worth while to distribute
+fertilizer along these furrows and then turn for a third time, so as to
+enrich the ground immediately below the roots to be set out. These
+furrows are run from four to six feet apart, the latter being considered
+the better usage. In them one-year-old plants are then set by hand at
+distances varying from eighteen inches to three feet. The former
+distance is preferred by the Italian growers on Bay Farm Island in San
+Francisco Bay, but the Southern growers and those along the Sacramento
+River lean to the greater distance. The only difference seems to be
+whether there will be sufficient nutriment in the soil to force the
+plant into giving as large and tender shoots as where each plant is
+allowed a larger area. The plants are set with the crowns about four
+inches below the surface and the roots are carefully spread out before
+covering. Planting is done any time from November to April, but the
+middle of February is perhaps the most common time.
+
+The culture for the first year consists in keeping the soil loose and
+free from weeds. Ordinarily other crops are grown between the rows, and
+their cultivation serves to keep the ground in proper condition. The
+asparagus is allowed to come up, feather, and seed without interference,
+no cutting being done the first year. Care, however, is taken to cut off
+the tops close to the ground in the fall before the seed begins to
+drop--the volunteer asparagus being the worst enemy in culture with
+which the grower has to deal. About the beginning of the rainy season a
+heavy coating of manure is placed over the beds and left to be leeched
+in by the rains.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 48--VIEW OF ASPARAGUS FIELD ON BOULDIN ISLAND,
+CALIFORNIA]
+
+The second year some growers cut more or less for market, but the bed
+is then longer in coming to its full strength and will not give so large
+a product the following years. There is a variation in the spring
+working, according to the nature of the land. Where the soil has a
+tendency to be cold, the first plowing is away from the rows, so as to
+let the sun more quickly down to the starting plants. Where the soil is
+light, or the season forward, this plowing is omitted. The latter
+plowings are toward the rows, the effort being by ridging to give a long
+blanched surface to the shoots. For the canneries where nothing but the
+white product is put up, the shoots are cut the instant they show their
+tips above the surface. The local market shows a preference for the
+greener shoot, and so before cutting it is allowed to stretch itself up
+into the light. The third year regular cutting begins, and from that
+time forward the beds increase in the quantity and quality of the
+product for the next fifteen years.
+
+The methods of marketing are somewhat different from those practiced in
+the East. Little or none of the asparagus is bunched. It is packed loose
+in boxes holding from forty to fifty pounds, and the loose product is
+retailed to the consumer by the pound. The first boxes begin to go out
+by the beginning of February, though small quantities can be seen in
+market as early as January 15th. The canning contracts run, as a rule,
+from March 1st to June 15th. After that the weather is so dry that the
+yield stops unless the beds are irrigated. In most sections, however,
+irrigation is not necessary up to this time.
+
+A notable exception to this is Bouldin Island, in the San Joaquin
+River. This is reclaimed land, and lies some six or eight feet below the
+surface of the water. The soil is river silt on a peat stratum thirty
+feet deep. The top is so fine and friable that it does not, in spite of
+the surrounding river, hold enough moisture to keep the vegetation alive
+during the hot spring months. A north wind in May would lift up the
+whole surface of the island and carry it away in dust. It is an easy
+matter, however, to let in water through the dikes, and this is done in
+sufficient quantities to keep the soil in place.
+
+The question of profit in asparagus growing is one that can only be
+treated in a relative way. The industry is as yet so new, and instances
+of phenomenal returns from small holdings are so many, that it is hard
+to arrive at what might be called a commercial ratio of gain. It is safe
+to say, however, that with ordinary care there has never been an actual
+loss with asparagus culture in California. A low estimate of profit is
+probably $50 per acre. The cost of preparation and planting where diking
+has not been necessary has seldom been more than $100 per acre. The
+gross returns taken from recent years' reports vary from $100 to $200
+per acre, so that it can readily be seen that the return to the
+asparagus farmer is very fair. Most of the farms in California are in
+rented land. The Bay Farm Island people pay a ground rent of $50 per
+acre. On Bouldin Island the rental is on a basis of 40 per cent. of the
+net proceeds. In Fig. 48 is presented a view of a fully established
+asparagus field on Bouldin Island.
+
+WARREN CHENEY.
+
+_Alameda County, Cal._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN FRANCE
+
+Asparagus is grown much more abundantly and to a much larger size in
+France than in England. The country is half covered with it in some
+places near Paris; farmers grow it abundantly, cottagers grow it, and
+everybody eats it. Near Paris it is chiefly grown for market in the
+valley of Montmorency and at Argenteuil, and it is cultivated
+extensively for market in many other places. About Argenteuil several
+thousand persons are employed in the culture of asparagus.
+
+It is grown to a large extent among the grape-vines as well as alone.
+The vine under field culture is cut down to near the old stool every
+year, and allowed to make a few growths which are tied erect to a stake.
+One plant is put in each open spot, and given every chance of forming a
+large specimen, and this it generally does. The growing of asparagus
+among the vines is a very usual mode, and a vast space is thus covered
+with it about here.
+
+It is also grown in other and special ways. Perhaps the simplest and
+most worthy of adoption is to grow it in shallow trenches. These are
+usually about four feet apart. The soil generally is a rather stiff
+sandy loam with calcareous matter in some parts, but the soil has not
+all to do with the peculiar excellence of the vegetable. It is the
+careful attention to the wants of the plant which produce such good
+results. Here, for instance, is a young plantation planted in March; and
+from the little ridges of soil between the trenches have just been dug a
+crop of small early potatoes. In England the asparagus would be left to
+the free action of the breeze, but the French cultivators never leave a
+young plant of asparagus to the wind's mercy while they can find a stake
+of oak about a yard long.
+
+When staking these young plants they do not insert the support close to
+the bottom, as we are too apt to do in other instances, but a little
+distance off, so as to avoid the possibility of injuring the root; each
+stake leans over its plant at an angle of forty-five degrees, and when
+the shoots are big enough to touch it, or to be caught by the wind, they
+are tied to the stake. The ground in which this system is pursued being
+entirely devoted to asparagus, the stools are placed very much closer
+together than they are among the vines--say, at a distance of about a
+yard apart. The little trenches are about a foot wide and eight inches
+deep.
+
+The best asparagus in France is grown at Argenteuil and by one system
+mainly. The plants--one-year seedlings (never older)--are planted in
+shallow trenches seven or eight inches deep, the plants a little more
+than one yard apart and the lines four feet apart. No manure is given at
+planting; no trenching or any preparation of the ground, beyond digging
+the shallow trench, takes place. In subsequent years a little manure is
+given over the roots in autumn; the soil, thrown out of the trenches and
+forming a ridge between them, is planted with a light crop in spring. In
+all subsequent years the earth is placed over the crowns in spring and
+removed in autumn.
+
+Under this system good results are obtained in various soils, the only
+difference being that on cold clay soils the planting is not quite so
+deep. Every winter the growers notice the state of the young roots, and
+any spot in which one has perished they mark with a stick, to replace
+the plant the following March. Early every spring they pile up a little
+heap of fine earth over each crown. When the plantation arrives at its
+third year they increase the size of the mound, or, in other words, a
+heap of finely pulverized earth is placed over the stool, from which
+some, but not much, asparagus is cut the same year, taking care to leave
+the weak plants and those which have replaced others untouched for
+another year.
+
+The process of gathering is interesting to the stranger. Asparagus
+knives of various forms are described in both French and English books,
+but one is confidently told by the growers that they are only fitted for
+amateurs who do not care to soil their fingers. The cultivators here
+never use a knife, the work being done with the hands. Gatherings are
+made every second day about the end of April, but in May when the growth
+is more active the stools are gathered from every day.
+
+The French mode of cultivating asparagus differs from the English
+principally in giving each plant abundant room to develop into a large
+healthy specimen, in paying thoughtful attention to the plants at all
+times, and in planting in trenches instead of a raised bed. They do not,
+as is done in England, go to great expense in forming a mass of the
+richest soil far beneath the roots, but rather give it at the surface,
+and only when the roots have begun to grow strongly.--W. ROBINSON, in
+"Parks and Gardens of Paris."
+
+
+
+
+INDEX
+
+
+                                                 PAGE
+American varieties,                                18
+  Barr's Mammoth,                                  18
+  Columbian Mammoth White,                         19
+  Conover's Colossal,                              19
+  Donald's Elmira,                                 19
+  Eclipse,                                         19
+  Hub,                                             20
+  Mammoth,                                         20
+  Moore's Cross-bred,                              20
+  Palmetto,                                        20
+  Purple top or green top,                         21
+
+Asparagus culture in different localities,        145
+  in New England,                                 145
+  on Long Island,                                 150
+  in New Jersey,                                  152
+  in the South,                                   154
+  in California,                                  158
+  in France,                                      164
+
+Asparagus species,                                  6
+  plumosus nanus,                                   6
+  medeoloides,                                      6
+  Sprengeri,                                        6
+  falcatus,                                         8
+  laricinus,                                        8
+  racemosus,                                       10
+  sarmentosus,                                     10
+  Broussoneti,                                     13
+  officinalis,                                     13
+  acutifolius,                                     16
+  aphyllus,                                        16
+
+
+Botany,                                             4
+
+Bunchers,                                          91
+
+Bunching,                                          89
+
+
+Canning,                                          112
+  Eastern methods,                                112
+  Pacific coast methods,                          118
+
+Crates,                                            96
+
+Cultivation,                                       61
+  the first year,                                  61
+  the second year,                                 64
+  the third and future years,                      66
+
+Cultural varieties,                                17
+
+Cutting,                                           83
+  Manner of,                                       84
+
+
+Drying,                                           122
+
+
+Edible species,                                    13
+
+European varieties,                                21
+  German Giant,                                    22
+  Argenteuil,                                      22
+  Yellow Burgundy,                                 22
+
+
+Fall treatment,                                    68
+
+Fertilizers and fertilizing,                       72
+
+Forcing,                                          100
+  in greenhouse,                                  101
+  in hotbeds and frames,                          103
+  in field,                                       104
+  in Cornell asparagus house,                     110
+
+Fungus diseases,                                  137
+  Asparagus rust,                                 137
+  Asparagus leopard spot,                         144
+
+
+Growing asparagus without transplanting,           32
+
+
+Harvesting and marketing,                          83
+
+Historical sketch,                                  1
+
+
+Insects,                                          126
+  Common asparagus beetle,                        126
+  Twelve-spotted asparagus beetle,                133
+  Spotted ladybird,                               130
+  Asparagus miner,                                135
+
+
+Knives,                                            88
+
+
+Male and female plants,                            40
+
+Marketing,                                         96
+
+
+Ornamental species,                                 6
+
+
+Planting,                                          49
+  Distance to plant,                               50
+  Depth of,                                        53
+  Manner of,                                       54
+  Placing the roots,                               59
+
+Plants, Raising of,                                30
+
+Pot-grown asparagus plants,                        36
+
+Preparation of the ground,                         45
+
+Preserving asparagus,                             112
+
+
+Raising of plants,                                 30
+
+Renovating old asparagus beds,                     70
+
+Rubber bands,                                      93
+
+
+Salt as a fertilizer,                              81
+
+Seed-growing,                                      26
+
+Selection of plants,                               38
+
+Soil and its preparation,                          43
+
+Sorting,                                           89
+
+Sorting and bunching,                              89
+
+Sterilizing,                                      116
+
+Subsoiling,                                        47
+
+
+Transplanting, Growing asparagus without,          32
+
+Tying material,                                    92
+
+
+Variety tests,                                     22
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Asparagus, its culture for home use
+and for market:, by F. M. Hexamer
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ASPARAGUS, ITS CULTURE ***
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+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
+  <head>
+    <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" />
+    <title>
+      The Project Gutenberg eBook of Asparagus, Its Culture For Home Use and For Market,
+		by F. M. Hexamer.
+    </title>
+    <style type="text/css">
+
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+	 margin-bottom: 2em;
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+         clear: both;
+       }
+
+    table {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;}
+
+    body{margin-left: 10%;
+         margin-right: 10%;
+        }
+
+    .pagenum  { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */
+            /*  visibility: hidden;  */
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+<pre>
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Asparagus, its culture for home use and for
+market:, by F. M. Hexamer
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Asparagus, its culture for home use and for market:
+       a practical treatise on the planting, cultivation,
+              harvesting, marketing, and preserving of asparagus, with
+              notes on its history
+
+Author: F. M. Hexamer
+
+Release Date: March 14, 2010 [EBook #31643]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ASPARAGUS, ITS CULTURE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Tom Roch, Matt Whittaker and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images produced by Core Historical
+Literature in Agriculture (CHLA), Cornell University)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<div class="tnote"><p>Transcriber's Note: Obvious typos were fixed and use of hyphens was
+normalized throughout, but all other spelling and punctuation was
+retained as it appeared in the original text.</p></div>
+
+
+<h1>ASPARAGUS</h1>
+
+<h3>ITS CULTURE FOR HOME
+USE AND FOR MARKET</h3>
+
+<h3>A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE
+PLANTING, CULTIVATION, HARVESTING,
+MARKETING, AND PRESERVING
+OF ASPARAGUS, WITH
+NOTES ON ITS HISTORY AND
+BOTANY</h3>
+
+
+<h3>BY</h3>
+
+<h2>F. M.  HEXAMER</h2>
+
+
+<h4><i>ILLUSTRATED</i></h4>
+
+<h5>NEW YORK</h5>
+<h5>ORANGE JUDD COMPANY</h5>
+<h5>1914</h5>
+
+<h4><i>Printed in U. S. A.</i></h4>
+
+<p><a name="frontispiece"></a></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 724px;">
+<img src="images/i3.jpg" width="724" height="480" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">BEGINNING OF THE ASPARAGUS INDUSTRY IN CALIFORNIA</span>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii">[Pg iii]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2><a name="TABLE_OF_CONTENTS" id="TABLE_OF_CONTENTS"></a>TABLE OF CONTENTS</h2>
+
+
+<table>
+<tr><th></th><th></th><th><small>PAGE</small></th></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"></td><td><span class="smcap">Preface</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#PREFACE">vi</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">I.</td> <td>Historical Sketch</td>   <td align="right"><a href="#I">1</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">II.</td> <td>Botany</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#II">4</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">III.</td> <td>Cultural Varieties</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#III">17</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">IV.</td> <td>Seed Growing</td>   <td align="right"><a href="#IV">26</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">V.</td> <td>The Raising of Plants</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#V">30</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">VI.</td> <td>Selection of Plants</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#VI">38</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">VII.</td> <td>The Soil and Its Preparation</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#VII">43</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">VIII.</td> <td>Planting</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#VIII">49</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">IX.</td> <td>Cultivation</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#IX">61</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">X.</td> <td>Fertilizers and Fertilizing</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#X">72</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">XI.</td> <td>Harvesting and Marketing</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#XI">83</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">XII.</td> <td>Forcing</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#XII">100</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">XIII.</td> <td>Preserving Asparagus</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#XIII">112</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">XIV.</td> <td>Injurious Insects</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#XIV">126</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">XV.</td> <td>Fungus Diseases</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#XV">137</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right">XVI.</td> <td>Asparagus Culture in Different Localities</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#XVI">145</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"></td><td><span class="smcap">Index</span></td>  <td align="right"><a href="#INDEX">167</a></td></tr>
+</table>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv">[Pg iv]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2><a name="ILLUSTRATIONS" id="ILLUSTRATIONS"></a>ILLUSTRATIONS</h2>
+
+
+<table>
+<tr><td>Beginning of the Asparagus Industry in California</td>    <td align="right"><i><a href="#frontispiece">Frontispiece</a></i></td></tr>
+
+<tr><th></th><th align="right"><small>PAGE</small></th></tr>
+
+<tr><td>Asparagus Plumosus Nanus</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#Page_5">5</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Sprengeri</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_7">7</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Laricinus</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_9">9</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Racemosus, var. Tetragonus</td>   <td align="right"><a href="#Page_11">11</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Sarmentosus</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_12">12</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Crown, Roots, Buds, Spear</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_14">14</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Stem, Leaves, Flowers, Berries</td>   <td align="right"><a href="#Page_14">14</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Flowers</td>       <td align="right"><a href="#Page_15">15</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Palmetto Asparagus</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_21">21</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Pot-Grown Plant</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_37">37</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Horizontal Development of Roots</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_51">51</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Trenches Ready for Planting</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_57">57</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Hudson's Trencher</td>          <td align="right"><a href="#Page_58">58</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Root in Proper Position for Covering</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_59">59</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Cross-section of Trenches After Planting</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_60">60</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Field Ridged in Early Spring</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_67">67</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Leveling the Ridges After Cutting Season</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_69">69</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Fertilized Asparagus Plot</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_75">75</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Unfertilized Asparagus Plot</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_77">77</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Basket of Asparagus</td>        <td align="right"><a href="#Page_85">85</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Cutting and Picking Up Asparagus</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_86">86</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Horse Carrier for Ten Boxes</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_87">87</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Knives</td>         <td align="right"><a href="#Page_89">89</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>End and Side View of White Asparagus Bunches</td>  <td align="right"><a href="#Page_90">90</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Conover's Asparagus Buncher</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_91">91</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Watt's Asparagus Buncher</td>   <td align="right"><a href="#Page_92">92</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Rack and Knives Used in New England</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_93">93</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>At the Bunching Table</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_94">94</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Box of Giant Asparagus</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_97">97</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Southern Asparagus Crate</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_98">98</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Tunnel for Forcing Steam Through the Soil</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_107">107</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>A Long Island Asparagus Cannery</td>       <td align="right"><a href="#Page_113">113</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Sterilizing Tank</td>        <td align="right"><a href="#Page_115">115</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Sterilizing Room</td>        <td align="right"><a href="#Page_117">117</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Interior View of a California Asparagus Cannery</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_119">119</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Perspective View of a California Asparagus Cannery</td>    <td align="right"><a href="#Page_121">121</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Cannery in Asparagus Fields</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_123">123</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Common Asparagus Beetle</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_127">127</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Attacked by Beetles</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_129">129</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Spotted Ladybird</td>        <td align="right"><a href="#Page_131">131</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Twelve-spotted Asparagus Beetle</td>      <td align="right"><a href="#Page_134">134</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Stems Affected with Rust</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_138">138</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Portion of Rusted Asparagus Stems</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_139">139</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td>Asparagus Field on Bouldin Island</td>     <td align="right"><a href="#Page_161">161</a></td></tr>
+
+</table><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v">[Pg v]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_vi" id="Page_vi">[Pg vi]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="PREFACE" id="PREFACE"></a>PREFACE</h2>
+
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> cultivation of asparagus for home use as
+well as for market is so rapidly increasing,
+and reliable information pertaining to it is so
+frequently asked for, that a book on this subject
+is evidently needed. While all works on vegetable
+culture treat more or less extensively on its cultivation,
+so far there has been no book exclusively devoted
+to asparagus published in America. Asparagus is
+one of the earliest, most delicious, and surest products
+of the garden. Its position among other vegetables is
+unique, and when once planted it lasts a lifetime; it
+may be prepared for use in great variety, and may be
+canned or dried so as to be available at any time of
+the year; and yet in the great majority of farm gardens
+it is almost unknown. The principal reason for
+this neglect is based upon the erroneous idea that
+asparagus culture requires unusual skill, expense, and
+hard work. While this was true, in a measure, under
+old-time rules, modern methods have so simplified
+every detail connected with the cultivation of asparagus
+as to make it not necessarily more expensive and
+laborious than that of any other garden crop. To de<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[Pg vii]</a></span>scribe
+and make clear these improved methods, to
+demonstrate how easily and inexpensively an asparagus
+bed may be had in every garden, and how much pleasure,
+health, and profit may be derived from the crop
+have been the principal inducements to writing this
+book.</p>
+
+<p>In a popular treatise on so widely distributed a
+vegetable as asparagus, the cultivation of which had
+been brought to a high state of development many
+centuries before the Christian era, there is little opportunity
+for originality. All that the author has endeavored
+in this little volume has been to collect,
+arrange, classify, and systematize all obtainable facts,
+compare them with his own many years' experience in
+asparagus culture, and present his inferences in a plain
+and popular manner. Free use has been made of all
+available literature, especially helpful among which
+has been the Farmers' Bulletin No. 61 of the United
+States Department of Agriculture, by R. B. Handy;
+also bulletins of the Missouri, New York, Ohio, New
+Jersey, North Carolina, Maryland, Massachusetts, and
+South Carolina and other experiment stations; the
+files of <i>American Agriculturist; Gardener's Chronicle</i>,
+from which descriptions of several ornamental species
+by William Watson were condensed; Thome's "Flora
+von Deutschland;" "Eintraegliche Spargelzucht,"
+von Franz Goeschke; "Braunschweiger Spargelbuch,"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii">[Pg viii]</a></span>
+von Dr. Ed. Brinckmeier; "Parks and Gardens of
+Paris," by William Robinson; "Asparagus Culture,"
+by James Barnes and William Robinson; "Les Plantes
+Potageres," by Vilmorin-Andrieux; the works of
+Peter Henderson, Thomas Bridgeman, J. C. Loudon,
+and others.</p>
+
+<p>The author desires to express his grateful acknowledgments
+to Mr. Herbert Myrick, editor-in-chief of
+<i>American Agriculturist</i> and allied publications, for
+critically reading the whole manuscript; to Prof. W.
+G. Johnson, Charles V. Mapes, C. L. Allen, A. D.
+McNair, Superintendent Southern Pines Experimental
+Farm; Prof. W. F. Massey, Robert W. Nix, Robert
+Hickmott, Charles W. Prescott, Joel Borton, and all
+others who by their help, suggestions, and advice have
+aided him in the preparation of this work.</p>
+
+<p>
+<span class="smcap">F. M. Hexamer.</span><br />
+<br />
+<i>New York, 1901.</i><br />
+</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></p>
+<h1>ASPARAGUS</h1>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="I" id="I"></a>I</h2>
+
+<h3>HISTORICAL SKETCH</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> word "asparagus" is said to be of Persian
+origin. In middle Latin it appears as <i>sparagus</i>;
+Italian, <i>sparajio</i>; old French, <i>esperaje</i>;
+old English, <i>sperage</i>, <i>sparage</i>, <i>sperach</i>. The
+middle Latin form, <i>sparagus</i>, was in English changed
+into <i>sparagrass</i>, <i>sparrow-grass</i>, and sometimes simply
+<i>grass</i>, terms which were until recently in good literary
+use. In modern French it is <i>asperge</i>; German, <i>spargel</i>;
+Dutch, <i>aspergie</i>; Spanish, <i>esperrago</i>.</p>
+
+<p>The original habitat of the edible asparagus is
+not positively known, as it is now found naturalized
+throughout Europe, as well as in nearly all parts of
+the civilized world. How long the plant was used as
+a vegetable or as a medicine is likewise uncertain, but
+that it was known and highly prized by the Romans
+at least two centuries before the Christian era is historically
+recorded. According to Pliny, the Romans
+were already aware of the difference in quality, that
+grown near Ravenna being considered best, and was
+so large that three spears weighed one pound. The
+elder Cato has treated the subject with still greater
+care. He advises the sowing of the seed of asparagus
+in the beds of vine-dressers' reeds, which are culti<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span>vated
+in Italy for the support of the vines, and that
+they should be burned in the spring of the third year,
+as the ashes would act as a manure to the future crop.
+He also recommends that the plants be renewed after
+eight or nine years.</p>
+
+<p>The usual method of preparing asparagus pursued
+by the Roman cooks was to select the finest sprouts
+and to dry them. When wanted for the table they
+were put in hot water and cooked a few minutes. To
+this practice is owing one of Emperor Augustus's
+favorite sayings: "<i>Citius quam asparagi coquentur</i>"
+(Do it quicker than you can cook asparagus).</p>
+
+<p>While the indigenous asparagus has been used from
+time immemorial as a medicine by Gauls, Germans,
+and Britons, its cultivation and use as a vegetable was
+only made known to the people by the invading
+Roman armies. But in the early part of the sixteenth
+century it was mentioned among the cultivated garden
+vegetables, and Leonard Meager, in his "English
+Gardener," published in 1683, informs us that in
+his time the London market was well supplied with
+"forced" asparagus.</p>
+
+<p>The medicinal virtues formerly attributed to asparagus
+comprise a wide range. The roots, sprouts,
+and seeds were used as medicine. The fresh roots are
+diuretic, perhaps owing to the immediate crystalizable
+principle, "asparagine," which is said to be sedative
+in the dose of a few grains. A syrup made of the
+young shoots and an extract of the roots has been
+recommended as a sedative in heart affections, and the
+<i>species diuretica</i>&mdash;a mixture of asparagus, celery, parsley,
+holly, and sweet fennel&mdash;was a favorite preparation<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span>
+for use in dropsy and gravel. Among the Greeks and
+Romans it was one of the oldest and most valued medicines,
+and to which most absurd virtues were attributed.
+It was believed that if a person anointed
+himself with a liniment made of asparagus and oil
+the bees would not approach or sting him. It was
+also believed that if the root be put on a tooth which
+aches violently it causes it to come out without pain.
+The therapeutic virtues of asparagus seem to have
+been held in almost as high esteem by the ancients as
+those of ginseng are esteemed by the Chinese to this
+day.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="II" id="II"></a>II</h2>
+
+<h3>BOTANY</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> genus Asparagus belongs to the Lily Family.
+It comprises about one hundred and fifty
+species, and these are spread through the
+temperate and tropical regions of the Old
+World. One-half of these species are indigenous to
+South Africa, and it is from this region that the
+most ornamental of the greenhouse species have been
+obtained.</p>
+
+<p>All the species are perennial, with generally fleshy
+roots or tubers. The stems are annual in some,
+perennial in others, most of them being spiny, climbing
+shrubs, growing to a length of from five to twenty or
+even fifty feet. The true leaves are usually changed
+into spines, which are situated at the base of the
+branches and are often stout and woody. The false
+leaves, termed cladodia, are the linear or hair-like
+organs which are popularly called leaves; they are in
+reality modified branches. These cladodia are nearly
+always arranged in clusters at intervals along the
+branches, and the flowers generally spring from their
+axils. They usually fall off the hardy species in
+winter, and they are easily affected by unfavorable
+conditions in all the species. Most of them flower and
+fruit freely under cultivation, so that seeds are available
+for propagation.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 706px;">
+<img src="images/i14.jpg" width="706" height="469" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 2&mdash;ASPARAGUS PLUMOSUS NANUS</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>ORNAMENTAL SPECIES</h4>
+
+<p><i>A. medeoloides</i> (<i>Myrsiphyllum asparagoides</i>), popularly
+known as Smilax.&mdash;For many years this has been,
+and is yet, one of the most commonly grown and the
+most serviceable of the plants used by florists as
+"green." It is readily grown from seed in the greenhouse.
+While a few other species of asparagus have
+been close rivals, it is yet unexcelled for many purposes
+of floral decorations.</p>
+
+<p><i>A. plumosus</i> (the plumy asparagus).&mdash;A very
+graceful climbing plant which for finer decoration has
+largely taken the place of smilax, its foliage being finer
+than that of the most delicate ferns, and will last for
+weeks after being cut. The whole plant is of a
+bright, cheerful green. Its branches spread horizontally,
+and branch again in such a manner as to form a
+flat, frond-like arrangement, the leaves being very
+numerous, in clusters of about a dozen, bright green,
+and one-half inch long. A native of South Africa,
+where it climbs over bushes and branches in moist
+situations. There are several named varieties of this,
+most of which have originated in gardens. The most
+distinct are <i>A. tenuissimus</i> and <i>A. plumosus nanus</i>, the
+fern-like appearance of which is seen in Fig. 2.</p>
+
+<p><i>A. Sprengeri.</i>&mdash;This is one of the best and most
+attractive house plants of recent introduction. It is
+of graceful form and habit when grown as a pot plant,
+but it is equally well suited for planting in hanging
+baskets. Its fronds are frequently four feet long, of a
+rich shade of green, and very useful for cutting, retaining
+their freshness for weeks after being cut. As a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span> house plant it has exceeded expectations, as it stands
+dry atmosphere better than the older kinds of ornamental
+asparagus, and is not particular as to any
+special position. It delights in a well-enriched soil,
+rather light in composition, with plenty of drainage,
+and grows very rapidly. It is decidedly pretty when
+in bloom, its little flowers being pure white on short
+racemes, and the anthers are of a bright orange color.
+Fig. 3 gives a good idea of its graceful habit.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 462px;">
+<img src="images/i16.jpg" width="462" height="600" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 3&mdash;ASPARAGUS SPRENGERI</span>
+</div>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span></p>
+
+<p><i>A. falcatus.</i>&mdash;One of the most striking twining
+plants for a large, temperate house. At the Kew
+Gardens, in London, England, is an enormous specimen
+of this species which is trained against the northern
+staircase, where it has formed a perfect thicket
+two yards through and twenty-five feet high, of long,
+rope-like, intertwining, spinous, fawn-colored stems,
+some of them fully fifty feet long, and clothed with
+wiry, woody branches, bearing whorls of leaves from
+two to three inches long and nearly one-fourth of an
+inch wide, falcate and bright green. The young stems
+are thick and succulent and gray-green, mottled with
+brown. For large conservatories, and particularly in
+moist, shady corners, where ordinary climbers will
+not thrive, this is an ideal plant. It is a native of
+the tropics of Asia and Africa, as well as the Cape.</p>
+
+<p><i>A. laricinus</i> (Fig. 4).&mdash;This handsome species
+has been in the Kew collection at least twenty years.
+It is grown in the succulent house, where, from a
+vigorous root system, it sends up annual stout succulent
+shoots, which grow to a length of about twelve
+feet, and when fully developed are decidedly orna<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span>mental. The stems are perennial, terete, dark brown,
+woody, one-half inch in diameter at the base, very
+spinous, freely branched, and branches zigzag and
+gray, the leaves in clusters one-fourth inch apart, hair-like,
+one and one-half inches long, bright green, persistent.
+Flowers axillary, many in a cluster, small,
+campanulate, white. Berries globose, dull red, one
+seeded, one-sixth of an inch in diameter. Common
+in various parts of South Africa. It is an excellent
+pillar plant.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 389px;">
+<img src="images/i18.jpg" width="389" height="600" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 4&mdash;ASPARAGUS LARICINUS</span>
+</div>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span></p>
+
+<p><i>A. racemosus.</i>&mdash;This species is spread throughout
+the tropics of Africa and Asia; the Cape form of it is
+represented at Kew under the name of variety <i>tetragonus</i>,
+as shown in Fig. 5. This is a vigorous grower,
+with woody stems nine feet long, prickly at the base,
+fawn colored, freely branching above, each branch
+having at its base a sharp spine three-quarters of an
+inch long. The leaves are of a gray-green hue, four-angled,
+one-quarter of an inch long. Flowers in
+racemes two inches long, whitish, very fragrant. Berry
+red, globose, pulpy, one-seeded. An excellent climber
+for rafters, pillars, etc., growing vigorously under
+ordinary treatment. Its root system is a dense mass
+of tubers.</p>
+
+<p><i>A. sarmentosus</i> (Fig. 6).&mdash;An elegant evergreen
+species from South Africa, where it grows freely in
+moist situations, forming dense, brushy stems with short
+prickles, and studded with white, starry, fragrant flowers,
+which are followed with bright scarlet, pea-like
+berries; has stems four feet high, freely branched and
+clothed with dark green flat leaves three inches long.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> It is also grown in pots and baskets for the Cape-house,
+and when in flower it is greatly admired.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 327px;">
+<img src="images/i20.jpg" width="327" height="500" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 5&mdash;ASPARAGUS RACEMOSUS, VAR. TETRAGONUS</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 325px;">
+<img src="images/i21.jpg" width="325" height="550" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 6&mdash;ASPARAGUS SARMENTOSUS</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span></p>
+
+<p><i>A. Broussoneti.</i>&mdash;A beautiful hardy perennial
+climber from the Canary Islands, growing ten feet
+high; feathery foliage and scarlet berries. In the
+autumn this is very ornamental.</p>
+
+<p>Among the most noteworthy of other ornamental
+species are: <i>A. Aethiopicus</i>, <i>Africanus</i>, <i>Asiaticus</i>, <i>Cooperi</i>,
+<i>crispus</i>, <i>declinatus</i>, <i>decumbens</i>, <i>lucidus</i>, <i>retrofractus</i>,
+<i>scandens</i>, <i>tenuifolius</i>, <i>trichophyllus</i>, <i>umbellatus</i>,
+<i>verticillatus</i>, <i>virgatus</i>, etc., etc.</p>
+
+
+<h4>EDIBLE SPECIES</h4>
+
+<p><i>Asparagus officinalis.</i>&mdash;While the young sprouts of
+a few other species may be used as food, this is the
+only one which has found a permanent place in cultivation.
+It is a branching, herbaceous plant, reaching
+a hight of from three to seven feet; the filiform
+branchlets, three to seven inches long, less than one-quarter
+inch thick, are mostly clustered in the axils of
+minute scales. The rootstock, or "crown," is perennial,
+and makes a new growth each year of from one
+to three inches, extending horizontally, and generally
+in a straight line. It may propagate from both ends,
+or from only one, but in either case the older part of
+root stalk becomes unproductive and finally dies.
+Fig. 7 shows the new portion of the rootstock crowned
+with buds for the production of new shoots, while the
+older portion bears the scars and dead scales of previous
+growths. From the sides and the lower part of
+the rootstock numerous cylindrical, fleshy roots start<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span> and extend several feet horizontally, but do not penetrate
+the soil deeply.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 351px;">
+<img src="images/i23.jpg" width="351" height="550" alt="" title="" />
+<table><tr><td valign="top"><span class="caption">FIG. 7&mdash;ASPARAGUS CROWN,
+ROOTS, BUDS, AND
+SPEAR</span></td> <td><span class="caption">FIG. 8&mdash;ASPARAGUS STEM,
+LEAVES, FLOWERS,
+AND BERRIES</span></td></tr></table>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span>
+In the course of time the older
+roots become hollow and inactive without becoming
+detached from the rootstock. The young root formation
+always takes place a little above the old roots,
+which circumstance explains why the asparagus plants
+gradually rise above the original level, thus necessitating
+the annual hilling up or the covering of the
+crowns with additional soil.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 419px;">
+<img src="images/i24.jpg" width="419" height="228" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="left"><b>FIG. 9 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
+&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
+&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;FIG. 10
+&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
+&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
+&nbsp;FIG. 11</b></span>
+</div>
+
+<p>The asparagus flowers are mostly solitary at the
+nodes, of greenish-yellow color, drooping or filiform,
+jointed peduncles; perianth, six-parted, campanulate,
+as seen in Fig. 8. Anthers, introrse; style, short;
+stigma, three-lobed; berry, red, spherical, three-celled;
+cells, two-seeded. While the flowers are generally
+di&oelig;cious&mdash;staminate and pistillate flowers being borne
+on different plants&mdash;there appear also hermaphrodite
+flowers, having both pistils and fully developed stamens
+in the same flower. Fig. 9 shows a pistillate,
+Fig. 10 a staminate, and Fig. 11 a hermaphrodite or
+bisexual flower.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>In one case, at least, the author has also observed
+that a plant which has been barren of seed at first
+changed into a seed-bearing plant the following year.
+Similar changes in the sexuality of strawberries have
+been observed under certain conditions. These facts
+may explain, in a measure, the difficulty experienced
+in raising permanently sterile asparagus plants.</p>
+
+<p><i>Asparagus acutifolius.</i>&mdash;A native of Southern
+Europe and Northern Africa. It has a fleshy rootstock,
+hard, wiry, brown stems, five to seven feet high,
+with rigid branches three to six inches long, thickly
+closed, with tufts of gray-green, hair-like, rigid leaves,
+which in exposed situations are almost spinous. Flowers
+yellow, a quarter of an inch in diameter, fragrant.
+The young sprouts are tender, and, when cooked, of
+a peculiar aromatic flavor. In their native home they
+are used like the cultivated kind.</p>
+
+<p><i>A. aphyllus.</i>&mdash;Indigenous to Greece, where the
+young shoots are commonly used as food, especially
+during Lent.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="III" id="III"></a>III</h2>
+
+<h3>CULTURAL VARIETIES</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">lthough</span> but one species of edible asparagus
+has found its way into general cultivation,
+many varieties and strains are recognized.</p>
+
+<p>Up to within a comparatively recent period
+it was thought that there existed only one distinct
+kind, or variety, of asparagus. As late as 1869 so keen
+an observer as Peter Henderson believed that "the
+asparagus of our gardens is confined to only one
+variety, and the so-called giant can be made gigantic
+or otherwise, just as we will it, and the purple top
+variety will become a green top whenever the composition
+of the soil is not of the kind to develop the
+purple, and <i>vice versa</i>. All practical gardeners know
+how different soils and climates change the appearance
+of the same variety. Seeds of cabbage taken
+from the same bag and sown at the same time, but
+planted out in soils of light sandy loam, heavy clayey
+loam, and peat or leaf-mold, will show such marked
+differences when at maturity as easily to be pronounced
+different sorts. This, no doubt, is the reason
+why the multitude of varieties of all vegetables, when
+planted side by side to test them, are so wonderfully
+reduced in number."</p>
+
+<p>But after inspecting an acre of ordinary asparagus
+and an acre of Abraham Van Siclen's Colossal&mdash;which
+was afterward introduced as Conover's Colossal&mdash;at<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>
+Jamaica, L. I., N. Y., Mr. Henderson wrote: "A
+thorough inspection of the roots of each lot proved
+that they were of the same age when planted. The
+soil was next examined, and found to be as near the
+same as could be, yet these two beds of asparagus
+showed a difference that no longer left me a shadow
+of a doubt of their being entirely different varieties."</p>
+
+<p>In but few vegetables do the conditions of soil,
+locality, mode of cultivation, and other circumstances
+affect the quality, size, and appearance as much as in
+asparagus. It is therefore difficult to distinguish
+fixed and permanent varieties from mere local strains
+and forms secured by selection.</p>
+
+<p>Through natural and artificial selection, through
+use of seed of strong shoots from superior roots, there
+has been improvement in the size and yield of asparagus;
+from the peculiar adaptability of soil and climate,
+and the effect of manure and high cultivation, there
+have appeared certain variations in the product of different
+beds which have led to the bestowing of a new
+name; but the effect of this care and these favorable
+conditions is not sufficiently strong to produce distinct
+varieties with fixed characteristics. Therefore, with
+correct and rational treatment of the plant from the
+time of seeding through all the stages of culture, satisfactory
+results may be reached with almost any of the
+varieties on the market.</p>
+
+
+<h4>AMERICAN VARIETIES</h4>
+
+<p><i>Barr's Mammoth</i> (Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth).&mdash;Originated
+with Crawford Barr, a prominent market
+gardener of Pennsylvania. It is one of the earliest<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span>
+varieties, is very productive, and grows to the largest
+size. In Philadelphia it is much sought after, and brings
+the highest prices.</p>
+
+<p><i>Conover's Colossal</i> (Van Siclen's Colossal).&mdash;Originated
+with Abraham Van Siclen, of Long Island, N. Y.,
+and was introduced by S. B. Conover, a commision
+merchant of West Washington Market, New York
+City, some thirty years ago. The superiority of this
+variety over all other kinds known at that time made
+it soon supplant all other varieties, and it is to this day
+better and more favorably known than any other sort.</p>
+
+<p><i>Columbian Mammoth White.</i>&mdash;This was introduced
+by D. M. Ferry &amp; Co., in 1893. The immense shoots
+are clear white, and, in favorable weather, remain so
+until three or four inches above the surface, without
+earthing up or any other artificial blanching. The
+crown or bud of the young stalk is considerably smaller
+than the part just below it, thus further distinguishing
+the variety. All but a very few of the seedlings will
+produce clear white shoots, and the green ones can be
+readily distinguished and rejected when planting the
+permanent bed.</p>
+
+<p><i>Donald's Elmira.</i>&mdash;Originated by A. Donald,
+Elmira, N. Y., and was first introduced by Johnson &amp;
+Stokes, Philadelphia, Pa. This is characterized by
+the delicate green color of its stems, different from any
+other kind. Its stalks are very tender and succulent,
+while its size is all that can be desired.</p>
+
+<p><i>Eclipse</i> (Dreer's Eclipse).&mdash;A light green mammoth
+strain of excellent quality and attractive appearance.
+The stalks, not rarely, measure two inches in diameter,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span>
+and even when twelve to fifteen inches long are perfectly
+tender and of a delicate light green color.</p>
+
+<p><i>Hub.</i>&mdash;Originated in New Hampshire several years
+ago, and was introduced by Joseph Breck &amp; Sons,
+Boston, Mass. Although not generally catalogued, it
+is a distinct and valuable variety that has made a
+decided record for itself in the tests of the Kansas Experiment
+Station, where its yield, by weight, was
+greater than any other.</p>
+
+<p><i>Mammoth.</i>&mdash;This is a somewhat indefinite term, as
+almost any prominent seedsman and grower who has a
+particularly good and large strain of asparagus suffixes
+it to his own name. Among the best known of these
+are Vick's Mammoth, Maule's Mammoth, Prescott's
+Mammoth, etc.</p>
+
+<p><i>Moore's Cross-bred.</i>&mdash;This originated with J. B.
+Moore, who for twenty years was awarded the first
+prize on asparagus at the exhibitions of the Massachusetts
+Horticultural Society, at one of which the
+weight of twelve stalks was 4 pounds 6-<sup>1</sup>/<sub>4</sub> ounces. It
+retains the head close until the stalks are quite long,
+and is of uniform color, while for tenderness and
+eating quality it is excelled by none. It is particularly
+recommended for cultivation in New England.</p>
+
+<p><i>Palmetto.</i>&mdash;A variety of Southern origin, but suitable
+for the North also. At the South it is somewhat
+earlier than Conover's Colossal, but its great advantage
+is that it is almost destitute of, what dealers call, culls,
+nearly all shoots being of a uniform and large size.
+The bunch from which the engraving (Fig. 12) was
+made measured twenty-two inches in circumference,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span>
+and contained forty-eight stalks of nine inches in
+length and remarkably uniform in size. It was taken
+on March 30th from a field of fifty acres, near
+Charleston, S. C. But the greatest point in its favor
+is its comparative security from the attacks of rust.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 313px;">
+<img src="images/i30.jpg" width="313" height="368" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 12&mdash;BUNCH OF PALMETTO ASPARAGUS</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Purple Top</i> and <i>Green Top</i>.&mdash;These were the only
+distinct sorts in cultivation before the introduction of
+Conover's Colossal, but are now almost unknown to
+the trade and cultivators.</p>
+
+
+<h4>EUROPEAN VARIETIES</h4>
+
+<p>The named varieties of asparagus of European
+origin are very numerous, as almost every locality in
+which asparagus is cultivated extensively and successfully
+has given its name to a strain more or less dis<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span>tinct.
+Generally these varieties differ only in a single
+characteristic, and these differences, for the most part,
+are so little that they are lost when grown under
+different climatic and soil conditions. The best-informed
+authorities recognize three cultivated varieties,
+which have distinct commercial characteristics and
+whose seeds reproduce them in the seedlings.</p>
+
+<p><i>German Giant.</i>&mdash;This variety embraces most of the
+German and French sorts&mdash;the Giant Dutch Purple,
+Ulm Giant, Giant Brunswick, Large Erfurt, Early
+Darmstadt, and many others.</p>
+
+<p><i>Argenteuil.</i>&mdash;Of this three sub-varieties are recognized&mdash;the
+early, intermediate, and late; and these are
+the kinds grown almost exclusively in the vicinity of
+Paris, France, where its culture and improvement have
+steadily developed for centuries. Under good culture
+the late Argenteuil produces stalks from three to six
+inches in circumference, at eight inches below the tips.</p>
+
+<p><i>Yellow Burgundy.</i>&mdash;The distinctive characteristic
+of this variety is that the young shoots below the surface
+of the soil are light yellow instead of white to tips,
+being greenish-yellow. It is also claimed to be more
+rust-resisting than other European sorts.</p>
+
+
+<h4>VARIETY TESTS</h4>
+
+<p>To determine the comparative effects of manuring
+on different varieties of asparagus, and also their comparative
+earliness, Prof. S. C. Mason and his assistant,
+W. L. Hall, of the Kansas Experiment Station, have
+made some interesting and instructive experiments,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span>
+the results of which are given in Bulletin 70, as follows:</p>
+
+<p>"The seed of ten varieties of asparagus was planted.
+A good stand was secured, and the young plants were
+cultivated during the summer in the usual way.
+Early the following spring the entire patch was dug
+up and the roots heeled in. The same ground was
+then prepared for a permanent plantation, by plowing
+it deeply and marking it with furrows four feet apart.
+These furrows were made as deep as possible, but
+after the loose soil had run back into them they were
+on the bottom hardly six inches below the level of the
+ground. In these furrows the roots of the seedlings
+were planted (240 feet of row for each variety),
+making altogether a patch of 35.25 square rods, or a
+little more than one-fifth of an acre (.22 of an acre).
+The plants were set about a foot apart in the row, and
+covered only an inch or two above the crown, leaving
+along the rows depressions some two inches deep,
+which were gradually filled up during the summer, by
+the many cultivations. During the winter the stalks
+were cleared off, but nothing was done with the patch
+in the spring more than to cut and note the earliest
+shoots, the first cutting of which was made April 13th.
+The patch was cultivated during summer as before,
+except that the size of the plants interfered somewhat&mdash;many
+of the plants growing six feet high and correspondingly
+broad. During the fall the north half
+of each variety was manured, at the rate of fifty loads
+per acre, with strong barnyard manure, and in the
+spring the effect was noted.</p>
+
+<p>"The following table gives results as shown by the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>
+records of ten cuttings made the spring of 1897, from
+April 20th to May 19th, inclusive; varieties averaged
+in order of yield:</p>
+
+<table width="75%">
+<tr><th><small>VARIETIES</small></th>      <th></th>  <th><small>YIELDS IN POUNDS</small></th></tr>
+<tr><th>240 feet of row in each, one-half manured and<br /> one-half unmanured</th>    <th><i>Manured</i></th> <th><i>Unmanured</i></th> <th><i>Total</i></th></tr>
+
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">1 Hub</td>    <td>31</td>    <td>27</td>    <td>58</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">2 Donald's Elmira</td>        <td>29</td>    <td>29</td>    <td>58</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">3 Vick's New Mammoth</td>        <td>26</td>    <td>20</td>    <td>47</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">4 Palmetto</td>       <td>20</td>    <td>18</td>    <td>39</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">5 Moore's Cross-bred</td>         <td>19</td>    <td>15</td>    <td>35</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">6 Conover's Colossal</td>         <td>16</td>    <td>17</td>    <td>33</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">7 Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth</td>     <td>17</td>    <td>16</td>    <td>33</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">8 Columbian Mammoth White</td>        <td>18</td>    <td>13</td>    <td>32</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">9 Dreer's Eclipse</td>        <td>16</td>    <td>14</td>    <td>30</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">10 Giant Purple Top</td>      <td>15</td>        <td>14</td>       <td>29</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left"><b>Totals</b></td>        <td><b>207</b></td>    <td><b>183</b></td>    <td><b>394</b></td></tr>
+
+</table>
+
+<p>"Of the two heaviest yielding varieties, Hub and
+Donald's Elmira, the last named is the earliest, though
+Hub is also quite early. As nearly as can be judged
+from the notes, the ten varieties rank for earliness
+about as follows, though all kinds yielded something
+at the first cutting:</p>
+
+<p>
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{10 Giant Purple Top.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{ 7 Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{ 2 Donald's Elmira.</span><br />
+<br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{ 6 Conover's Colossal.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{ 3 Vick's New Mammoth.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{ 1 The Hub.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.0em;">{ 9 Dreer's Eclipse.</span><br />
+<br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.75em;">4 Palmetto.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.75em;">5 Moore's Cross-bred.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 3.75em;">8 Columbian Mammoth White.</span><br />
+</p>
+
+<p>"Those included within a brace have little or no difference
+of season. The numbers mark their rank<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span>
+with regard to yield, 1 being the highest. The
+ground occupied by this plantation is a rather low
+bottom-land, being built up of a clay silt from the
+former overflow of two creeks, mixed with vegetable
+mold. It is rather too compact for the best growth of
+asparagus, as it contains very little sand."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="IV" id="IV"></a>IV</h2>
+
+<h3>SEED GROWING</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> asparagus plant begins to produce seed when
+two years old. When fully developed the
+stalks are from five to six feet in hight, with
+numerous branches upon which are produced
+a profusion of bright scarlet berries, containing from
+three to six seeds each. It is not advisable, however,
+to harvest seed from plants less than four years
+old.</p>
+
+<p>To save the seed the stalks are cut close to the
+ground as soon as the berries are ripe, which may be
+known by their changing color, from green to scarlet,
+and softening somewhat. The entire stalks are then
+cut off, tied in bundles, and hung up in a dry place
+safe from the attacks of birds, some kinds of which are
+very fond of this seed. After the berries are fully
+dried they are stripped off by hand, or thrashed upon
+a cloth or floor, and separated from the chaff. They
+are then soaked in water for a day or two to soften the
+skin and pulp of the berries, after which they are
+rubbed between the hands, or mashed with a wooden
+pounder, to break the outer shells. The separation of
+the pulp from the seed is accomplished by washing.
+When placed in water the seeds will settle with the
+pulp and the shells will readily pass away in pouring
+off the water. To clean the seeds thoroughly the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span>
+washing has to be repeated three or four times. It is
+then spread on boards or trays to dry in the sun
+and wind. After the first day it should be removed
+from the sun, but exposed to the air in a dry loft,
+spread thin for ten days or more. When thoroughly
+dried the seed is stored in linen or paper bags until
+needed.</p>
+
+<p>When cheapness of the seed is the main consideration
+such promiscuous harvesting may be permissible,
+but when only the best is desired careful selection and
+preparation becomes necessary. Even if the parent
+plants are of choice types, not all the seeds from them
+are equally good. The seed, for instance, which has
+been gathered from a stool which has flowered side by
+side with an inferior kind, and at the same time, may
+be worthless, because it has been fertilized badly.
+Then the last heads generally yield nothing but doubtful
+seed which seldom reproduces the proper type. The
+seeds which grow at the end of the shoots also, as well
+as those produced by the upper and lower extremities
+of the stem, have the same defect.</p>
+
+<p>In order to insure the production of the very best
+asparagus seed a sufficient number of pistillate or seed-bearing
+plants, which produce the strongest and best
+spears, should be selected and marked so that they may
+be distinguished the following spring when the shoots
+appear. These clumps should be close together and
+near some staminate or male plants which have to be
+marked likewise, as without their presence fertile seed
+can not be produced. The number of the male to the
+female plants should be about one to four or five. The
+following spring all the sprouts of the selected male<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span>
+plants are allowed to grow without cutting any. On
+each hill of the female plants the two strongest and
+earliest stalks are allowed to grow, cutting the later
+appearing spears with the others for market or home
+use. Thus these early stalks of both male and female
+plants bloom together before any other stalks, and
+the blooms on the female plants will be fertilized with
+the pollen of the selected male plants. This last is of
+prime importance, for on proper fertilization depends
+the purity of the seed as well as the vigor of the
+resultant plant. Not all seed of even a good plant
+properly fertilized should be used for reproduction, as
+of the seeds gathered from any plant some will be
+better than others. Only the largest, plumpest, and
+best matured seeds should be used, for by saving these
+the most nearly typical plants of the sort will be most
+certainly produced. The selection of the best seed
+from typical plants is as essential to success as are good
+soil, thorough cultivation, and heavy manuring.</p>
+
+<p>The best seeds are produced from the lower part of
+the stalk, hence it is well to top the plant after the seed
+is well set, taking off about ten inches, and to remove
+the berries from the upper branches, that all the
+strength may go to the full development of the more
+desirable berries. If, after this has been done, there is
+more than sufficient seed for the purpose desired, a
+second discrimination can be made between the seed of
+plants which produce numerous berries and those
+which are shy bearers, the latter being desirable, as
+this indicates a tendency in the plant to produce stalk
+rather than seed, and it is as a stalk producer that
+asparagus is valuable.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Harvesting, cleaning, and preserving the seed is, of
+course, to be done carefully; the separation of the
+heavy and the light seeds can be accomplished by
+means of water, while the larger can be selected from
+the resultant mass by the use of a properly meshed
+sieve.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="V" id="V"></a>V</h2>
+
+<h3>THE RAISING OF PLANTS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">sparagus</span> can be propagated by division of
+the roots, but this method gives so unsatisfactory
+results that it is rarely practiced.
+Raising the plants from seed is therefore the
+only method worth considering. The seed may be
+sown either in the fall or spring. But far more important
+than the time for sowing is the quality of the
+seed. While asparagus seed retains its vitality for
+two or more years, it is not safe to use seed older than
+one year. Fresh seed may be recognized by its glossy
+black color and uniform smooth surface, while old seed
+has a smutty gray color and its surface is generally
+rough and wrinkled. Yet even with this as a guide
+it is not easy to distinguish bad from good seed, and
+still more difficult, if not impossible, is it to distinguish
+the seed of different varieties. It is therefore advisable
+to procure seed only from dealers of undoubted
+reliability and pay a fair price for it rather than to
+accept poor seed as a gift. A uniformity of the individual
+plants in the asparagus bed or field is a matter
+of prime importance; only large, fully developed seeds
+should be used, screening out and rejecting all small
+and inferior ones.</p>
+
+<p>In northern latitudes spring sowing is preferable
+to fall sowing. The ground of the seed-bed should
+be well drained and fairly retentive of moisture. As<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span>
+soon as the soil admits of working it should be well
+pulverized and enriched with decomposed manure. On
+a small scale a spading-fork is the best implement for
+preparing soil for nursery rows of asparagus plants.</p>
+
+<p>Straight lines should be marked about fifteen inches
+apart and drills made about an inch deep when the
+sowing is done very early in the season, and one-half
+to one inch deeper when the sowing is done later.
+In these drills the seed should be dropped two or three
+inches apart. The covering may be made with a hoe,
+after which the soil should be well pressed down with
+the foot. As the seed is slow to germinate&mdash;in from
+four to six weeks, according to weather conditions&mdash;it
+is well to sow with it a few radish seeds, which
+will soon appear and mark the lines of the drills, so
+that cultivation may begin at once. Soaking the seed
+in luke-warm water for twenty-four hours before sowing
+will hasten its germination.</p>
+
+<p>The cultivation of the young plants consists in
+keeping the soil about them light, and free from grass
+and weeds. Most of this work can be done with a garden
+cultivator, or a hoe and rake or prong hoe, but
+some hand weeding is generally necessary in addition.
+Strict attention to this will save a year in time, for if
+the seed-bed has been neglected, it will take two years
+to get the plants as large as they should be in one year
+if they had been properly cared for. In consequence
+of this very frequent neglect of proper cultivation of
+the seed-bed, it is a common impression that the plants
+must be two years old before transplanting. One
+pound of seed will produce about 10,000 plants, but as
+many of these will have to be thinned out and poor<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span>
+ones rejected, it is not safe to count upon more than
+one-half of this number of good plants. The number
+of plants required for an acre varies according to the
+manner of planting. If planted in rows three feet
+apart and two feet in the rows, it will require 7,260
+plants per acre; if planted three by four, 3,630 per acre.</p>
+
+
+<h4>SOWING THE SEED WHERE THE PLANTS ARE TO
+REMAIN</h4>
+
+<p>Growing asparagus without transplanting is gradually
+finding many advocates among those who raise
+only the green article. It is not only a cheaper but
+in some respects a better method than the raising of
+the plants in a special seed-bed, from which they are
+transplanted after a year or two. "The plan is very
+simple," wrote Peter Henderson in <i>American Agriculturist</i>,
+"and can be followed by any one having even a
+slight knowledge of farming or gardening work. In the
+fall prepare the land by manuring, deep plowing, and
+harrowing, making it as level and smooth as possible for
+the reception of the seed. Strike out lines three feet
+apart and about two to three inches deep, in which
+sow the seed by hand or seed-drill, as is most convenient,
+using from five to seven pounds of seed to
+each acre. After sowing, and before covering, tread
+down the seed in the rows with the feet evenly; then
+draw the back of the rake lengthwise over the rows,
+after which roll the whole surface.</p>
+
+<p>"As soon as the land is dry and fit to work in the
+spring, the young plants of asparagus will start
+through the ground, sufficient to define the rows. At
+once begin to cultivate with hand or horse cultivator,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span>
+and stir the ground so as to destroy the embryo weeds,
+breaking the soil in the rows between the plants with
+the fingers or hand weeder for the same purpose.
+This must be repeated at intervals of two or three
+weeks during the summer, as the success of this plan
+is entirely dependent on keeping down the weeds,
+which, if allowed to grow, would soon smother the
+asparagus plants, that, for the first season of their
+growth, are weaker than most weeds. In two or three
+months after starting, the asparagus will have attained
+ten or twelve inches in hight, and it must now
+be thinned out, so that the plants stand nine inches
+apart in the rows. By fall they will be from two to
+three feet in hight and, if the directions for culture
+have been faithfully followed, strong and vigorous.</p>
+
+<p>"When the stems die down (but not before) cut
+them off close to the ground, and cover the lines for
+five or six inches on each side with two or three inches
+of rough manure. The following spring renew cultivation,
+and keep down the weeds the second year exactly
+as was done during the first, and so on to the
+spring of the fourth year, when a crop will be produced
+that will well reward all the labor that has been
+expended. Sometimes, if the land is particularly suitable,
+a marketable crop may be secured the third year,
+but as a rule it will be better to wait until the fourth
+year before cutting much, as this would weaken the
+plants. To compensate for the loss of a year's time
+in thus growing asparagus from seed, cabbage, lettuce,
+onions, beets, spinach or similar crops that will be
+marketable before the asparagus has grown high
+enough to interfere with them, may be planted be<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span>tween
+the rows of asparagus the first year of its
+growth with but little injury to it."</p>
+
+
+<h4>GOOD CROPS TWO YEARS FROM SEED</h4>
+
+<p>In answer to the many inquiries as to how asparagus
+can be grown to weigh two and three-fourths pounds
+per bunch of twenty-six stalks from plants two years
+old from seed, as exhibited at a recent American Institute
+spring exhibition, George M. Hay, of Connecticut,
+writes in <i>American Gardening</i> as follows:</p>
+
+<p>"Select a piece of ground where the soil is light,
+but of a good depth, and plow thoroughly. About the
+1st of May mark off the rows three or four feet apart&mdash;for
+myself I prefer the latter distance as giving
+plenty of room for cultivation. Run a two-horse plow
+over the same furrow two or three times and you will
+have a depth of from fourteen to eighteen inches.</p>
+
+<p>"Trenches having been all made, we come to the
+most important part&mdash;namely, manuring. In order to
+give the young plants a good start after germination
+we have to use liberal quantities of well-rotted stable
+manure, and in this the young plants make roots that
+in a short time are surprising. I use a one-horse load
+of manure to every seventy-five feet of drill, tramping
+it well down, and with a rake draw from each side of
+the trench soil to cover the manure to a depth of from
+two to three inches. The surface is raked level, and
+with the end of a rake or hoe a furrow one inch
+deep is drawn.</p>
+
+<p>"We are now ready for the seed, which should
+have been soaked in tepid water for at least twenty-four
+hours. This will insure the immediate starting<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span>
+of the seed when the soil is moist and has not had a
+chance to dry out. If unsoaked seed is used and we
+have a dry spell for two or three weeks, the seed will be
+almost useless by the time it receives moisture enough
+to start.</p>
+
+<p>"When the asparagus is two or three inches high
+thin out to one foot apart, being very careful not to
+disturb the plants left. A piece of a stick cut to the
+shape of a table-knife is an ideal tool for thinning out
+the young plants. It will be necessary to weed the
+rows by hand, while the plants are very small, for a
+distance of six inches on each side, as the cultivator,
+if run too close, will cover up the young plants. Keep
+the horse cultivator at work as often as possible to
+maintain moisture for the young roots.</p>
+
+<p>"By fall you will be surprised to learn how far the
+young roots have traveled and the crowns prepared for
+next year's crop. Cover the rows with stable manure
+for the winter, and in spring give a dressing of one
+pound of nitrate of soda to one hundred feet of drill,
+and you will be well repaid for the extra labor and
+outlay by being able to cut asparagus of extra size in
+two years from the time of sowing the seed, doing
+away with the transplanting of two-year-old roots,
+and then waiting two more years before the first crop
+can be cut."</p>
+
+<p>The principal objection which has been made against
+this system of not transplanting is that it does not
+admit of a careful choice of plants, as the plants must
+be kept in the places where sown, while in the transplanting
+method we need use only the choicest plants;
+then, if two or three seeds come up close together, it<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span>
+is very difficult to thin them out, and if left they will
+produce an inferior growth.</p>
+
+
+<h4>POT-GROWN ASPARAGUS PLANTS</h4>
+
+<p>In the tests made at the Missouri Experiment
+Station, Prof. J. C. Whitten found that it is much
+better to plant the seeds in six inches of rich, sandy
+soil in the greenhouse or hotbed, in February or early
+March, than to wait two or three months for outdoor
+planting. Professor Whitten advises to "sow liberally,
+for seven-eighths of the seedlings should be discarded.
+When the seedlings are three inches high, select those
+which have the thickest, fleshiest, and most numerous
+stems, and pot them. They vary more than almost
+any other vegetable. Many that appear large and
+vigorous will have broad, flat, twisted, or corrugated
+stems. Discard them. Beware, also, of those that
+put out leaves close to the soil. These will all make
+tough, stringy, undesirable plants. The best plants
+are those which are cylindrical, smooth, and free from
+ridges. They shoot up rapidly, and attain a hight of
+two inches before leaves are put out. They look much
+like smooth needles. This matter of selecting the best
+plants for potting, and subsequent planting out, is of
+the greatest importance in asparagus culture.</p>
+
+<p>"These young plants should first be put in small
+pots and moved into larger ones as soon as they are
+well rooted. They may need to be shifted twice before
+they are planted out-of-doors, which should be done
+when danger of frost is over. Started in this way
+they continue to grow from the time they are planted
+out and reach very large size the first season. In the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span>
+case of nursery-grown plants, where seeds are sown
+directly out-of-doors, the young seedlings start very
+slowly, are very tender during their early growth, and
+if the weather is unfavorable they hardly become well
+established before autumn."</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 507px;">
+<img src="images/i46.jpg" width="507" height="386" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 13&mdash;ONE-YEAR-OLD POT-GROWN ASPARAGUS PLANT</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>Fig. 13 shows a one-year-old plant started in February
+in the greenhouse and transplanted to the field
+the first of May. Plants grown in this way reach as
+good size in one year as the nursery-grown plants
+usually do in three years.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="VI" id="VI"></a>VI</h2>
+
+<h3>SELECTION OF PLANTS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">hat</span> strong, healthy, one-year-old plants are in
+every way to be preferred to two or three
+year old ones has been demonstrated by many
+carefully conducted experiments, and is now
+universally recognized by intelligent and observant
+asparagus growers. The most noteworthy and accurate
+experiments in this line were made by the famous
+French asparagus specialist M. Godefroy-Leb&oelig;uf, who
+planted twelve stools of one, two, and three years old
+respectively in the same soil under the same conditions
+and at the same time. Calling those plantings
+Nos. 1, 2, and 3, the following are the results obtained:</p>
+
+<div class="blockquot"><p><i>First Year.</i>&mdash;No. 1.&mdash;All the stools came up before May 4th,
+and were well grown.</p>
+
+<p>No. 2.&mdash;Ten stools showed above ground before May 4th,
+one on the 10th, and one appeared to be dead. The asparagus
+heads were very fine&mdash;finer, indeed, than those of No. 1.</p>
+
+<p>No. 3.&mdash;Eight stools showed above ground before May 4th,
+one on the 12th, and three gave no signs of life. The heads
+were very fine at first, but they became bent toward the end
+of the year (September 15th), and were much weaker than
+those of No. 2.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p><i>Second Year.</i>&mdash;No. 1.&mdash;Well-grown, regular, and strong
+heads, which measured on September 15th one inch in circumference.</p>
+
+<p>No. 2.&mdash;Well-grown but irregular heads, somewhat weaker
+than those of No. 1.</p>
+
+<p>No. 3.&mdash;Only pretty well-grown heads, very irregular,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span>
+some of the stools having as many as eight or ten, but all very
+weak. One stool died after growing two heads.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p><i>Third Year.</i>&mdash;No. 1.&mdash;Magnificent growths, the heads
+measuring on April 10th from two inches to three and one-quarter
+inches in circumference.</p>
+
+<p>No. 2.&mdash;Growth passable only, but very irregular. Some
+of the stools were very small. The finest of them produced
+heads which from April 8th to 10th only measured two and
+one-half inches in circumference.</p>
+
+<p>No. 3.&mdash;Growth very poor and very irregular. Some of
+the stools continued to produce small heads not much thicker
+than a quill pen, the largest being from one and one-half inch
+to two inches in circumference.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p><i>Fourth Year.</i>&mdash;No. 1.&mdash;Growth very remarkable. The
+heads began to show on April 3d, 4th, 5th, 7th, and 10th.
+Some were from three and one-quarter inches to four inches in
+circumference, and measured four and three-quarter inches.
+Fifty of the heads formed a bundle which weighed seven pounds.</p>
+
+<p>No. 2.&mdash;Growth passable, but later than No. 1. The heads
+made their first appearance on April 6th, 10th, and 11th.
+Many of them were very small; fifty of them barely made
+half a bundle, and only weighed three and three-quarter
+pounds.</p>
+
+<p>No. 3.&mdash;Growth but poor, and somewhat late. The heads
+made their appearance on April 4th, 6th, 9th, and 11th; one
+did not show till the 22d. Fifty heads barely formed half a
+bundle and only weighed two and one-half pounds.</p>
+
+<p>To sum up, it is clear that the plants of a year old in their
+fourth season&mdash;that is to say, after having been planted out
+for three years&mdash;gave a bundle weighing seven pounds, while
+those of two years old only gave three and three-quarter
+pounds, and those of three years old only two and one-half
+pounds; in other words, taking round numbers, the plantation
+made with the one-year-old plants produced double the
+crop of the two-year-old plants and treble that of the three-year-old
+plants. The reader may easily draw his conclusions
+from the preceding facts.</p></div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Equally important is a careful selection of the individual
+plants to be set out. A crown with four or five
+strong, well-developed buds is far better than one
+with a dozen or more of weak and sickly ones, as the
+latter will always produce thin and poor spears of poor
+quality. It is therefore highly to be recommended to
+select only plants with not over six buds and discard
+all others. The roots should be strong and of uniform
+thickness, succulent and not too fibrous. Dry or
+withered roots have to be cut off, and plants with
+many bruised or otherwise damaged roots should be
+rejected entirely. The best roots are the cheapest.</p>
+
+
+<h4>MALE AND FEMALE PLANTS</h4>
+
+<p>It has long been observed that all of the asparagus
+plants in a bed do not produce seeds, owing to the
+fact that the male and female flowers in asparagus are
+nearly always borne on separate plants. Seed bearing
+is an exhaustive process, and, as might be supposed,
+those plants that have produced seed have less vigor
+than those that have not. In order to determine the
+difference in vigor between the seed bearing and non-seed
+bearing plants, Prof. William J. Green, horticulturist
+of the Ohio Experiment Station, staked off fifty
+of each in a plantation of half an acre. When the
+cuttings were made the shoots taken from male and
+female plants were kept separate, and the weight of
+each recorded in Bulletin No. 9, Volume III., of the
+Ohio Station, as follows:</p>
+
+<p>"The cuttings were made at regular intervals and
+in the ordinary manner, as for market purposes. The
+weight of shoots taken at each cutting is not given in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span>
+the table, since the facts are quite as well shown by
+stating the aggregate weight for periods of ten days
+each. The division into periods is made for the purpose
+of showing comparative earliness. This could
+be shown in a more marked degree by taking the first
+and second cuttings alone, but they were too limited
+in quantity to admit of conclusions being drawn from
+them; hence they are included with the other cuttings
+in the same period.</p>
+
+<h4>PRODUCT FROM FIFTY PLANTS EACH, MALE AND FEMALE</h4>
+
+<table width="60%">
+<tr><th></th><th><i>Product from <br /> fifty male plants</i></th> <th><i>Product from fifty <br /> female plants</i></th></tr>
+<tr align="center"><th></th> <th><i>Ounces</i></th> <th><i>Ounces</i></th></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">First period, 10 days</td>  <td>37</td>   <td>21</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Second period, 10 days</td> <td>104</td>  <td>68</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Third period, 10 days</td> <td>266</td>  <td>164</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Fourth period, 10 days</td>  <td>203</td>  <td>154</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left"><b>Total for the season</b></td>  <td><b>610</b></td>  <td><b>407</b></td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>"This shows a gain of the male over the female
+plants of seventy-six per cent. for the first period, and
+a fraction less than fifty per cent. for the whole season.
+Reversing the standard of comparison, it will be seen
+that the female plants fall below the male forty-three
+per cent. for the first period, and a little more than
+thirty-three per cent. in the total. In no case did the
+female plants produce equally with the male.</p>
+
+<p>"If comparative earliness is determined by the date
+of first cutting alone, there is no difference between
+the male and female plants, since the first cutting was
+made on both at the same date; but taking quantity
+of product into consideration, which is the proper<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span>
+method, there is a decided difference, the gain of
+the male over the female plants being seventy-six,
+fifty-two, sixty-three, and thirty-one per cent. for the
+four periods respectively. The difference in yield
+between the two was greatest at first, and diminished
+toward the last, which practically amounts to the same
+thing as the male being earlier than the female. There
+is a still further difference between the two in quality
+of product, the shoots of the female plant being
+smaller and inferior to those of the male.</p>
+
+<p>"It is not safe to draw conclusions from such limited
+observations as these, further, at least, than to accept
+them as representing the truth approximately. Allowing
+a wide margin for possible error, there would still
+seem to be sufficient difference in productive capacity
+between the male and female plants to justify the
+selection of the former and rejection of the latter when
+a new plantation is to be started. If the figures given
+in the table are taken as a basis, the gain in the crop,
+if the male plants alone were used, would each season
+pay for all the plants rejected, and leave a handsome
+margin at the end of the term of years when an asparagus
+bed has served its period of usefulness. Male
+plants can be secured by division of old plants, or by
+selecting those that bear no seed, after they have
+attained the age of two years."</p>
+
+<p>In summing up the results of this experiment,
+Professor Green states that male asparagus plants are
+about fifty per cent. more productive than female
+plants, and the shoots being larger have a greater
+market value.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="VII" id="VII"></a>VII</h2>
+
+<h3>THE SOIL AND ITS PREPARATION</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">s</span> asparagus in its wild state is usually found
+growing in light and sandy soils along or near
+the seashore, it has long been supposed that it
+could not be cultivated in other localities and
+soils. While it is true that asparagus succeeds best in
+a sandy, rich, and friable loam, naturally underdrained
+and yet not too dry, there is not another vegetable
+which accommodates itself more readily to as varying
+soils and conditions. There is hardly a State in
+the United States in which at present asparagus is not
+grown more or less extensively and profitably, and the
+most famous asparagus districts of France and Germany
+are situated at great distances from the seashore.</p>
+
+<p>The question of what soil to use is, as a rule,
+already settled; we have to use the soil we have. Any
+good garden soil is suitable for asparagus, and if it is
+not in the most favorable condition, under existing
+circumstances, it can easily be made so. The soil
+should be free from roots, stones, or any material that
+will not readily disintegrate, or that will interfere with
+the growth of the spears, and with the knife in cutting.
+Fruit or other trees, or high shrubs, must not
+be allowed in the asparagus bed, because of the shade
+they throw over the beds, and because their roots
+make heavy drafts upon the soil. Nor should high
+trees, hedges, hills, or buildings be so near as to shade<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span>
+the beds, because all the sunshine obtainable is needed
+to bring the spears quickly to the surface. Whenever
+practicable the asparagus bed should be protected from
+cold winds, and so slope that the full benefit of the
+sunshine will be obtained during the whole day.
+Brinckmeier, in his "Braunschweiger Spargelbuch,"
+gives the following three rules for guidance in selecting
+a location for asparagus beds:</p>
+
+<p>"1. One should choose, in reference to ground characteristics,
+open, free-lying land, protected to the north
+and east [which, for American conditions, should be
+north and west], of gradual slope, free from trees or
+shrubbery.</p>
+
+<p>"2. The field should be exposed to the rays of the
+sun all day long; therefore, a southern exposure is
+desirable, or, if that is not obtainable, a southwesterly
+or southeasterly slope, because either east, west, or
+north exposure will cause shade during a greater or
+less portion of the day.</p>
+
+<p>"3. Standing, stagnant ground water, which cannot
+be drawn off by drainage, is to be avoided, the
+requirements of the plants indicating a somewhat damp
+subsoil, but not too high ground water."</p>
+
+<p>For commercial purposes on a large scale, and when
+the trucker has the choice of location, a well-drained,
+light, deep, sandy loam, with a light clay subsoil, is to
+be preferred to any other. Heavy clay soil, or land
+with a hard-pan subsoil, or, in fact, any soil that is
+cold and wet, is totally unfit for profitable asparagus
+growing, unless it is thoroughly underdrained and
+made lighter by a plentiful addition of sand and muck.</p>
+
+<p>Freedom from weeds is very desirable, even more<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span>
+so than great fertility, for the latter can be produced
+by heavy manuring, which the future cultivation will
+require; and to the end that weeds may be few, it is
+well that for a year or two previous to planting the
+land should have been occupied by some hoed crop,
+such as potatoes, beets, cabbage, etc. Land on which
+corn has been growing for two or three years is in
+excellent condition for an asparagus field, provided it
+has been heavily manured one year previous to the
+planting of the roots.</p>
+
+
+<h4>PREPARATION OF THE GROUND</h4>
+
+<p>Asparagus differs from most other vegetables in
+that it is a perennial, and when once planted properly,
+in suitable soil, it will continue to produce an annual
+crop for a generation if not for an indefinite period,
+while if the work is done carelessly and without consideration
+for the plant's requirements the plantation
+will never prove satisfactory and will run out entirely
+in the course of a few years. The establishing of an
+asparagus bed is naturally more expensive than the
+planting and raising of annual vegetables. In addition
+to this, the plants have to be taken care of for three
+years before a crop can be harvested. On the other
+hand, an asparagus bed is an investment for a lifetime,
+and the dividends derived from it increase in proportion
+to the care and thoroughness bestowed upon the preparation
+of the land.</p>
+
+<p>It is at once apparent, then, that nothing should be
+neglected to bring the soil into the best possible condition
+before planting. This truth was fully recognized
+by the gardeners of former years who practiced<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span>
+most extraordinary methods in order to bring the land
+into the most favorable condition for asparagus. Even
+now in some European countries, where labor is cheap,
+the entire ground is trenched to a depth of three or
+four feet, turning in at the same time all the available
+manure, seaweed, and other fertilizing material.</p>
+
+<p>A famous old-time asparagus bed in England was
+made in this manner: "The land was trenched three
+feet deep in trenches three feet wide and cast up
+into rough ridges, after a crop of summer peas. All
+decaying vegetation in the rubbish yards and corners
+was at the same time well sorted and turned up. Early
+in autumn also were added some old mushroom, melon,
+and cucumber bed material, a lot of manure from
+piggeries, cow houses, and stables, a quantity of road-grit
+and sand, a quantity of ditch and drain parings,
+turfy loam and sods, quite three feet thick. These
+were all turned over four times and well incorporated
+together, between Michaelmas and Lady Day, as one
+would a dungheap, the whole being left in large
+ridges exposed to the frost. By April this compost
+was in a kindly state; it was, therefore, laid down and
+planted with good, clean one-year-old asparagus plants,
+which certainly grew in a most extraordinary way."</p>
+
+<p>Another elaborate way of making an asparagus bed,
+formerly practiced in France, is described by Dr.
+Maccullogh as follows: "A pit the size of the intended
+plantation is dug four feet in depth, and the mold
+taken from it must be sifted, taking care to reject all
+stones, even as low in size as a filbert nut. The best
+part of the mold must then be laid aside before making
+up the beds. The materials of the bed are then to be<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span>
+laid in the following proportions and order: Six inches
+of common dunghill manure, eight inches of turf, six
+inches of dung as before, six inches of sifted earth,
+eight inches of turf, six inches of very rotten dung,
+eight inches of the best of earth. The last layer of
+earth must then be well mixed with the last of dung.
+The compartment must now be divided into beds five
+feet wide by paths constructed of turf two feet in
+breadth and one foot in thickness."</p>
+
+<p>A bed prepared in this manner, and planted and
+cultivated with as much painstaking care, will no doubt
+produce asparagus of unsurpassed quality, and may
+last forever. Yet the use of modern implements and a
+better knowledge of the nature and requirements of the
+plant have demonstrated that first-class asparagus can
+be produced with far less expense and labor. While a
+deep and loose soil produces earlier and better crops
+than a heavy and shallow one, indiscriminate deepening
+of the soil by trenching or other means is not
+always desirable, even where the cost does not come
+into consideration. When the subsoil is very light and
+poor and deficient in humus, the placing of the better
+surface soil below and the infertile lower strata above,
+trenching would be a positive detriment. The same
+would be the case where the subsoil consists of heavy
+impervious clay.</p>
+
+<p>In the fall preceding planting the land should be
+plowed deeply and left in the rough state during the
+winter. Subsoiling has often been recommended, yet
+practical growers but rarely make use of the subsoil
+plow in the preparation of asparagus plantations,
+although the value of subsoiling where the subsoil is<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span>
+heavy can not be doubted. Where stable or barnyard
+manure can be had cheaply, and the soil is heavy, a
+liberal coat spread broadcast over the surface and left
+to the action of the weather during winter will
+ameliorate the ground considerably. In most cases,
+however, the same object may be obtained by applying
+the manure in spring. Joseph Harris mentions a case
+in which a bed was plowed and subsoiled in the fall
+and the soil filled with manure, while another bed
+near by was planted without manure, or extra preparation
+of any kind, relying entirely on artificial fertilizers
+after planting, and the latter was by far the better bed.
+As early in spring as the ground is in suitable condition
+to be worked it has to be plowed and harrowed
+and brought into as perfect condition as possible.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="VIII" id="VIII"></a>VIII</h2>
+
+<h3>PLANTING</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">hroughout</span> the Middle and Northern States,
+spring, as soon as the soil can be worked to
+good advantage, is decidedly the most favorable
+time for planting asparagus. If it is
+not practicable to plant thus early, the work may sometimes
+be delayed up to the middle of June. In planting
+thus late, however, preparation has to be made
+for watering the plants in case of drouth, else failure
+be inevitable. It is also necessary to do the work as
+expeditiously as possible, so as not to expose the roots
+to the drying influences of the sun and wind. Fall
+planting is advisable only in climates where there is
+no danger of winter-killing of the roots.</p>
+
+<p>After the ground has been plowed and harrowed,
+or spaded and raked over, and brought into as mellow
+a condition as possible, the rows for planting are to be
+laid out. It is usually recommended to have the rows
+run north and south, so as to readily admit the sunlight.
+When this is not practicable, however, it need
+not deter any one from making an asparagus bed, as
+it is more important to have the rows run with the
+slope of the land than in any particular direction
+of the compass, in order to provide ready surface
+drainage.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>DISTANCE TO PLANT</h4>
+
+<p>As to the best distance between the rows and the
+plants in the rows there is a wide difference of opinion,
+more so than with almost any other cultivated plant.
+No unvarying rule can be laid down on this point, as
+it depends largely upon the mechanical condition,
+depth, and fertility of the soil. In a rich, moderately
+heavy soil, the roots may be planted closer than in a
+poor, light soil. The tendency of the present day is
+for giving the plants considerably more room than
+what formerly was thought to be ample. Intelligent
+observers could not fail to notice that crowded asparagus
+beds produce later and smaller crops, and of
+inferior size and quality; that they do not last as long;
+and that they are more liable to attacks from insects
+and fungi than when more room is given to the plants.</p>
+
+<p>Gardeners of but a few decades ago had no idea of
+the possibility of raising a profitable crop of asparagus
+planted four or five feet apart, and would have looked
+with derision upon any one advocating so wild a
+scheme. The remains of run out, old-time asparagus
+beds are still in evidence in many old farm gardens.
+The rows in these were originally one foot apart and
+the plants in the rows even closer than this, and perhaps
+after every third or fourth row there was a path
+two feet wide. Of course, in such a bed, after a few
+years, the entire ground became a solid mass of roots,
+and the stalks became smaller and tougher from year
+to year.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 488px;">
+<img src="images/i60.jpg" width="488" height="480" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 14&mdash;HORIZONTAL DEVELOPMENT OF A FOUR-YEAR-OLD
+ASPARAGUS ROOT</span>
+</div>
+<p>In most asparagus sections special customs prevail,
+and even in these different growers have their individual
+preferences; but all agree that asparagus should
+never be planted closer than two feet in rows three
+feet apart. For the home garden there is no better
+plan than to plant but a single row, with the plants
+two or three feet apart, along the edge or border of
+the ground, but not nearer than four or five feet to
+other plants, and in case of grape-vines even more
+room should be given. Here they require but little
+care, and the plants have an unlimited space for the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span>
+extension of their roots in search of moisture and food.
+Asparagus needs considerable water, and an acre of
+land will hold so much water and no more. The more
+plants there are on an acre the less water there will be
+for each plant, and what is true of water is also true
+of plant food.</p>
+
+<p>In field culture the distance adopted by asparagus
+growers varies from 3 x 3 feet (4,840 plants per acre);
+3 x 4 feet (3,640 plants per acre); 4 x 4 feet (2,722
+plants per acre); 4 x 5 feet (2,178 plants per acre);
+5 x 6 feet (1,452 plants per acre); 6 x 6 feet (1,210
+plants per acre), and even more. If the idea is to
+have the plants so far apart that their roots can not
+interlace, twenty feet each way would not be too extravagant
+a distance, under favorable conditions, as
+will readily become apparent by a glance at Fig. 14.
+This illustration is an exact reproduction of the root
+system of an asparagus plant four years from the
+seed. The roots spread out upon a level floor measured
+thirteen feet from tip to tip, the single roots
+averaging the thickness of a lead pencil. This root
+grew in Madison County, Ill., and was washed out of
+the ground&mdash;without having any of its roots torn&mdash;by
+the unusually heavy spring rains which caused the Piasa
+River to overflow its banks and sent a current rushing
+through the asparagus field in which it grew. If the
+plant had remained in its position a few years longer
+its roots would probably have extended ten feet in each
+direction.</p>
+
+<p>From this it does not follow, however, that asparagus
+should be planted twenty or even ten feet apart to
+produce the largest returns, but it plainly shows why<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span>
+the roots should not be planted as closely together as
+was customary in former years; and it obviously demonstrates
+that when land is cheap and manure and labor
+high, asparagus can not be hurt by giving it plenty of
+room. It should also be considered that earliness,
+size, and quality make a great difference with the price
+and profits when early and large shoots are in demand.
+It might be possible to get double the number of shoots
+per acre from thick than from thin planting, but they
+might be so small and spindling as not to be worth the
+labor and expense of cutting and marketing.</p>
+
+
+<h4>DEPTH OF PLANTING</h4>
+
+<p>Contrary to the all but universal belief, asparagus
+is not a deep-rooted plant. In the wild state its most
+frequent habitat is on the fertile marshes of the shoreline
+in Europe, on ground but a few inches above the
+tidewater which permeates the sandy subsoil. As the
+roots can not live in water, they naturally grow to long
+distances parallel with the surface and retain this habit
+under cultivation. The tendency of growth in the
+asparagus roots in this direction is obviously demonstrated
+in Fig. 14.</p>
+
+<p>The proper depth of planting asparagus roots varies
+somewhat, according to the character of the soil, the
+method of cultivation, and the kind of spears desired,
+whether white or green. As the new crowns rise
+somewhat above the old ones annually, it seems but
+rational that the plants should have sufficient room for
+the new growths before their crowns become even with
+the surface of the land. When the crown once comes
+near the level of the soil it is impossible to give proper<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span>
+cultivation, unless the entire bed be raised by adding
+soil to the whole surface.</p>
+
+<p>While it is true that the deeper the crowns are
+planted the later they will start in the spring, this is
+of account only during the first few years. Besides,
+the factor of earliness is not of nearly as much importance
+now as it was before northern markets were
+so bountifully supplied with the southern grown crops
+several months before the opening of the northern
+season. Shallow-planted asparagus sprouts earlier,
+but soon exhausts itself, sending up spindling, tough
+shoots, while the deeper-planted crowns produce large
+and succulent sprouts throughout the season. When
+green asparagus is desired, and there is no danger of
+the beetles eating the sprouts before they are fit for
+use, a depth of two or three inches is sufficient, but
+for white or blanched asparagus a depth of from eight
+to ten inches is necessary.</p>
+
+
+<h4>MANNER OF PLANTING</h4>
+
+<p>As in other details of asparagus culture, the
+methods of planting have undergone very material
+changes. The formerly usual practice of digging
+deep trenches was not well founded&mdash;in the light of
+our present experience and knowledge&mdash;and could be
+useful only for drainage. How little regard was paid
+to the nature and requirements of the plant may readily
+be perceived by reading the following directions for
+making an asparagus bed, but little over half a century
+ago, in Bridgeman's "Young Gardeners' Assistant":</p>
+
+<p>"The ground for the asparagus bed should have a
+large supply of well-rotted dung, three or four inches<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span>
+thick, and then be 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 two or three inches of thoroughly
+rotted manure over the whole surface, and dig the
+ground over again eight or ten inches deep, mixing
+this top-dressing, and incorporating it well with the
+earth.</p>
+
+<p>"In family gardens it is customary to divide the
+ground thus prepared into beds, allowing four feet for
+every four rows of plants, with alleys two feet and a
+half wide between each bed. Strain your line along
+the bed six 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 to the line nearly
+upright; when one trench is opened, plant that before
+you open another, placing the plants upright ten or
+twelve inches distance in the row, and let every row
+be twelve inches apart.</p>
+
+<p>"The plants must not be placed flat in the bottom
+of the trench, but nearly upright against the back of
+it, and so that the crown of the plants must also stand
+upright, and two or three inches below the surface of
+the ground, spreading their roots somewhat regularly
+against the back of the trench, and at the same time
+drawing a little earth up against them with the
+hand as you place them, just to fix the plants in their
+due position until the row is planted; when one row
+is thus placed, with a rake or hoe draw the earth into
+the trench over the plants, and then proceed to open
+another drill or trench, as before directed, and fill and
+cover it in the same manner, and so on until the whole<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span>
+is planted; then let the surface of the beds be raked
+smooth and clear from stones, etc.</p>
+
+<p>"Some gardeners, with a view to having extra large
+heads, place their plants sixteen inches apart in the
+rows instead of twelve, and by planting them in the
+quincunx manner&mdash;that is, by commencing the second
+row eight inches from the end of the first and the
+fourth even with the second&mdash;the plants will form
+rhomboidal squares instead of rectangular ones, and
+every plant will thus have room to expand its roots and
+leaves luxuriantly."</p>
+
+<p>In diametrical contradistinction, and as an example
+of the very plainest and simplest of modern methods,
+Joseph Harris wrote: "If you are going to plant a
+small bed in the garden, stretch a line not less than
+four feet from any other plant, and with a hoe make
+holes along the line, eighteen inches or three feet
+apart, four inches deep, and large enough to hold the
+plants when the roots are spread out horizontally.
+Do not make deep holes straight down in the ground
+and stick the roots in as you would a cabbage, but
+spread out the roots. After the roots are set out cover
+them with fine soil, and that is all there is to it. Then
+move the line three feet from the first row and repeat
+the planting until the bed is finished. In the field
+make the rows with a common corn-marker, three feet
+apart each way, and set out a plant where the rows
+cross. It is but little more work to plant an acre of
+asparagus than an acre of potatoes."</p>
+
+<p>Between these extreme methods many different
+directions for planting asparagus have been given and
+practiced. Modern methods have not only greatly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span>
+simplified the planting, but have also materially
+reduced the expense, increased the crop, and improved
+the quality of the product.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 485px;">
+<img src="images/i66.jpg" width="485" height="190" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 15&mdash;TRENCHES READY FOR PLANTING</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>After the ground has been properly prepared, it is
+marked off in parallel rows from three to five or more
+feet apart, according to the preferences of the grower.
+The easiest way to open these trenches is by plowing a
+furrow each way, and, if necessary, going over the
+ground a sufficient number of times to make the
+furrows from eight to ten inches deep. After this the
+loose soil is thrown out with a shovel or a wide hoe, so
+as to leave the trenches at a uniform depth of ten to
+twelve inches and of the same width at the bottom, as
+seen in Fig. 15. By rigging a piece of board on the
+mold-board of the plow more soil is thrown out, so that
+usually it will not be necessary to go over the ground
+oftener than twice. The Messrs. Hudson &amp; Son, of
+Long Island, have devised for their own use a
+"trencher" (Fig. 16), which with a good team opens
+the trench to the desired depth in one operation and
+at a great saving of labor.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 494px;">
+<img src="images/i67.jpg" width="494" height="263" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 16&mdash;HUDSON&#39;S TRENCHER</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>If the entire ground has been heavily fertilized,
+plowing manure in the trenches will not be necessary,
+yet many experienced asparagus growers think that
+it pays to scatter some fertilizing material into the
+trenches before planting. A favorite plan with Long
+Island growers is to mix half a ton of ground bone, or
+fish scrap, with one hundred pounds of nitrate of soda
+per acre, and thoroughly incorporate this mixture with
+the soil to a depth of three inches before setting the
+plants. Others prefer thoroughly decomposed manure
+spread over the bottom of the furrow, to a depth of
+about three inches, before setting the plants. Others
+prefer thoroughly decomposed manure spread over the
+bottom of the furrow, to a depth of about three inches,
+and covering it with two inches of fine soil. If the
+roots are to be planted four or more feet apart it will
+be sufficient to throw a shovelful of manure where the
+roots are to be placed. This is then spread out so as to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span>
+make a layer of about three inches, which is then
+covered with soil.</p>
+
+
+<h4>PLACING THE ROOTS</h4>
+
+<p>The proper planting of the roots is the most critical
+point in asparagus culture, as upon the manner in
+which this is performed&mdash;more than upon other detail&mdash;depends
+the success, yield, duration, and profit of the
+plantation. Almost any other neglect can be remedied
+by after-treatment, but careless and faulty planting,
+never. Whatever care and personal attention the
+grower may give to this work will be repaid manyfold
+in future returns.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 457px;">
+<img src="images/i68.jpg" width="457" height="248" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 17&mdash;ASPARAGUS ROOT IN PROPER POSITION FOR COVERING</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>As stated before, only strong, healthy one-year-old
+plants with three or four strong buds should be used,
+so as to insure an even growth over the entire field,
+and at every stage of the work great care must be taken
+not to expose the roots to the drying influences of sun
+and winds. When everything is in readiness for planting,
+the roots are placed in the trench, the crown in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span>
+center and the rootlets spread out evenly and horizontally,
+like the spokes of a wheel, and at once covered
+with three inches of fine, mellow soil, which is pressed
+around them. If the ground is dry at planting-time it
+should be pressed down quite firmly about the roots, so
+as to prevent their drying out, and to hasten their
+growth.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 479px;">
+<img src="images/i69.jpg" width="479" height="166" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 18&mdash;CROSS-SECTION OF ASPARAGUS BED AFTER PLANTING</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>To still more insure success it is an excellent plan
+to draw up little hills of soil in the bottom of the
+trench over which to place the roots with the crowns
+resting on the top, thus raising the crowns a few
+inches above the extremities of the roots and providing
+for them a position similar to what they stood in before
+transplanting, as seen in Fig. 17.</p>
+
+<p>The subsequent covering of the roots can usually
+be done with a one-horse plow, from which the mold-board
+has been removed, passing down the sides of the
+row. This leaves the plants in a depression, the soil
+thrown out in opening the rows forming a ridge on
+each side, as shown in Fig. 18. This depression will
+gradually become filled during the process of cultivation
+the succeeding summer.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="IX" id="IX"></a>IX</h2>
+
+<h3>CULTIVATION</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">s</span> generally understood, the chief object of
+cultivation is to kill weeds. This is an erroneous
+idea, however, as the appearance of
+weeds serves simply as Nature's reminder of
+the necessity of immediate cultivation. On ground
+cultivated as thoroughly as it should be for the best
+development of the crop there will rarely be any
+weeds to kill, as their germs have been destroyed by
+the process of cultivation before they could make their
+appearance above the ground.</p>
+
+
+<h4>CARE DURING THE FIRST YEAR</h4>
+
+<p>The cultural work in the asparagus bed during
+the first year consists in loosening the soil at frequent
+intervals, and especially as soon after rain as the
+ground becomes dry enough for cultivation. Frequent
+and thorough cultivation is necessary not only to keep
+down the weeds, but also to prevent the formation of
+a crust on the soil after rain, and to provide a mulch
+of loose earth for the retention of moisture. In field
+culture the work is best done with a one-horse cultivator
+or a wheel-hoe, and on a small scale with a
+scuffle-hoe and a rake. As the sprouts grow up
+small quantities of fine soil should be drawn into the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span>
+trenches from time to time, but during the early part
+of the season great care must be exercised not to
+cover the crowns too deeply.</p>
+
+<p>Some growers advise to work the soil away instead
+of toward the plants, considering the four inches of
+soil with which the roots are covered at planting sufficient
+for the first year. While this may be true in a
+wet or moderately moist summer, in a season of drouth
+the additional mulch of mellow soil can not but be
+beneficial to the young and tender plants. Especial
+care is required when working around the young
+sprouts, so as not to cover, break, or in any way
+injure any of them.</p>
+
+<p>In the garden bed it pays to stake the canes when
+they are but a foot high, so as to prevent the wind
+from disturbing the stools in the soil by swaying the
+shoots backward and forward. Careful gardeners
+insert stakes for this purpose at the time of planting,
+before the roots are covered with soil, so as to guard
+against the danger of injuring any of them. The best
+material for this tying is raffia, or Cuban bast. In
+field culture staking is usually not practicable, partly
+on account of the cost, and also because where there
+are many plants growing close together they furnish
+some mutual protection to one another. The same
+end may also be accomplished&mdash;partly, at least&mdash;by
+throwing up a furrow on each side of the rows of
+plants. Precautions of this kind are important in
+localities exposed to high winds, as their neglect may
+often cause greater loss than it would have cost to
+provide proper protection.</p>
+
+<p>Another important work in the asparagus bed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span>
+during the first year is to keep close and constant
+watch over the asparagus beetle, and at its first
+appearance to apply the remedies recommended in the
+chapter on injurious insects. Plants deprived of their
+foliage at this early stage of their life have but a poor
+chance to recover from the loss.</p>
+
+<p>If it is found that some of the plants have not
+started by the middle of June, it is best to replace
+them with growing plants of the same age, which
+should have been kept in a reserve bed for this purpose.
+If this replanting is done carefully, so as not
+to mutilate any of the roots, and on a cloudy day, it
+is best not to cut back the tops very severely. Unless
+a copious rain sets in soon after planting, the roots
+have to be heavily watered, after which they will
+keep on growing at once without suffering any setback.</p>
+
+<p>The formerly all but universal practice was to cover
+the roots with manure after the stalks had been
+removed in the fall for fear of frost injuring or killing
+the roots. In sections where winters are very
+severe this may still be desirable, as may be seen from
+the statement of so keen an observer as Professor J. C.
+Whitten, of the Missouri Experiment Station: "Most
+writers advise applying dressing of old fine manure
+during the growing season when the plants can use it.
+In our soil better results are obtained by applying it in
+winter. It prevents the soil from running together
+and hardening, and also prevents the sprouts from
+coming through, as they otherwise often do, too early
+in spring, and becoming weakened by subsequent
+severe freezing."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>As the reverse of this plan, M. Godefroy-Leb&oelig;uf,
+the famous French authority, recommends "to clear
+out of the trenches the soil which has fallen into them
+from the sides of the mounds, and also remove from
+above the stools a portion of that with which they
+were covered at the time they were planted&mdash;say, to a
+depth of one and one-half inches&mdash;so that the action of
+the frost may open the soil and that the rain may penetrate
+and improve it; also that during the first fine
+days of spring the sun may warm the surface of the
+soil and penetrate as far as the stools. There is no
+fear that the action of the frost should hurt the plants.
+Asparagus will never freeze as long as the stool is
+covered with a layer of soil one and one-half to one
+and three-fourth inches in depth."</p>
+
+<p>If the rows are not less than four feet apart a crop
+of some other vegetables may be raised between them.
+Beans, dwarf peas, lettuce, beets, or any kinds which
+do not spread much, are suitable for the purpose.
+These by-products will help considerably toward paying
+the cost of cultivating the main crop, besides having
+a tendency to keep the soil cool and moist, a condition
+of no little importance to the asparagus.</p>
+
+
+<h4>CARE DURING THE SECOND YEAR</h4>
+
+<p>The treatment of the asparagus plantation during
+the second year does not differ materially from that of
+the first season after planting. The ground has to be
+stirred frequently and kept scrupulously clean, and a
+sharp lookout must be kept for the advent of injurious
+insects. As soon as berries appear on the tops they
+should be stripped off and destroyed, as the ripening<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span>
+seed absorbs a large share of the nourishment which
+ought to go to the development and strengthening of
+the crowns which are to produce the following year's
+crop.</p>
+
+<p>Even with the best of care, some plants will die out
+from time to time, although the more thoroughly the
+ground has been prepared at the time of planting, and
+the better the quality of the roots planted, the fewer
+failures of this kind will occur. These blank spaces
+are not only constant eyesores to the methodical gardener,
+but in the course of several years the aggregate
+shortage of crops will be considerable, while the amount
+of labor and fertilizer will be the same as in a fully
+stocked plantation. Therefore, such vacancies should
+be filled in the spring, not only of the second year, but
+whenever they occur in future seasons.</p>
+
+<p>The best way to replant these dead or dying roots
+is to go over the rows each fall, before the ground
+freezes, and drive a stake wherever there is a plant
+missing, as in the spring, before the plants have started,
+it would be difficult, if not impossible, to indicate the
+blank spaces. For replanting in the second year good
+strong two-year-old roots should be used. For the
+third and future years it is best to raise and keep a
+supply of a sufficient number of reserve plants for this
+special purpose in a similar manner as is done for
+forcing. As early in spring as the season permits
+these clumps should be carefully lifted and transferred
+to the permanent plantation. For three-year and
+older beds good strong three-year-old roots should be
+used, as younger ones would have but a poor chance
+between two older and well-established clumps.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>CARE DURING THE THIRD AND FUTURE YEARS</h4>
+
+<p>The third year cutting may begin in a moderate
+way, but too much should not be attempted. If all
+the conditions of growth have been favorable half a
+crop may be cut without injuring the roots, but under
+no circumstances should cutting in the third year be
+continued for more than three weeks. The general
+care of the bed during the third year is similar to that
+of the second, with the exception that the soil is
+worked more toward the rows, ridging them slightly.</p>
+
+<p>In the spring of the third and each succeeding
+year, as soon as the ground can be worked it should
+be plowed between the rows, turning the soil toward
+and over the crowns, leaving a dead furrow between
+the rows, as seen in Fig. 19. If bleached asparagus
+is desired, these ridges over the rows should be twelve
+inches higher than the bottom of the dead furrows
+between the rows, and when the soil is very light and
+sandy a hight of fifteen inches is preferable. For
+green asparagus the ridges are left lower, and the
+shoots are allowed to grow several inches above the
+ground before cutting, provided the asparagus beetle
+does not appropriate them sooner.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i76.jpg" width="640" height="376" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 19&mdash;PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF AN ASPARAGUS FIELD PROPERLY RIDGED IN EARLY SPRING
+MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span></p>
+<p>After the furrows are plowed out between the
+rows a home-made ridger is used to smooth the ridges
+and complete the work. This is formed of two heavy
+oak boards shod with tire iron, sloping upward and
+backward, attached to a pair of cultivator wheels.
+This requires a good team, one horse walking on
+either side of the row. On the light soils of Long
+Island this implement works to perfection, but on stiff
+lands a two-horse disk-wheel cultivator, with two disks
+on each side, going astride of each row and throwing
+up fresh soil upon the ridge, proves more effective.
+The same implements are used for renewing the ridges
+during the cutting season, which will be required
+about once a week, as the rains beat them down and
+the sun bakes a crust upon the top.</p>
+
+<p>Immediately after the cutting season is over the
+ridges are leveled, by plowing a furrow from each side
+of the center (Fig. 20), after which the land is harrowed
+crosswise until the surface is level and smooth.
+As long as practical, surface cultivation should be
+given, especially after rains, but usually at this time
+the plants make such rapid and vigorous growth that
+there will be little time for the work. Their tops and
+branches soon fill the entire space and quickly shade
+the ground so densely as to keep down weed growth.
+Of course, whatever tall weeds may spring up here
+and there have to be pulled out by hand.</p>
+
+
+<h4>FALL TREATMENT</h4>
+
+<p>The fall clearing of the plantation is an important
+part of asparagus culture. As soon as the berries are
+turning red&mdash;but not before&mdash;the stalks should be cut
+off even with the ground. If left longer the berries
+will drop off, their seeds will soon become embedded
+in the ground and fill the soil with seedling asparagus
+plants, which are about the most obstinate weed in the
+asparagus bed. If cut sooner they are not sufficiently
+matured, and the roots are deprived of their nourishment.
+All the brush should be removed at once to an
+open field and burned, so as not to provide lodging-places
+for injurious insects and fungi. Some recommend
+leaving the seedless plants as a mulch during
+the winter, but the possible benefit of this is so insignificant
+that it is not worth while to leave them for a
+second cleaning in spring, when time is far more
+valuable.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i78.jpg" width="640" height="420" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 20&mdash;LEVELING THE RIDGES AFTER THE CUTTING SEASON</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>RENOVATING OLD ASPARAGUS BEDS</h4>
+
+<p>The principal causes of asparagus beds running out
+are that in the first place ten plants are set out in a
+space where only one could thrive; then that the ground
+is not rich enough and had no proper cultivation; and
+last, but not least, that the cutting of the stalks has
+been carried to excess. What to do with the old bed
+is sometimes a perplexing question, especially when a
+place changes hands and the new proprietor has more
+progressive ideas than the former one had.</p>
+
+<p>Let the old bed stay, and set out a new one according
+to rational methods. Some years ago the writer
+came into possession of an asparagus bed which was
+known to be forty years old, and may have been much
+older. It was a solid mass of roots without any distinguishable
+rows. The spears produced were so small
+and tough that the first impulse was to dig up the
+roots. But as this proved to be a more formidable
+task than was anticipated, another plan was pursued.
+In autumn the bed was thickly covered with fine yard
+manure. The following spring the bed was marked
+out into strips of two feet in width. When the
+sprouts appeared those in every alternate strip were
+cut clean off during the entire summer, and the others
+allowed to grow. In the autumn of the year another<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span>
+heavy application of manure was given to the entire
+bed. The following year but few shoots appeared in
+the strips which had been cut all through the summer.
+These were treated the same as before, and in the third
+year not a sprout appeared in the alleys. The stalks
+left for use improved greatly during the first year and
+the third year were of good serviceable size and quality,
+so that even after the new bed, which had been planted
+at the time this experiment was commenced, came into
+bearing, the old one was retained for several years
+longer. Probably if the vacant strips had been made
+three or four feet wide the result would have been
+still better. This experience suggests the idea that
+the easiest and least expensive way of exterminating
+an old asparagus bed is to persistently mow down
+all the shoots for a season or two.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="X" id="X"></a>X</h2>
+
+<h3>FERTILIZERS AND FERTILIZING</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">sparagus</span> is a gross feeder. There is hardly
+another plant in cultivation upon the vitality
+of which so great a demand is made. The
+cutting of all its sprouts, or shoots, as soon as
+they appear above the ground, for several weeks, is
+an abnormal and enormous tax upon the plant, which
+is thus forced to extra exertion in order to reproduce
+itself and perpetuate its kind. Therefore, it should
+have the most tender care, and an abundance of nourishing
+and readily available food. The earliness, tenderness,
+size, and commercial value of the product
+depends principally on the rapidity of its growth, and,
+as this is materially promoted by the richness of the
+soil, it is evident that the plants should receive all the
+food they can assimilate during the growing season.</p>
+
+<p>There is a wide difference of opinion among growers
+as to which is the best kind of manure to use.
+Whatever the individual preferences may be, there is
+this satisfaction to know that no kind of plant food
+can come amiss on the asparagus bed, although the
+use of some kinds and combinations may be more
+economical than others. Formerly animal manures
+only were thought to be of any use for asparagus, and
+there are still some growers who cling to this opinion.
+In recent years, however, there has been a decided
+reaction in this regard in some of the principal aspar<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span>agus
+sections. The objections made against stable
+manure are that it is more expensive to handle, that it
+is apt to get the land full of weeds, and that it does
+not contain sufficient phosphoric acid and potash. At
+present many growers use commercial fertilizers exclusively,
+convinced that asparagus needs liberal feeding
+of potash and more nitrogen than is generally supposed
+to be required.</p>
+
+<p>The composition of 1,000 parts of fresh asparagus
+sprouts is, according to Wolff:</p>
+
+<table width="35%">
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Water</td>                      <td>933</td>   <td>parts</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Nitrogen</td>                   <td>3.2</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Ash</td>                        <td>5.0</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Potash</td>                     <td>1.2</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Soda</td>                       <td>0.9</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Lime</td>                       <td>0.6</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Magnesia</td>                   <td>0.2</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Phosphoric acid</td>            <td>0.9</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Sulphuric acid</td>             <td>0.3</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Silica</td>                     <td>0.5</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Chlorine</td>                   <td>0.3</td>   <td>"</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>This analysis shows very accurately what a given
+weight of asparagus abstracts from the soil, but it does
+not, and can not, show or even indicate certain indispensable
+demands. In this, as in other cases, the
+analysis of a crop is a very uncertain guide to its
+proper fertilization. It should be clearly understood
+by every cultivator of the soil that no rigidly fixed
+formulas can be given for any one crop on all soils.
+The question of quantity of application and of proportion
+must always, in the very nature of the case,
+remain more or less a matter of individual experi<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span>ment.
+The following formula, given by Prof. P. H.
+Rolfs, makes a good asparagus fertilizer:</p>
+
+<table width="40%">
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Nitrogen</td>        <td>4</td> <td>per cent.</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Potash</td>      <td>5</td>    <td>"</td></tr>
+<tr align="center"><td align="left">Available phosphoric acid</td>        <td>7</td>    <td>"</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>One thousand five hundred pounds of the above
+formula should be applied per acre. When possible
+apply twenty to forty tons of vegetable material, such
+as partially rotted rakings of barnyard manure.
+Where such vegetable matter is procurable, the quantity
+of nitrogen may be decreased proportionately. If
+manure is obtainable, allowance should be made for
+the fertilizing elements contained therein.</p>
+
+<p>An excellent formula for one ton of asparagus fertilizer,
+given by Prof. W. F. Massey, consists of:</p>
+
+<table width="30%">
+<tr><td>200</td> <td align="center">lbs.</td> <td>nitrate of soda</td></tr>
+<tr><td>700</td>  <td align="center">"</td>   <td>cottonseed-meal</td></tr>
+<tr><td>800</td>  <td align="center">"</td>   <td>acid phosphate (13 per cent.)</td></tr>
+<tr><td>300</td>  <td align="center">"</td>   <td>muriate of potash</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>This will yield 4.9 per cent. ammonia, 6.1 per cent.
+available phosphoric acid, 8.4 per cent. potash.</p>
+
+<p>The effects of the application of a scientifically
+balanced fertilizer ration upon asparagus is clearly
+illustrated in Fig. 21, which presents a photographic
+reproduction of an experimental plat of the North
+Carolina State Horticultural Society at Southern
+Pines, N. C., fertilized with</p>
+
+<table width="21%">
+<tr><td>250</td> <td align="center">lbs.</td> <td>nitrate of soda</td></tr>
+<tr><td>400</td>  <td align="center">"</td>   <td>acid phosphate</td></tr>
+<tr><td>160</td>  <td align="center">"</td>   <td>muriate of potash</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>per acre, while Fig. 22 shows a plat of equal size
+which remained unfertilized.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i84.jpg" width="640" height="385" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 21&mdash;NORTH CAROLINA&#39;S EXPERIMENT FARM ASPARAGUS PLOT; FERTILIZED</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The following table gives the amounts of different
+fertilizer materials necessary to give the desired quantity
+of each element:</p>
+
+<table width="60%">
+<tr><th align="center"><i>Element</i></th>  <th><i>Pounds of different materials for one acre</i></th></tr>
+<tr><td align="center" rowspan="4">Nitrogen</td>  <td>800 to 1,000 lbs. cottonseed-meal; or</td></tr>
+<tr> <td>350 to 400  "   nitrate of soda; or</td></tr>
+<tr> <td>275 to 300 "  sulphate of ammonia; or</td></tr>
+<tr>  <td>400 to 600 "  dried blood.</td></tr>
+<tr><td></td><td></td></tr>
+<tr><td></td><td></td></tr>
+<tr><td></td><td></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="center" rowspan="3">Potash</td>     <td>300 to 500 lbs. kainit; or</td></tr>
+<tr>  <td>150 lbs. muriate of potash; or</td></tr>
+<tr> <td>150 to 300 lbs. sulphate of potash</td></tr>
+<tr><td></td><td></td></tr>
+<tr><td></td><td></td></tr>
+<tr><td></td><td></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="center" rowspan="2">Phosphoric acid</td>  <td>750 to 1,000 lbs. acid phosphate; or</td></tr>
+<tr><td>600 to 800 dissolved bone.</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>"Asparagus requires very heavy manuring, and
+yet its composition would not indicate it," writes Mr.
+Charles V. Mapes. "The explanation is found in the
+fact that it must grow very rapidly, otherwise it is
+tough, stringy and flavorless, the same as with radishes.
+If it had a long season to grow in, like timothy hay, it
+might grow successfully in very poor soil. A half ton
+of timothy hay contains about as much plant food, and
+in similar proportions, as two thousand bunches of
+asparagus, or five thousand quarts of strawberries, and
+yet while this quantity of hay will grow on an acre of
+almost any poor soil, the strawberries or asparagus for
+a fair crop per acre require a rich garden soil. If the
+hay were obliged to make as rapid growth as the
+asparagus, then it also would require rich soil. With
+the strawberry there is but the lapse of a few weeks
+from the time of blossoming to the full development of
+its fruit. The plants need a superabundance of plant
+food within easy reach, otherwise the fruit is small and
+inferior. The plant can not bear profitable fruit and
+at the same time be compelled to struggle for existence.
+The same is the case with asparagus. Neither
+of these crops can take up out of the soil all the
+fertilizer that needs to be applied for their successful
+growth, and therefore there is necessarily a large
+quantity of plant food unused and left over in the
+soil."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i86.jpg" width="640" height="375" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 22&mdash;NORTH CAROLINA EXPERIMENT FARM ASPARAGUS PLOT; UNFERTILIZED</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>For these reasons, asparagus, while not necessarily
+an exhaustive crop, requires heavy manuring. One
+ton of high grade vegetable manure is none too much
+per acre, and is small, particularly in the expense, as
+compared with the larger quantities of stable manure
+per acre, as recommended by some successful growers.
+As already stated, formerly it was thought necessary
+to place large quantities of manure in the bottom of
+the deep trenches in which the young plants were set
+out, in order that sufficient fertility might be present
+for several years for the roots, as after the plants were
+once planted there would be no further opportunity to
+apply the manure in such an advantageous place.
+This theory has been found erroneous and the practice
+has been demonstrated to be rather a waste than otherwise,
+and besides the roots of asparagus thrive better
+when resting upon a more compact soil; nor is it
+necessary that the soil should contain great amounts of
+humus, or be in an extremely fertile condition when
+the plants are first put out, since by the system of top-dressing
+a moderately fertile soil soon becomes exceed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span>ingly
+rich and equal to the demands which the plants
+make upon it.</p>
+
+<p>The plan of top-dressing beds during the fall or
+early winter is gradually giving way to the more
+rational mode of top-dressing in the spring or summer.
+It was believed that autumn dressing strengthened the
+roots and enabled them to throw up stronger shoots
+during the following spring. This is a mistake, however.
+In the Oyster Bay region formerly all manuring
+was done in the spring, but the practice of applying
+all fertilizers immediately after the cutting is finished
+is rapidly increasing. The reason for this is found in
+the fact that, during the growth of the stalks, after the
+cutting season is over, the crowns form the buds from
+which the spears of next season spring, and it is probable
+that it is principally during this period that the
+roots assimilate and store up the materials which produce
+these spears. This being true, the plant food
+added to the soil and becoming available after the
+cessation of vegetation in the autumn can have little,
+if any, effect upon the spears which are cut for market
+the following spring; it first becomes of use to the
+plant after the crop has been cut and the stalks allowed
+to grow. Thus the manuring of the autumn of 1901
+will not benefit the grower materially until the spring
+of 1903.</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless, some highly successful asparagus
+raisers continue to apply fertilizers in the spring, as
+evidenced by the following directions given by one of
+the most prominent growers in the Oyster Bay district.
+"After the roots have been set in the drill, put
+enough soil on them to cover about two inches.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span>
+Then sow about 500 pounds of high grade potato
+fertilizer per acre in the drill. As the weeds commence
+to grow, cultivate and hoe, letting the soil cave
+down in the drill. About the middle of the season
+sow about 500 pounds more of fertilizer in the drill.
+Continue to cultivate and hoe the remainder of the season.
+At the end of the season the drill should be
+entirely filled up. The second year sow about 2,000
+pounds of fertilizer per acre broadcast, plow the ground
+and harrow it down level, and keep the ground clean.
+The third year open the drill over the asparagus with
+a one-horse plow, broadcast 2,000 pounds of fertilizer
+per acre about the time the shoots begin to show,
+and back-furrow it up with a plow over the drill to form
+a ridge. Then smooth the ridge down with a home-made
+implement resembling a snow-plow reversed.
+Cut every morning all the shoots that show through
+the ground. Do not cut more than four weeks in the
+first cutting season. Continue to broadcast 2,000
+pounds of fertilizer per acre every year."</p>
+
+<p>From what has been said in regard to the various
+methods of applying fertilizers to asparagus, it will be
+readily understood that it can make but little difference
+how it is distributed, whether on the rows, between
+the rows, or broadcast, so long as enough of it
+is put on the land. In an established asparagus bed
+the entire ground is a dense network of roots, and
+wherever the fertilizer is put some of the roots will
+find it, but not those of the plants over the crowns of
+which it has been planted; not more so than the feeding
+roots of an apple tree can reach a heap of manure
+piled around its trunk.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>SALT AS A FERTILIZER</h4>
+
+<p>Salt is but little used now by commercial asparagus
+growers, though it has been recommended for this
+crop from time immemorial. About the principal advantage
+to be derived from its use is that of killing
+weeds without injuring asparagus, although it may be
+applied in sufficient quantities to injure the asparagus.
+The indirect fertilizing value of salt is mainly due to
+the fact that it has the power of changing unavailable
+forms of plant food into available forms; but this
+object may be secured cheaper and better by the use
+of kainit. In sandy soils it may encourage the supply
+of moisture, but on naturally moist and retentive soils
+heavy dressings of salt may do more harm than good.</p>
+
+<p>Much of the benefits to asparagus for which salt
+gets credit is its use in a small way in the home
+garden, due to the fact that not dry salt, but the brine
+and residue of the pork and corned beef barrels is
+applied to the asparagus beds. This brine is rich in
+animal matter extracted from the meat, and usually
+also in saltpeter, which has been used in pickling.
+The latter substance alone, without the addition of
+salt, exerts a strong fertilizing effect upon the plants.</p>
+
+<p>After a series of carefully conducted experiments
+by Mr. Charles V. Mapes, he writes:</p>
+
+<p>"Salt was only effectual as a fertilizer in proportion
+as the soil contained accumulated supplies of
+plant food, either from previous manurings or from
+natural strength. Asparagus, unlike nearly all other
+crops, will stand almost unlimited quantities of salt
+without injury. It also thrives near the seashore,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span>
+and it was therefore generally believed that liberal
+quantities of salt were a necessity to its successful
+growth. Experience has shown, however, that its
+presence is not at all necessary for its growth, and
+that the reason that a bed to which salt has been
+applied shows quickened and improved growth is that
+the salt dissolves out of the soil plant food which,
+without the presence of the salt, would have become
+too slowly reduced to available condition for producing
+good crops. The salt acted practically as a stimulant
+and added nothing except chlorine and soda, neither
+of which in any considerable quantity is essential for
+growing this crop. It is this dissolving action that
+takes place in the soil whenever any soluble salt or
+fertilizer, like kainit, potash salts, acid phosphates,
+etc., be applied to the soil, that is often mistaken for
+a manuring one. The result is an exhaustion, not a
+strengthening, of the soil. The crop is grown at the
+expense of the limited supply of food that the soluble
+salt can act upon. The fertilizer has acted practically
+as a stimulant."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="XI" id="XI"></a>XI</h2>
+
+<h3>HARVESTING AND MARKETING</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> chief labor in asparagus culture is the cutting
+and bunching. As it is of the greatest
+importance that the work be done promptly
+and expeditiously, it is desirable to have
+more help than is wanted merely for the asparagus,
+and then, when the asparagus is ready for market,
+they can go to hoeing and tilling other crops. Five
+acres in full bearing will require from six to eight
+men from four to six hours per day to do the cutting
+and three or four to do the bunching. A successful
+farmer in western New York, who has four acres of
+asparagus, employs eight or ten boys and girls, for
+from three to six hours per day, to do the cutting
+and three women to bunch it. The women are paid by
+the bunch, and work five to ten hours per day. Piecework,
+if properly done, is nearly always cheaper than
+day work, and is better for the employ&eacute;s and the employer.</p>
+
+
+<h4>CUTTING</h4>
+
+<p>As has been stated in a previous chapter, cutting
+should not begin until the plants have become strong
+and vigorous, which requires two or three years from
+the planting. In the latitude of New York City the
+cutting season commences usually the last week in
+April and closes July 10th, although but few growers<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span>
+cut after the 1st, particularly if the season has been
+a favorable one. Except on old and well-established
+plantings, cutting should not extend for more than six
+or seven weeks. Some growers cut asparagus as long
+as it pays to ship, regardless of the damage done to the
+plants. The old rule to discontinue cutting asparagus
+when green peas are abundant is a safe one to follow,
+especially in the home garden. Unlike other crops,
+about as much can be cut each day, or at each cutting,
+as the day before, during the season, varying only
+according to the weather.</p>
+
+<p><i>Manner of cutting.</i>&mdash;The mode of cutting asparagus
+varies according to the requirements of the markets,
+whether green or white stalks are desired. Whatever
+individual preferences may be, the fact is that in
+New York City, and some other large market centers,
+75 per cent. of the asparagus sold is white or blanched,
+and it would be useless to try to persuade the buyers
+to take any other. To show how extreme the convictions
+are in this matter of taste, we quote from
+Prof. J. F. C. Du Pre, of the Clemson Agricultural
+College: "Why any one should prefer the almost
+tasteless, insipid white to the green 'grass,' into
+which the sunshine has put the flavor of ambrosia,
+is beyond my comprehension." On the other hand,
+Leb&oelig;uf, the famous asparagus expert of Argenteuil,
+writes: "Properly blanched asparagus is infinitely
+more tender and delicate than green. To serve up
+green asparagus is to dishonor the table."</p>
+
+<p>In recent years a compromise has been made between
+the two styles. By allowing the tops of the
+hilled-up sprouts to grow four inches above the sur<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span>face,
+the upper half of the stalk is green while the
+lower half remains white.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 469px;">
+<img src="images/i94.jpg" width="469" height="322" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 23&mdash;BASKET OF ASPARAGUS READY FOR THE BUNCHING
+SHED</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>For green asparagus the sprouts are cut when six
+or seven inches high, and then only so far below the
+surface as to furnish a stalk about nine inches long.
+For the white style the rows have to be ridged twelve
+inches above the crowns, and the stalks are cut as soon
+as the tops show above the ground, the cutting off
+being eight or nine inches below the surface.</p>
+
+<p>Whichever method is followed, it is very important
+to cut every day during the season, and to cut
+clean at each cutting, taking all the small sprouts as
+well as the large ones. If the weak and spindling
+shoots are allowed to grow they will draw away the
+strength from the roots, to the injury of the crop.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i95.jpg" width="640" height="418" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 24&mdash;CUTTING AND PICKING UP ASPARAGUS IN A TEN-ACRE FIELD OF C. W.
+PRESCOTT, MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASS.</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span></p>
+<p>When cutting, the sprout is taken in the left hand
+and the knife run down close alongside of it to the
+proper depth, carefully avoiding other spears that are
+just beginning to push up all around the crown.
+Then the handle of the knife is moved away from
+the stalk, to give it the proper slant, the knife shoved
+down so as to sever the stalk with a tapering cut,
+and at the same time the stalk is pulled out. After
+cutting, the asparagus should be removed out of the
+sun as soon as possible to prevent its wilting and
+discoloring. Usually this is done by dropping the
+stalks in a basket which, when full (Fig. 23), is
+carried to the bunching shed. On large plantations,
+however, the cutters leave the stalks on the ground to
+be picked up by boys following closely, as seen in
+Fig. 24. To facilitate the picking up and carrying
+away, horse carriers are used, as shown in Fig. 25.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 472px;">
+<img src="images/i96.jpg" width="472" height="192" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 25&mdash;HORSE CARRIER FOR TEN BOXES OF ASPARAGUS</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>In some sections of Europe, especially at the famous
+asparagus regions of Argenteuil, a knife is never used.
+According to W. Robinson: "The slightly hardened
+crust around the emerging bud and on top of the little
+mound is pushed aside, the fore and middle finger<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span>
+separated are then thrust deeply into the soft soil,
+pushing the earth outwards. If a rising shoot be met
+with on the way down, it is carefully avoided. A
+second plunge of the two fingers and pushing out of
+the earth usually brings them to the hardened ground
+about the crest of the root; the forefinger is then
+slipped behind the base of the shoot fit to gather, and
+rushed gently outward, when the shoot at once snaps
+clean off its base. This plan has the advantage of
+leaving no mutilated shoots or decaying matter on the
+ground. Once gathered, care is taken that the shoot
+is not exposed to the light, but placed at once in a
+covered basket. As soon as the stalk is gathered, the
+earth is gently and loosely drawn up with the hand, so
+as to leave the surface of the mound as it was before,
+not pressing the earth in any way, but keeping it quite
+free. The shoots are not rubbed or cleaned in any
+way&mdash;it would disfigure them, and they do not require
+it."</p>
+
+<p><i>Knives.</i>&mdash;There are several styles of knives for cutting
+asparagus, but an ordinary ten-inch butcher-knife
+with the point cut square off, leaving the end
+about an inch and a quarter wide and ground sharp
+like a chisel, answers the purpose as well as any of the
+implements made especially for the purpose. Another
+serviceable tool for cutting asparagus is a carpenter's
+thin firmer-chisel, one and one-half inches wide, nearly
+flat, and the thinnest that can be obtained ground on
+the convex side or back, about an inch from the end,
+which should be rounded off on the inside to prevent
+them from injuring sprouts near by. Other styles of
+asparagus knives are seen in Fig. 26.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>SORTING AND BUNCHING</h4>
+
+<p>In some local markets asparagus is sold loose, by
+weight, in which case but little regard is paid to the
+size and length and color of the stalks, nor to the style
+of packing. This is the most profitable way for the
+grower to sell, as it saves him all the expense and labor
+of bunching, and as even the smallest stalks are thus
+salable, there is no waste whatever, while the prices
+obtained are about the same as those for first-class
+bunches&mdash;that is, two pounds of loose asparagus sell
+for about the same price as a full-sized bunch. But in
+city markets asparagus could hardly be sold in such a
+condition, and it is of first importance that it should
+be carefully graded and neatly bunched.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 473px;">
+<img src="images/i98.jpg" width="473" height="297" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 26&mdash;VARIOUS ASPARAGUS KNIVES</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 457px;">
+<img src="images/i99.jpg" width="457" height="312" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 27&mdash;END AND SIDE VIEW OF PRIME WHITE ASPARAGUS
+BUNCHES</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Sorting.</i>&mdash;Careful growers assort into three sizes:
+extras, primes, and seconds. The size and weight of
+the bunches vary somewhat in different markets.
+Bunches varying from six to twelve inches in length
+are received at wholesale centers, but the most convenient
+and popular size for a bunch of prime white
+asparagus is eight and one-half inches long, averaging
+thirty spears, and weighing two pounds. The side
+view of one and the end view of three bunches of this
+size of white asparagus are shown in Fig. 27. To
+assure uniformity some ingenious contrivances have
+been invented, most of which are a great improvement
+over the old-time bunchers, consisting merely of a board
+with four pins, six inches long, and placed about four
+inches apart each way, to form a square. Two strings,
+usually of bast matting, were laid down on the board,
+which was set on a bench up against the wall, or had
+a back made of another board tacked on it at right
+angles. The asparagus was laid on the buncher be<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span>tween
+the pins, the tops touching the back or wall to
+keep them even. When the bunch was large enough
+the strings were tied firmly, and the butt end of the
+bunch cut square.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 316px;">
+<img src="images/i100.jpg" width="316" height="372" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 28&mdash;CONOVER&#39;S ASPARAGUS BUNCHER</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Bunchers.</i>&mdash;The modern bunchers are constructed
+of cast iron and are easily handled. One of the first to
+come into use was Conover's (Fig. 28). The principle
+of the operation is that the stalks are placed between
+two brass strips, a hinged cover is brought down by
+means of a lever and held in place until the strings are
+tied. Two ties should be used, one placed about two
+inches from either end. The bunch must be tied so
+tightly that it will not loosen in handling and transportation
+to market. The Watt's Buncher (Fig. 29),
+used extensively in New Jersey, is so arranged that the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span>
+arms may be adjusted to any size bunch desired by
+simply loosening the bolts at either end, and pulling
+out the arms so as to fit the shape of the bunch, and
+thus both ends can be bunched properly. The style
+of buncher and knives in favor with growers in the
+famous asparagus region near Concord, Mass., are seen
+in Fig. 30, and the process of bunching in Fig. 31.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 347px;">
+<img src="images/i101.jpg" width="347" height="247" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 29&mdash;WATT&#39;S ASPARAGUS BUNCHER</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Tying materials.</i>&mdash;Twine, Cuban bast, sisal, and
+various other materials are used for tying, but nothing
+is better for this purpose than raffia fiber. This is
+obtained from the raffia or rofia palm, a native of the
+island of Madagascar. The tree sends enormous
+branches from near the ground, the pinnate leaves of
+which produce this fiber. One palm frond will produce
+eighty to one hundred long, green leaflets from two to
+five feet in length, and from this the fiber is prepared.
+"Silk lamba" is also a product of this palm. Raffia
+fiber is now extensively used for tying up plants, for
+grafting, and many other purposes, as it is very strong,
+as soft as silk, and is not affected by moisture or<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span>
+changes of temperature, and it does not break or ravel
+when folded or knotted.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 477px;">
+<img src="images/i102.jpg" width="477" height="480" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 30&mdash;RACK AND KNIVES USED IN NEW ENGLAND</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 480px;">
+<img src="images/i103.jpg" width="480" height="315" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 31&mdash;AT THE BUNCHING TABLE</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Rubber bands.</i>&mdash;The use of rubber bands for fastening
+asparagus bunches has recently been found to have
+some advantages not possessed by other materials.
+Prof. W. J. Green, of the Ohio Experiment Station,
+writes in Bulletin No. 9: "The work can be done
+more rapidly and better. The saving in time is fully
+one-third, which will pay for the increased cost of
+rubber over string, reckoning wages at seventy-five<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span>
+cents per day. This difference might be less where
+expert tyers are employed, or very low rates per
+hundred bunches are paid. In any case, the work can
+be done in a manner that is much more satisfactory to
+dealers with rubber than with string. This is owing
+to the fact that rubber holds the bunches intact, while
+string allows them to fall apart and to become unsightly.
+Doubtless, in some cases, dealers would be willing to
+pay more for bunches fastened with rubber than for
+those put up in the ordinary manner. Even though
+no difference is made in price for asparagus put up by
+the two methods, the bunches fastened with rubber
+bands sell more readily than those tied with string.</p>
+
+<p>"Rubber bands can be bought for two dollars per
+pound, and the size best adapted to the purpose run
+about two thousand bands per pound, or sufficient for
+one thousand bunches. This makes rubber bands
+cost about two cents per dozen bunches more than
+string, if the saving in labor is not taken into consideration.</p>
+
+<p>"The saving in the item of labor depends, of
+course, upon the kind of labor employed. In determining
+the relative value of the two methods not only
+must cost of labor be taken into consideration, but the
+character of the market as well. When competition is
+not strong careful bunching is not a matter of great
+importance, but in many markets it is essential that
+the bunches be put up in such a manner that they will
+not fall apart. In such cases rubber bands will more
+than pay for their extra cost, by insuring more ready
+sales, if not by increasing the price.</p>
+
+<p>"The method employed in bunching with rubber<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span>
+bands is to slip a band over an ordinary teacup&mdash;one
+with straight sides and without a handle; fill the cup
+with asparagus shoots, the heads downward, and then
+slip the band from the cup to the bunch. This makes
+a bunch of about the right size, and gives the upper
+end a nicely rounded appearance. All that remains to
+be done is to slip on another band and to square the
+butts with a sharp knife. Possibly a metallic cup
+would answer better, being thinner, but a teacup is
+not objectionable in this particular. If smaller bunches
+are desired than the smallest cup that can be found, it
+is not necessary to fill the cup."</p>
+
+
+<h4>MARKETING</h4>
+
+<p>During the entire process of cutting, sorting,
+bunching, and packing great care must be exercised
+not to bruise or in any way injure the heads, as the
+gummy juice of these soon heats and spoils the whole.
+They should also be kept cool and dry, else the moisture
+causes decay. Of course if, when cutting, the
+ground is wet, some of the soil will adhere to the
+lower ends of the stalks; this has to be rinsed off in
+clean water, but not by immersing the entire stalk.</p>
+
+<p>If the bunches are to be kept over night, before
+packing, the butts should be dipped in clean water
+and stood on end on a cold cellar bottom, or upon
+grass or hay that has been thoroughly wet; but the
+crowns, or the green portions of the sprouts, should
+never be sprinkled or wet. It is a common practice to
+set the bunches in shallow pans containing water, but
+this is apt to give a bitter taste to the stalks.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 476px;">
+<img src="images/i106.jpg" width="476" height="453" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 32&mdash;BOX OF GIANT ASPARAGUS READY FOR SHIPMENT</span>
+</div>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 320px;">
+<img src="images/i107top.jpg" width="320" height="175" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 33&mdash;SOUTHERN ASPARAGUS CRATE, CONTAINING 24
+BUNCHES OF GREEN ASPARAGUS</span>
+</div> <div class="figcenter" style="width: 320px;">
+<img src="images/i107bottom.jpg" width="320" height="195" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 34&mdash;END PIECE OF SOUTHERN CRATE</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Crates.</i>&mdash;There is no standard shape or size of
+crates for shipping asparagus, and in the wholesale
+markets of New York City a great variety of styles is
+found. Of late ordinary twenty-four or thirty-two
+quart berry crates have come into favor with near by
+growers, as they are cheap, light, and easily handled.
+In these the bunches are laid down flat, in tiers, alternating
+the butt ends so that when the crates are full
+the top row is level with the cover. Some growers,
+of very fine asparagus even, use solid wooden boxes.
+Fig. 32 shows such a box containing three dozen
+bunches. A crate with the top a few inches narrower<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span>
+than the bottom has the advantage that it holds the
+bunches more firmly together than straight-sided
+boxes. Fig. 33 shows a crate containing two dozen
+bunches of green asparagus ready for shipment, with
+the exception of the slats to be nailed on the side.
+Fig. 34 shows the shape of the end pieces. These
+crates are made of various sizes, according to the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span>
+length of the bunches. The crate here illustrated was
+24 inches long, 12 inches high, 19 inches wide at the
+bottom, and 14-<sup>1</sup>/<sub>2</sub> inches at the top, inside measurement.
+The end boards were <sup>7</sup>/<sub>8</sub> of an inch thick, and
+the slats about half an inch.</p>
+
+<p>In shipping to a distant market some thoroughly
+wet grass, or sphagnum moss, should be put in the
+bottom of the crate, the bunches stood on ends, butt
+down, and pressed so tightly together that they can
+not move or shift in handling. The crate should have
+a tight bottom and ends. The sides may be tight half
+way up, and the rest of the sides and the top should
+be slatted. This keeps the butts moist and the tops
+dry and cool.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="XII" id="XII"></a>XII</h2>
+
+<h3>FORCING</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> forcing of asparagus in various methods has
+been practiced for centuries, and is rapidly
+developing into an important industry. The
+forcing may be done in any place where a
+temperature of 50&deg; to 60&deg; can be secured, in the greenhouse,
+hotbed, pit, cellar, or in the garden and field.
+Whichever plan is pursued, the management of the
+plants to be forced is the same. The roots should not
+be less than three years old, and, if obtainable, four or
+five-year-old plants are to be preferred. These may be
+dug up from ordinary out-of-door plantations, or, if
+the forcing is to be done on a large scale and as a permanent
+industry, the plants have to be grown from
+seed for this special purpose. To keep up a continuous
+succession new sowings have to be made every
+year. The sowing of the seed and the management
+of the plants during the first year is the same as
+described in <a href="#V">Chapter V</a>.</p>
+
+<p>The following year, as early as the season permits,
+the one-year-old seedlings are planted out in rows, to develop
+as much strength as possible. As the plants are to
+remain only two years in the nursery bed, they may be
+placed closer than in a permanent plantation. A distance
+of two and one-half feet between the rows and one
+foot in the rows is, however, the narrowest limit, and,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span>
+where enough ground is available, three by one and
+one-half or two feet would be still better. By purchasing
+one-year-old plants a year's time may be
+gained, but otherwise there are decided advantages in
+raising one's own plants. During the following two
+seasons the ground has to be kept in the best possible
+tilth, and at the end of the third season from seed the
+roots may be dug just before the ground is likely to
+freeze. In lifting the roots it is important not to expose
+them to the drying influence of the sun and air
+more than is unavoidable. It is also important to preserve
+the entire clump intact with as much soil adhering
+to the roots and crown as possible. They are
+then placed in a shed, pit, or cool cellar, and covered
+with sand or soil to prevent their drying out. Moderate
+freezing does not injure the roots, and some
+growers think that it even adds to their forcing value.</p>
+
+
+<h4>FORCING IN THE GREENHOUSE</h4>
+
+<p>With florists the forcing of asparagus has this important
+advantage: that the income obtained from it is
+nearly all gain, as the space under the benches, which
+may thus be utilized, is of but little use for other purposes.
+If the floor under the benches is soil this is
+dug out so as to form a pit about a foot deep, or at
+least a few inches deeper than the clumps are high.
+Three or four inches of good rich soil is scattered over
+the bottom, and upon this the clumps are placed close
+together. Dry, mellow soil is then scattered between
+and over the clumps, so that the crowns are covered
+one or two inches, and given a thorough watering. If
+blanched shoots are desired, the crowns will have to be<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span>
+covered with six or eight inches of soil. The same
+object may be obtained by shutting off the light, which
+can easily be accomplished under greenhouse benches.
+Where it is not practicable to make excavations under
+the benches, a pit may be constructed by placing
+boards against the posts and filling in the space thus
+furnished. To secure a succession, new roots from
+the reserve stock have to be planted every three or
+four weeks.</p>
+
+<p>For the first week or ten days after placing the
+roots in the forcing-pit they should be kept rather cool,
+so as to give them a chance to become established. A
+temperature of 45&deg; to 50&deg; is best, at first. Afterward
+it should be raised to 55&deg; to 60&deg;, and during the day
+it may rise as high as 80&deg; to 85&deg;. But, as a rule, very
+high temperatures induce a spindling growth. During
+the entire forcing process asparagus requires a large
+amount of water, but unless it has the chill taken off,
+and ample means for drainage are provided, it may do
+far more harm than good. The interval between the
+time of planting and the first cutting varies greatly,
+according to the temperature and other conditions.</p>
+
+<p>The following are actual dates of asparagus forcing
+under benches at Cornell University: Plants taken
+from an old patch November 29th and set under
+benches three days later. December 4th, shoots just
+pushing through. December 8th, first shoots cut,
+averaging nine inches long. December 14th, first good
+cutting, shoots running from six to fifteen inches long.
+December 18th, second good cutting. December 26th,
+a good cutting, some of the shoots having remained
+too long and become woody; some of these shoots were<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span>
+two feet long. January 10th, a heavy cutting. January
+19th, cut about half as many shoots as on the 10th.
+January 30th, cut about as much as on the 19th, but
+shoots growing smaller. February 10th, small cutting
+of weak shoots. Beyond this time there were no
+shoots worth cutting.</p>
+
+
+<h4>FORCING IN HOTBEDS AND FRAMES</h4>
+
+<p>The forcing of asparagus in hotbeds does not differ
+materially from that in the greenhouse, except in the
+supply of heat. "A most suitable place for forcing
+asparagus," writes William Scott, in <i>Garden and Forest</i>,
+"is a frame about four feet deep with one-fourth inch
+hot-water pipe running around it. About two and
+one-half feet of fresh stable litter should be put into
+the frame and firmly packed, with an inch or two of
+sand spread over it. This bed should be allowed to
+stand until the heat of the manure has declined
+to about 70&deg;, and not below 65&deg;, before the crowns
+are placed on it. For this work advantage should
+be taken of a day when the weather is mild, as
+the crowns are easily damaged by frost. Large crowns
+five or six years old are preferable to smaller ones for
+forcing. They may be placed rather closely together
+in the frame, but the distance apart must be regulated
+by their size. The roots should be spread evenly over
+the surface and covered with six inches of sand. Little
+water will be required, as the steam from the manure
+affords considerable moisture; but if the bed should
+become dry, it may be moistened with water of the
+same temperature as the soil in the frame. A little
+air may be admitted, when the day is bright and warm,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span>
+to keep the temperature from rising above 80&deg;.
+When the points of the shoots begin to appear above
+the sand the crop is ready to cut. When ground is
+plentiful, a supply of forcing crowns can be kept
+up by sowing a little seed every year, having five
+or six successions, the oldest plants being forced for
+cutting."</p>
+
+<p>With French gardeners it is customary to plunge
+the frames in warm stable manure and place the roots
+directly in the manure, packed as closely together as
+possible. A mere sprinkling of soil is placed over
+them. As a result the shoots come up very thick.
+Only strong, fine three-year-old roots are used, and
+as many as five crops of roots follow each other through
+the autumn, winter, and spring in the same frame.
+Straw mats are used to cover the frames at night.</p>
+
+
+<h4>FORCING IN THE FIELD</h4>
+
+<p>Forcing asparagus where it is grown in the field
+has a twofold advantage over removing the roots to a
+warm place. First, it saves the trouble and expense of
+transplanting them, which must be done with much
+care; and, second, it saves the plants from being ruined
+by the forcing process. Plants forced in the field
+where they grow will, if given good care, regain their
+vigor in a season or two, and may be used again for
+forcing. By this latter method a better quality and a
+larger quantity of marketable asparagus is also secured.</p>
+
+<p>Various means have been devised to force asparagus
+in the field, where it is so well established that it
+continues growth in the summer as though it had not
+been forced the previous winter. A simple and rather<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span>
+common method of accomplishing this is to place
+barrels over clumps of asparagus very early in the
+spring and pile fermenting manure about them, the
+warmth from the manure forcing the shoots into rapid
+growth. When the forcing season is over and the
+danger from frost is past the barrels are removed, and
+the plants continue growth in the open air. Sometimes
+asparagus is forced by placing frames, covered
+with sash, over the plants in the field, the rows of
+asparagus being set rather close together. This is
+considered a very profitable method by many market
+gardeners. Another method of forcing asparagus in
+the field is to dig ditches between the rows and fill
+them with fermenting manure. The surface of the
+bed may also be mulched with manure. The latter
+plan is extensively practiced by French market
+gardeners.</p>
+
+<p>At the beginning of November the pathways
+between the beds of asparagus are dug up about two
+feet in depth and width. The soil coming from the
+pathway is divided very carefully and put about eight
+inches thick on the surface of the bed. The trench is
+filled up with fresh stable manure, not litter, and
+frames are placed on the bed. The manure should rise
+as high as the top of the frames and the lights be
+entirely covered with mats and litter to prevent the
+heat accumulating in the frame from escaping. In
+about two or three weeks the asparagus begins to show
+itself on the surface of the bed. Many market gardeners
+cover the whole of the bed inside the frames to a thickness
+of three or four inches with manure, to force the
+vegetation more quickly; but in this case the manure<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span>
+must be removed when the asparagus begins to shoot.
+When the shoots are about three inches out of the
+ground they may be cut. The mats must be taken off
+in the daytime, but the heat must be well kept up, else
+the roots and buds will fail to push. The beds are
+forced every second year only. The gathering of the
+asparagus may continue for about two months but no
+longer, or the plantation would be injured. When the
+gathering is over the frames are taken away, and the
+soil which was dug up from the alleys is put back
+again.</p>
+
+<p>An ingenious method of forcing asparagus in the
+field by means of shallow tunnels was devised and successfully
+carried out by Prof. J. C. Whitten, at the
+Missouri Experiment Station, who gives the following
+account in Bulletin No. 43:</p>
+
+<p>"The field selected for the experiment was planted
+to asparagus about ten years ago. The plants were
+in fair vigor, though of a small variety. The first
+section forced embraced six rows, four feet apart, and
+fifty feet long. Fig. 35 shows this section with one
+tunnel uncovered. Trenches were first made between
+the rows. This was done by plowing between them,
+twice in a place, throwing the furrows on the plants
+so as to cover each row with two furrows of loose
+earth. These trenches between the rows were then
+made uniform by means of the spade. When finished
+they were three or four inches lower than the crowns
+of asparagus in the adjacent rows. These trenches
+were then covered with twelve-inch boards, which
+rested on four-inch blocks, placed at frequent intervals
+along either side of the trenches. This formed tunnels
+between the rows for conducting the steam. To
+guard against the steam's escaping, two or three
+inches of soil was placed over the boards, and the
+asparagus patch was then covered with five or six
+inches of horse manure. This covering was to prevent
+the heat from escaping from the soil too rapidly. It
+was then ready for the steam to be turned into the
+tunnels.</p><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i116.jpg" width="640" height="375" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 35&mdash;TUNNEL THROUGH THE ROWS OF ASPARAGUS FOR FORCING STEAM THROUGH THE SOIL</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"To conduct the steam a one and one-half inch
+pipe was carried above ground from the boiler to one
+end of the central tunnel, a distance of one hundred
+and eighty-five feet. A steam hose long enough to
+reach each tunnel was attached to this pipe through
+which to blow steam into the tunnels. It was not the
+idea to give a constant supply of steam, but to discharge
+a little into the tunnels each afternoon, or as
+often as was necessary to maintain sufficient warmth.
+A piece of tile was inserted into the mouth of each
+tunnel to prevent the discharging steam from tearing
+away the earth.</p>
+
+<p>"The first steam was turned into the tunnels on
+November 14th. Steam was discharged into each
+tunnel, not to exceed five minutes at a time, in order
+not to heat the earth too hot in any single place. It
+required about one hour of steaming the first day to
+bring the bed up to the required temperature of sixty
+degrees. The distribution of heat throughout the
+bed was very uniform and satisfactory. The moist
+steam seemed to permeate the soil equally in all
+directions.</p>
+
+<p>"After the first day very little steaming was necessary
+until the asparagus began to be produced. On<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>
+an average the bed was steamed about twice in three
+days and then only for about five minutes for each
+tunnel. The soil and horse manure mulch seemed to
+hold the heat very well, the frequent steamings keeping
+up fermentation in the mulch.</p>
+
+<p>"The first asparagus was cut November 24th, ten
+days after the first steam was applied. The stems
+were cut just before they got through the soil and
+were perfectly bleached. They were as large as those
+ordinarily produced during the normal period of
+growth in spring, and were far more crisp and
+delicious.</p>
+
+<p>"Cuttings of asparagus were made almost daily for
+about a month, when the growth became somewhat
+weak. The last cutting was made on December 22d.
+During the month 141 bunches of the ordinary market
+size, and weighing about one-half pound each, were
+cut from this bed of 25 x 50 feet. This was equivalent
+to 300 feet of row or 100 hills of asparagus.</p>
+
+<p>"Exhausting steam into the asparagus bed, instead
+of returning it to the boiler in an inclosed circuit, would
+at first seem to be a wasteful process of heating.
+Experiment showed, however, that the circumstances
+justified this method. Heating a bed of this kind by
+a circuit of steam-pipes or hot-water pipes is very unsatisfactory.
+The heat from pipes very soon dries out
+the soil around the tunnels, destroying its power to
+conduct heat. In this way the bed becomes too hot
+and dry adjacent to the tunnels and too cold a short
+distance from them. It also becomes necessary to
+maintain heat in the pipes a good part of the time.</p>
+
+<p>"By blowing steam directly into the tunnels the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span>
+soil is kept moist; the steam has a penetrating effect,
+and permeates all parts of the bed, giving a uniform
+heat throughout; this moist steam keeps up a continual
+fermentation of the manure mulch, thus giving
+heat, and only occasional brief steamings are necessary.</p>
+
+<p>"Care must be taken not to use too much steam
+at one time, or the plants may be ruined by overheating.
+Our asparagus rows were four feet apart, the
+tunnels midway between them were only eight inches
+wide, and yet we found that five minutes at a time
+was as long as was safe to force steam into a single
+tunnel.</p>
+
+<p>"These experiments have been so successful as to
+indicate that any one provided with a steam-heating
+plant could successfully force asparagus for the markets
+in this manner."</p>
+
+<p>Another plan of forcing asparagus in the field,
+devised by Prof. L. H. Bailey, is thus described in his
+"Forcing Book": "The Cornell asparagus house&mdash;if
+it may be called a house&mdash;is about twenty by fifty feet
+and the frame is made of steam-pipes. The sides, or
+walls, are only eighteen inches high, and the frame
+consists simply of a ridge and three pairs of rafters.
+The steam-heating pipe or riser is just beneath the
+ridge, and this feeds two returns upon either side of
+the house, next the walls. When it is desired to force
+the asparagus, canvas or muslin is stretched over the
+frames. No difficulty has been found in starting the
+asparagus into growth in January and February. The
+cover is left on and the heat kept up until all danger
+of frost is past, when the canvas is removed and the
+plants grow naturally out-of-doors. The secret of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span>
+this method will no doubt be found to lie in allowing
+the plantation to become very thoroughly established
+(at least, three or four years old) before forcing is
+attempted, in the very best tillage and fertilizing during
+the summer while the plants are growing, in taking
+off the cover just as soon as settled weather comes,
+and in not cutting the plants until after that time."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="XIII" id="XIII"></a>XIII</h2>
+
+<h3>PRESERVING ASPARAGUS</h3>
+
+
+<h4>CANNING</h4>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capt.jpg" alt="T" title="T" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">he</span> canning factory has made asparagus a vegetable
+for every day of the year instead of
+being a luxury for a few weeks, as was formerly
+the case. The canners have made it
+a farm crop instead of a garden product. To a great
+extent canning has transformed the farm into a garden,
+increasing the profits from every acre planted
+many fold. In many localities an acre of what was
+formerly considered a sandy waste is now yielding
+more than double the net profit of the best acre under
+cultivation in ordinary farm crops.</p>
+
+<p><i>Eastern methods.</i>&mdash;The pioneers in this industry on
+Long Island, N. Y., have been the Messrs. Hudson &amp;
+Sons, who have extensive plants at Mattituck and
+Riverhead, each of them as complete as mechanical
+skill and enterprise can make them. Each plant consists
+of a storehouse, 50 x 150 feet; a packing-house,
+40 x 125 feet; and a can manufactory, 25 x 60 feet. A
+steam-engine of ten horse-power is required for hoisting,
+pumping, and for generating gas for the soldering-heaters,
+and a boiler of one hundred horse-power to
+generate steam for sterilizing the asparagus. A perspective
+view of one of the plants is seen in Fig. 36.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i122.jpg" width="640" height="383" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 36&mdash;PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF A LONG ISLAND ASPARAGUS CANNERY</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span></p>
+<p>The asparagus, as it comes from the growers, is in
+bunches seven and one-half inches long and weighing
+two and one-half pounds each. These bunches are put
+under a cutter and cut to six and five-eighths inches; they
+are then untied and put in a tank four feet wide by eight
+feet long and two feet deep, in which they are washed
+as carefully as it is possible to do it. It is then hoisted
+up to what is called the blanching tank, which contains
+forty gallons. In this it is kept at a scalding heat for
+one-half hour, when it is ready for the cans. These
+are filled by women who soon become very dextrous,
+which is always the case when the pay is in proportion
+to the amount of work done. Each can contains just
+one and one-half pounds. Exact weight is imperative,
+as are details in all manufacturing establishments.
+Great care is exercised in packing, so that there are no
+bruised or broken heads, and that on opening the can
+the stalks may appear as well as if cut fresh from the
+garden. After the asparagus is in the cans they are
+filled with a weak brine, which not only expels the
+air, but adds materially to the flavor of the asparagus.</p>
+
+<p>The cans are then taken to the soldering-bench for
+sealing up. There systematic labor is noticeable, as
+every detail of canning must be carried on systematically
+to make it profitable. The soldering-irons
+used are hollow and the exact size of the caps, which
+fit perfectly the grooves made for them. A single
+turn of the iron finishes the work. Before the caps
+are put in their places a small hole is made in each to
+allow the gas, which is generated by the heat from the
+soldering, to escape. Without this precaution it would
+be impossible to hermetically seal the cans. A single
+drop of solder closes the small opening, and the cans
+are ready for the retorts for sterilizing.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i124.jpg" width="640" height="381" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 37&mdash;STERILIZING TANK</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Here two methods are employed&mdash;dry steam, which
+is the quicker method, and boiling in a closed tank.
+Most of the first-class stock is sterilized in the latter.
+This tank (Fig. 37) is in three sections, in all twenty
+feet long, each section holding five hundred cans. The
+cans are put in iron cribs and are pushed in and taken
+out with steam elevators. As soon as the cans are
+lowered the sections are closed tightly and the steam
+is turned on. The first process of sterilization lasts
+twenty minutes, when the tank is opened, the cans
+taken out, and a vent given each. This permits the
+accumulated gas to escape, which, if allowed to remain,
+would materially injure the quality of the asparagus,
+both in flavor and preservation. For this work a small
+prick punch is used, which makes a hole not larger
+than a pin's head. This vent is almost immediately
+closed with a single drop of solder and the cans are
+again returned to the tanks, where the same operation
+of cooking is repeated. Another twenty minutes completes
+the work, when the cans are removed to the
+packing-room, where they are labeled, wrapped, and
+packed ready for shipment. The cans or boxes are
+seven inches long, four wide, and two and one-half
+deep. A view of the sterilizing-room is presented in
+Fig. 38.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i126.jpg" width="640" height="386" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 38&mdash;VIEW OF STERILIZING-ROOM</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span></p>
+<p>The culls, which are put up as tips, are small-sized
+and crooked heads which, although of equal value as a
+vegetable, are not shipped to market, as they would
+detract from the value of the first quality, and are considered
+by both farmers and canners as by-products.
+These are cut to three and one-half inches in length,
+and then go through the same process in canning as
+the first quality, except that dry steam only is used in
+sterilization. After going through the blanching
+process the tips are put in round cans, four inches in
+diameter and five inches high. After soldering up
+these cans they are put in the retorts, which are three
+feet square, each containing five hundred cans, and
+treated with steam two hundred and fifty pounds to
+the inch. The cans remain in these retorts half an
+hour. Then they are taken out, vented, put back
+again, and remain under the same pressure another
+half hour, when the work is completed.</p>
+
+<p>By rigid economy even in the most minute detail,
+and by the skill required in the knowledge of canning,
+asparagus can now be had at a reasonable price at all
+seasons of the year, which is a boon to both producer
+and consumer. At $14.00 per one hundred bunches
+for No. 1 and $7.00 per hundred bunches for No. 2,
+or culls, asparagus is one of the most profitable of
+agricultural crops, and even at one-half these prices
+it is a much better paying crop than potatoes at 50
+cents per bushel.</p>
+
+<p><i>Pacific Coast methods.</i>&mdash;Canning and preserving of
+asparagus in California is carried on on as grand a
+scale as are most other undertakings. An idea of the
+extent and importance of this comparatively new
+industry may readily be conceived when it is considered
+that one establishment alone, The Hickmott Asparagus
+Canning Co., on Bouldin Island, in the San Joaquin
+River, has recently shipped an entire train-load of
+canned asparagus from San Francisco to New York.
+This train consisted of fifteen freight-cars containing
+600 cases each, making a total of 9,000 cases, averaging
+forty-eight pounds each, thus making an actual
+weight of 432,000 pounds. By far the larger portion
+of the yearly asparagus crop in California is canned or
+preserved in glass, and in that shape sent to the East,
+exported to England and the continent of Europe, and,
+in fact, to every civilized country of the world. For
+canneries where nothing but the white product is put
+up the shoots are cut the instant they show their tips
+above the surface. The canneries are located as near
+the fields as possible, the effort being to get the product
+in glass or cans before it becomes in any way
+withered, the important point being that asparagus is
+never allowed to become dried.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span></p><div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i128.jpg" width="640" height="395" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 39&mdash;INTERIOR VIEW OF A CALIFORNIA ASPARAGUS CANNERY</span>
+</div>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 480px;">
+<img src="images/i130.jpg" width="480" height="310" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 40&mdash;PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF CANNING PLANTS AT BOULDIN ISLAND</span>
+</div>
+<p>The method employed at Bouldin Island, where a
+crop of 1,500 acres is canned annually, is to have<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span>
+troughs containing running water in shady places in
+the fields. The asparagus, as fast as cut, is brought
+to these troughs, and is thoroughly washed. These
+troughs are just wide enough to take in the shoots of
+the proper length for canning, and each piece is trimmed
+before being immersed. From the troughs the asparagus
+is taken to the sorting table, then on to the scalding
+vats until it reaches the fillers, where is completed the
+systematic handling of this product, packing it to perfection,
+nothing remaining except to be labeled, when
+it is ready to be forwarded to the markets of the world.
+The entire process from the time the stalks are taken
+from the ground to the time they are ready for the
+table consumes less than six hours. The process
+throughout is a marvel of cleanliness, particular attention
+and stress being laid on every detail connected
+with it. No bleaching agents or anything foreign or
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span>
+deleterious whatever is used in the packing of this
+plant. In Fig. 39 is seen the interior of one of these
+canneries, where the especially constructed solderless
+cans of the company are being packed. Everything
+connected with the growing, harvesting, and canning
+is done on Bouldin Island, save only the printing
+of the labels. That the operators may be lodged
+in comfort the company has erected modern cottages
+for their employ&eacute;s who have families, besides
+well-equipped boarding-houses. The development and
+growth of this asparagus cannery is one of the marvels
+of California. Starting ten years ago with a rented
+boiler, under the arched dome of the sky for a roof, and
+nothing but the shade of weeping willows for a storehouse,
+as seen in the Frontispiece, it has developed
+into a superb plant, equipped with all modern appliances.
+During the active season 1,500 hands are employed
+directly and indirectly by the canning company,
+and the estimated output for the average season is
+150,000 cases. Figs. 40 and 41 present perspective
+views of some of the asparagus canneries on Bouldin
+Island.</p>
+
+
+<h4>DRYING</h4>
+
+<p>Although the drying of asparagus is not much
+practiced in America, it is well worth the attention of
+those who at times have a surplus of fresh stalks.
+Dried asparagus is especially recommended for soups
+and sauces, and if properly prepared it is no less desirable
+as a table vegetable. Dried asparagus keeps
+indefinitely, and cost of transportation is largely reduced.
+For the latter purpose medium-sized spears
+are most suitable, as they dry more evenly than larger
+ones. Some recommend the peeling or scalding of the
+stalks before drying, but this is not essential, and, if
+desired, may be done after steaming. On a large
+scale the drying may be done in any modern evaporator.</p><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i132.jpg" width="640" height="411" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 41&mdash;CANNERY IN ASPARAGUS FIELDS</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<p>For home use the most satisfactory way is to string
+the stalks with a large needle and strong thread
+through the butt ends of the stalks, and hang them
+along buildings or fences where they are exposed to
+the full rays of the sun. To insure a uniform drying
+it is important that all the spears on the string are of
+the same thickness, as the thicker ones require more
+time to dry than those of smaller size. When the air
+is dry and warm one day's exposure to the sun will be
+sufficient to dry them. Otherwise the strings will
+have to be hung up in the kitchen in the evening, or
+in some other dry place over night, to be brought out
+again the following morning, until the asparagus is
+perfectly dry. It is then ready to be put in boxes or
+loose bags and stored in a dry place. If the stalks
+have been peeled before drying, when desired for use
+they are placed in cold water for half an hour, some
+salt is added, and they are cooked like fresh asparagus.</p>
+
+<p>For preparing dried asparagus that has not been
+peeled before drying, Dr. Brinckmeier recommends
+taking a sufficient number of the dried stalks and
+place them in water, which, while not boiling, is very
+near the boiling point, and keeping them there until they
+resume their succulent, smooth, fresh appearance. To
+keep the water just right a double boiler is best, with
+the stalks in the inner one. The water in the outer
+vessel should be kept at a steady boil. As the stalks<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span>
+resume the fresh appearance, take them out carefully
+one by one and place in cold water until cooled, after
+which place on a dish to dry. They should be carefully
+scalded to remove the hard outside skin, done up
+in a bundle, either by tying with strings or wrapping
+in a piece of netting, placed in boiling water, to which
+a little salt has been added, and allowed to remain
+there a few moments&mdash;a very few, for it cooks quickly&mdash;until
+done.</p>
+
+<p>These methods are recommended for white asparagus
+only, and when properly dried and cooked
+asparagus so treated is by many considered to be
+hardly distinguishable from the freshly cut, although
+it looses its white color in the process. Smaller and
+green stalks may be dried on wire frames or wooden
+racks over the kitchen stove, similar to apples.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="XIV" id="XIV"></a>XIV</h2>
+
+<h3>INJURIOUS INSECTS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capw.jpg" alt="W" title="W" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">hile</span> a number of different insects feed upon the
+asparagus plant, there are only two species
+which have so far become extensively distributed
+and caused serious damage in the
+United States. Both of these were imported from
+Europe, and are limited for their food supply to the
+asparagus plant.</p>
+
+
+<h4>THE COMMON ASPARAGUS BEETLE<a name="Atop" id="Atop"></a><span class="fnanchor"><a href="#A">[A]</a></span></h4>
+
+<p class="center">(<i>Crioceris asparagi</i>)</p>
+
+<p>This beetle is by far the most important enemy
+of the asparagus plant. It was first noticed in this
+country at Astoria, L. I., now a part of New York
+City, in 1859, but its actual introduction into that
+locality occurred about 1856. The injury inflicted by
+this insect is due to the work of both adults and larv&aelig;
+upon the tender shoots, which they render unfit for
+market, early in the season. Later they destroy, by
+defoliation, growing plants, and are particularly injurious
+to seedlings, the roots of which are weakened
+by having their tops devoured. Larv&aelig;, as well as
+beetles, attack the tenderest portions of the plants, but
+the latter gnaw with seemingly equal relish the epidermis,
+or rind, of the stems. The beetles are also
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span>accused of gnawing young shoots beneath the surface,
+causing them to become woody and crooked in growth.</p>
+
+<p>The beetle illustrated in Fig. 42 is a most beautiful
+creature&mdash;from the entomologist's point of view&mdash;slender
+and graceful in form, blue-black in color, with
+red thorax and lemon-yellow and dark blue elytra or
+wing covers, with reddish border. Its length is a
+trifle less than one-fourth of an inch.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 469px;">
+<img src="images/i136.jpg" width="469" height="301" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 42&mdash;COMMON ASPARAGUS BEETLE <br />
+
+<i>a</i>, beetle; <i>b</i>, egg; <i>c</i>, newly hatched larva; <i>d</i>, full-grown larva</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>From the scene of its first colonization in Queen's
+County, N. Y., the insect migrated to the other truck-growing
+portions of Long Island. It soon reached
+southern Connecticut, and has now extended its range
+northward through Massachusetts to New Hampshire.
+Southward it has traveled through New Jersey, where
+it was first noticed in 1868, to southern Virginia. At
+present it is well established in the principal asparagus-growing
+sections of New England, of New Jersey,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span>
+Delaware, and Maryland, and is present in Pennsylvania,
+New York, and Ohio. The question of distribution
+is an important one, as this species is rapidly
+extending its range. In a very few years we may expect
+its spread to other portions of the States in which
+it is now local, and later it will naturally move westward
+to Indiana and other States west and south of
+there.</p>
+
+<p>The insect passes the winter in the beetle state
+under convenient shelter, and toward the end of April
+or early in May, according to locality, or at the season
+for cutting the asparagus for market, issues from its
+hibernating quarters and lays its eggs for the first
+brood. The eggs are deposited endwise upon the stem
+or foliage, and in the early spring upon the developed
+stalks, usually in rows of from two to six, or more.
+In from three to eight days the eggs hatch, the young
+larv&aelig;, commonly called "grubs" or "worms," presenting
+the appearance indicated in Fig. 42, <i>c</i>. They at
+once begin to feed, and are from ten days to a fortnight,
+according to Fitch and others, in attaining full
+growth. When full grown the larva appears as in
+Fig. 42, <i>d</i>. It is soft and fleshy, much wrinkled, and
+in color dark gray or olive, which usually becomes
+lighter and yellowish with age. The mature larva
+enters the earth, and here, within a little rounded,
+dirt-covered cocoon which it forms, the pupa state is
+assumed. In from five to eight or more days the
+adult beetle is produced, which soon issues from the
+ground in search of food and of a suitable place for
+the continuance of the species. In Fig. 43 is shown a
+spray of asparagus, with the common asparagus beetle
+in its different stages, asparagus top at the right showing
+eggs and injury.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 367px;">
+<img src="images/i138.jpg" width="367" height="628" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 43&mdash;SPRAY AND TOP OF ASPARAGUS ATTACKED BY
+BEETLES</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The duration of the life cycle is about thirty days
+from the time the eggs are laid until the insects attain
+maturity, but the time is shorter in the hotter parts of
+a season than in the cooler days of May or September.
+In the District of Columbia the eggs, in the warmest
+part of midsummer, develop in three days and the
+pup&aelig; in five days. From this it may be estimated
+that, in the very warmest weather, the development of
+the insect may be effected in about three weeks from
+the time the egg is laid. In colder climates and in
+spring and autumn the development from egg to beetle
+will require from four to perhaps seven weeks. In the
+northern range of the species, two and perhaps three
+broods are usually produced, and farther southward
+there is a possibility of at least a fourth generation. In
+the latitude of the District of Columbia the beetles
+usually disappear to enter into hibernation in the latter
+days of September.</p>
+
+<p>The common asparagus beetle has very efficient
+checks in the shape of predaceous insects, which prey
+upon its larv&aelig; and assist in preventing its undue increase.
+One of the most active of these predaceous
+insects is the spotted ladybird (<i>Megilla maculata</i> DeG.),
+represented in its several stages in the illustration (Fig.
+44.) The adult of this beetle is rose-colored, with
+numerous black spots. The spined soldier-bug (<i>Podisus
+spinosus</i> Dal.) and the bordered soldier-bug (<i>Stiretrus
+anchorado</i> Fab.) are also useful as destroyers of
+asparagus beetle larv&aelig;, which they catch and kill by
+impaling them upon their long beaks and sucking out<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span>
+their juices. Certain species of wasps and small
+dragon-flies also prey upon the larv&aelig;. Asparagus
+beetles are very susceptible to sudden changes of temperature,
+and immense numbers of hibernating beetles
+are sometimes killed in winter during severe cold spells
+following "open" weather.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 421px;">
+<img src="images/i140.jpg" width="421" height="279" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 44&mdash;SPOTTED LADYBIRD<br />
+
+<i>a</i>, larva; <i>b</i>, empty pupal skin; <i>c</i>, beetle, with enlarged antenna above</span>
+</div>
+
+<p><i>Remedies.</i>&mdash;The common asparagus beetle, under
+ordinary circumstances, may be held in restraint by
+the simplest means. Chickens and ducks are efficient
+destroyers of the insect, and their services are often
+brought into requisition for this purpose. A practice
+that is in high favor among prominent asparagus
+growers is to cut down all plants, including volunteer
+growth, in early spring to force the beetles to deposit
+their eggs upon new shoots, which are then cut every
+day before the eggs have time to hatch. Another
+measure of value consists in permitting a portion of the
+shoots to grow and serve as lures for the beetles. Here<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span>
+they may be killed with insecticides, or the plants,
+after they become covered with eggs, may be cut down
+and burned, and other shoots be allowed to grow up
+as decoys. One of the best and least expensive remedies
+against the larv&aelig; is fresh air-slacked lime dusted
+on the plants in the early morning while the dew is on.
+It quickly destroys all the grubs with which it comes
+in contact. The lime may be conveniently applied by
+means of a whisk-broom or a Paris green sifter. Even
+dry road dust applied in this manner will have a beneficial
+effect. The special merit of these insecticides is
+that they can be used without the least danger upon
+young shoots being cut for market or home use.</p>
+
+<p>Paris green and other arsenites, applied dry in powder,
+mixed with flour or plaster, or in solution, answer
+equally well, after cutting has ceased, and possess the
+advantage of destroying beetles as well as larv&aelig;. One
+pound of Paris green to a barrel of fine plaster makes
+a sufficiently strong mixture. It may be necessary to
+make two of these applications at intervals or as often
+as the larv&aelig; reappear on the plants. Powdered hellebore
+mixed with flour, one part to ten, or in solution
+of one ounce of hellebore to three gallons of water, is
+also very effective against the young larv&aelig;. Pyrethrum
+or buhach may be used in similar manner, and
+kerosene emulsion has been highly recommended by
+some experimenters. In hot weather, when the soil
+is dry, the larv&aelig; may be brushed or shaken from the
+plants so that they will drop to the heated ground,
+where they die, being unable to regain the shelter of
+the plants. Whichever methods for the destruction of
+this pest are adopted, unless the work be done thor<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span>oughly
+and with concerted action by all the growers in
+the section, the relief can not be permanent.</p>
+
+
+<h4>THE TWELVE-SPOTTED ASPARAGUS BEETLE</h4>
+
+<p class="center">(<i>Crioceris 12-punctata</i> Linn)</p>
+
+<p>The presence of this insect in America was first
+detected in 1881, and it is still much rarer and consequently
+less injurious than the preceding species. In
+Europe, where it is apparently native, it is common
+but not especially destructive. The chief source of
+damage from this species is from the work of the
+hibernated beetles in early spring upon the young and
+edible asparagus shoots. Later beetles as well as
+larv&aelig; appear to feed exclusively upon the berries.
+The eggs are deposited singly, and apparently by preference,
+upon old plants toward the end of shoots,
+which, lower down, bear ripening berries, and they
+are attached along their sides instead of at one end, as
+in the case with the eggs of the common species.
+Soon after the larva hatches from the egg it finds its
+way to an asparagus berry, enters it, and feeds upon
+the pulp. In due time it leaves the first berry for
+another one, and when full growth is attained it
+deserts its last larval habitation and enters the earth,
+where it transforms to pupa and afterward to the adult
+beetle. The life cycle does not differ materially from
+that of the common species, and there are probably
+the same or nearly as many generations developed.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 430px;">
+<img src="images/i143.jpg" width="430" height="303" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 45&mdash;TWELVE-SPOTTED ASPARAGUS BEETLE<br />
+
+<i>a</i>, beetle; <i>b</i>, larva; <i>c</i>, second abdominal segment of larva; <i>d</i>, same
+of common asparagus beetle</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>This species is at present distributed throughout
+the asparagus-growing country of New Jersey, particularly
+in the vicinity of the Delaware River, the whole
+of Delaware, nearly the entire state of Maryland, the
+District of Columbia, the southeastern portion of
+Pennsylvania bordering the state line of New Jersey,
+northeastern Virginia in the vicinity of the western
+shore of the Potomac River, Staten Island, and Monroe
+County, N. Y., the last mentioned being the most
+northern locality known for the species. The mature
+beetle in life rivals the common asparagus beetle in
+beauty, but may be distinguished by its much broader
+wing covers and its color. The ground color is
+orange red, each wing cover is marked with six black
+dots, and the knees and a portion of the under surface
+of the thorax are also marked with black, as seen in
+Fig. 45, <i>a</i>. The beetle as it appears on the plant when
+in fruit very closely resembles, at a little distance, a
+ripe asparagus berry. The full-grown larva is shown<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span>
+in Fig. 45, <i>b</i>. It measures, when extended, three-tenths
+of an inch, being of about the same proportions
+as the larva of the common species, but is readily separable
+by its ochraceous orange color. Fig. 45, <i>c</i>,
+shows the second abdominal segment of larva, and <i>d</i>
+same of the common asparagus beetle, much enlarged.</p>
+
+<p><i>Remedies.</i>&mdash;The remedies are those indicated for
+the common asparagus beetle, with the possible exception
+of caustic lime and other measures that are
+directed solely against that species, but the habit of
+the larva of living within the berry places it for that
+period beyond the reach of insecticides. The collection
+and destruction of the asparagus berries before
+ripening might be a solution of the problem, but it is
+questionable if recourse to this measure would be
+necessary, save in cases of an exceptional abundance
+of the insect.</p>
+
+
+<h4>THE ASPARAGUS MINER</h4>
+
+<p class="center">(<i>Agromyza simplex</i>)</p>
+
+<p>In a recent bulletin from the New York Experiment
+Station, Prof. F. A. Sirrine describes a comparatively
+new and injurious insect on asparagus. It
+was discovered on Long Island, and injures the young
+plants by mining just underneath the outside surface.
+The habits of this creature are such that there is little
+chance of applying remedies for its destruction. Cultural
+and preventive measures seem to be the most
+practical, and are suggested. The parent insect is a
+small fly, which deposits its eggs for the first brood
+early in June, and no doubt much can be done toward
+keeping the pest under control by not allowing small
+shoots to grow during the cutting season. Professor<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span>
+Sirrine is of the opinion that where young beds are put
+out yearly the pest can be kept in check by pulling and
+burning the old stalks. He points out the fact that
+the stalk should be pulled in the fall rather than in the
+spring, as it is difficult to pull them early in the
+season, and in many cases the dormant stage of the
+insect is left in the ground.</p>
+
+<div class="footnotes"><h4>FOOTNOTES:</h4>
+
+<p><a name="A" id="A"></a><span class="fnanchor"><a href="#Atop">[A]</a></span> Condensed from an official report by J. H. Chittenden of the United
+States Department of Agriculture.</p>
+</div>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="XV" id="XV"></a>XV</h2>
+
+<h3>FUNGUS DISEASES</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">sparagus</span> is subject to the attacks of a number
+of fungi, the most widespread and destructive
+being the "rust," the cause of which is a
+fungus described by De Candolle as <i>Puccinia
+asparagi</i> in the year 1805. From this it is seen that
+the rust upon the asparagus has been known to scientists
+for nearly a hundred years, and it is but reasonable
+to suppose that more or less of this fungus has
+existed beyond the history of man.</p>
+
+<p>The first mention of asparagus rust in the United
+States was by Dr. Harkness, who claimed to have
+observed it on the Pacific Coast in 1880, although it is
+doubtful whether the genuine asparagus rust was ever
+found there. The first mention of it in the Eastern
+States was in the fall of 1896, and since then its range
+has been widening each year. Dr. Byron D. Halsted,
+of the New Jersey Experiment Station, was the first to
+call attention to it, and made it the subject of careful
+study. The results and conclusions derived from his
+experiments were published in a special bulletin, and
+from this the greater part of the following has been
+condensed.</p>
+
+
+<h4>RECOGNITION OF THE RUST</h4>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 279px;">
+<img src="images/i147.jpg" width="279" height="420" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 46&mdash;ASPARAGUS STEMS AFFECTED WITH RUST</span>
+</div>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 287px;">
+<img src="images/i148.jpg" width="287" height="340" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 47&mdash;PORTION OF RUSTED ASPARAGUS STEMS</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>When an asparagus field is badly infested with the
+rust the general appearance is that of an unusually<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span>
+early maturing of the plants (Fig. 46). Instead of
+the healthy green color there is a brown hue, as if
+insects had sapped the plants or frost destroyed their
+vitality. Rusted plants, when viewed closely, are
+found to have the skin of the stems lifted, as if blistered,
+and within the ruptures of the epidermis the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span>
+color is brown, as shown in Fig. 47. The brown color
+is due to multitudes of spores borne upon the tips of
+fine threads of the fungus, which aggregate at certain
+points and cause the spots. The threads from which
+the spores are produced are exceedingly small and
+grow through the substance of the asparagus stem,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span>
+taking up nourishment and causing an enfeebled condition
+of the victim, which results in loss of the green
+color and the final rustiness of the plant, due to the
+multitude of spores formed upon the surface. These
+spores are carried by the wind to other plants, where
+new disease spots are produced; but as the autumn
+advances a final form of spore appears in the ruptures
+that is quite different in shape and color from the first
+ones produced through the summer. The spores of
+late autumn, from their dark color, give an almost
+black appearance to the spots.</p>
+
+<p>There is another form which the rust fungus assumes
+not usually seen in the asparagus field, but may be
+found in early spring upon plants that are not subjected
+to cutting. This is the cluster-cup stage, so named
+because the fungus produces minute cups from the
+asparagus stem, and in small groups of a dozen to
+fifty, making usually an oval spot easily seen with the
+naked eye. This stage of the fungus comes first in
+the order of time in the series, and is met with upon
+volunteer plants that may grow along the roadside or
+fence row, or in a field where all the old asparagus
+plants have not been destroyed.</p>
+
+
+<h4>METHODS OF TREATING THE RUST</h4>
+
+<p>All the cultivated varieties of asparagus are readily
+affected by the rust, although it has been found that
+some varieties, notably Palmetto, are less susceptible
+to its attacks than others. The most effectual means
+of controlling the disease are spraying, burning of the
+brush, cultivation, and irrigation.</p>
+
+<p><i>Spraying.</i>&mdash;Dr. Halsted, in his first experiments,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span>
+used soda-bordeaux, hydrate-bordeaux, and potash-bordeaux.
+The spraying began June 2d, and ten sprayings
+were applied during the season. The applications
+were made with a knapsack pump, and therefore were
+far more expensive than they would have been if the
+sprayings were made with horse-power. With the
+fungicide costing $5.00 per acre, and a machine that
+would spray two or more rows at a time, it would be
+possible to reduce the cost to $10.00 per acre, or even
+less. In effectiveness the soda-bordeaux stood first.
+Between the other fungicides there was but little difference.
+The best results showed a reduction of rust
+of about one-quarter, which is not as satisfactory a
+result as had been expected.</p>
+
+<p>In the spraying work conducted by Professors G.
+E. Stone and R. E. Smith, at the Massachusetts Experiment
+Station, the results were more encouraging.
+The solutions used were potassium sulfide, saccharate
+of lime, and bordeaux mixture. The spraying was
+done with a knapsack sprayer, provided with a Vermorel
+nozzle, and after the first application it became
+evident that the practice was of little importance on
+account of the difficulty in making the solution stick
+to the plant. For successful spraying of asparagus a
+finer nozzle is required than any that is now in the
+market.</p>
+
+<p>In some other experiments carried out on a small
+scale the asparagus plants were practically covered
+with solutions, when they were put on with an ordinary
+cylinder atomizer, and the lime solutions showed
+excellent sticking qualities; but with the ordinary
+coarse nozzle the solutions would run off of the glossy<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span>
+epidermal covering of the plant very readily. Should
+the spraying of asparagus ever become a necessity,
+then some apparatus which can be strapped to a
+horse's back should be used. The narrow space between
+the rows forbids the use of the ordinary
+mounted appliances, and if spraying is to be carried
+on upon a large scale, it would be better to have the
+spraying mixture carried in some manner on the
+horse's back. In this way it would be possible to
+carry some thirty or forty gallons of mixture through
+the narrow rows.</p>
+
+<p><i>Burning the affected tops.</i>&mdash;There can be no doubt
+that by the burning of the infested brush, after the
+cutting season, innumerable rust spores are destroyed.
+But if this is done before the stalks are entirely dead
+new ones will spring up at once, and in a few days
+will be as badly affected as the first. The burning of
+the tops in the summer has, moreover, a decidedly
+injurious effect upon the roots, seriously weakening
+their vitality, and making the growth of the following
+year still more susceptible to the infection.</p>
+
+<p>In the autumn, however, after the stalks are dead
+and dry, this damage does not prevail, and the spores
+upon old brush can be destroyed by burning the asparagus
+stems either as they stand in the field or by cutting
+and throwing the brush into piles. By the latter
+method many of the smaller branches will be broken
+off and scattered upon the ground, giving a suitable
+place for the spores to remain over the winter. For
+the same reason it is an advantage to burn the brush
+in autumn instead of the spring, and thus prevent the
+large loss of spores that would obtain. In other<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span>
+words, burn the plants as soon as they become brown
+and lifeless, for any delay means the breaking up of
+the brittle, rusty plants, and a heavy sowing of the
+spores upon the ground. If the fire could go over the
+whole field of standing brush, that would be the most
+effective destruction. At best, with these precautions,
+many of the spores will get scattered upon the soil,
+and it would be well to sprinkle a thin coat of lime
+upon the ground and leave it there during the winter.
+If this could be followed by a turning under of the
+surface soil in the spring, it would bury the spores
+that might still be living, so that they would be out of
+reach.</p>
+
+<p><i>Cultivation and irrigation.</i>&mdash;It has been observed
+that the injury to asparagus plants, as a result of rust,
+has been confined to dry soils, although there are
+places where beds in close proximity showed remarkable
+differences as to infection; and that robust and
+vigorous plants, even where cultivated on apparently
+dry soil, are capable of resisting the summer or injurious
+stage of the rust.</p>
+
+<p>In view of all the experiments so far made, and the
+experiences of practical asparagus growers, Stone and
+Smith conclude that: "The best means of controlling
+the rust is by thorough cultivation in order to secure
+vigorous plants, and in seasons of extreme dryness
+plants growing on very dry soil with little water-retaining
+properties should, if possible, receive irrigation."</p>
+
+<p>From a knowledge of the occurrences of the rust
+in Europe, and from observations made in Massachusetts,
+they are led to believe that the outbreak of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span>
+asparagus rust is of a sporadic nature, and is not
+likely to cause much harm in the future, provided
+attention is given to the production of vigorous plants.</p>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS LEOPARD SPOT</h4>
+
+<p>Attention was called to this new disease by Prof.
+W. G. Johnson, in Bulletin No. 50, Maryland Experiment
+Station, September, 1897. It was observed in a
+limited area in the asparagus growing section on the
+eastern shore of Maryland. The disease belongs to
+the group of anthracnoses, and is regarded by Dr. B.
+D. Halsted as a new species. In some places growers
+have mistaken it for the work of asparagus beetles.
+In general appearance it is very striking, the characteristic
+spots resembling the coat of the leopard. It has,
+therefore, been called "asparagus leopard spot," to distinguish
+it readily from rust. The disease has been
+found only in a comparatively small area, but, no
+doubt will be found in other places later. Asparagus
+growers should, therefore, be on their guard and
+watch it. The remedies thus far successfully used are
+the same as those for rust.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="XVI" id="XVI"></a>XVI</h2>
+
+<h3>ASPARAGUS CULTURE IN DIFFERENT
+LOCALITIES</h3>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS IN NEW ENGLAND</h4>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="margin-top: 0.25em;">
+<img src="images/capa.jpg" alt="A" title="A" /></div>
+<p><span class="smcap">sparagus</span> was grown in Concord, Mass., in a
+limited way as early as 1825. Mr. Edmund
+Hosmer used to carry it to market in season
+on his milk wagon. Timothy Prescott and
+F. R. Gourgas grew garden patches before 1840.
+To John B. Moore belongs the credit of growing and
+improving asparagus in this section of the State. Mr.
+Moore selected the most promising shoots, and by a
+judicious system of culture succeeded in placing on
+the market a valuable variety in the shape of Moore's
+Cross-bred. Most of the "giant" asparagus grown
+in Concord to-day could be traced to the plants produced
+by his skill. A sample bunch of twelve stalks,
+twelve inches long, from Moore's Cross-bred plants
+weighed four pounds eight ounces. In 1872 the first
+bed of asparagus of any size was set out by Mr. George
+D. Hubbard, who was laughed at by his neighbor
+farmers, who saw only ruin for the young man. The
+next year Mr. Hubbard set out more, so that for
+twenty years he was probably the largest grower in
+Massachusetts.</p>
+
+<p>Most of the leading varieties are grown in Concord,
+but the farmers are looking for a rust-proof variety and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span>
+hope to find one. The Palmetto has not rusted as
+badly as other kinds, but has not been grown so extensively.
+One-year-old roots should be set by all
+means, as they start sooner, grow more vigorously,
+and in the end pay better. The roots should be carefully
+selected from vigorous stock. A very large part
+of Concord asparagus is planted on sandy soil&mdash;<i>i.e.</i>,
+good, rich, mellow corn land. This kind of land needs
+more manure, but then the crop is more satisfactory
+and the labor bill is not so high. The land previous
+to setting to asparagus should be well tilled and
+manured.</p>
+
+<p>Land for asparagus beds should be plowed late in
+the fall, and if stable manure can be afforded should be
+applied liberally. In the spring plow again early and
+harrow well. The roots should be planted in April as
+soon as the ground can be worked. After determining
+the direction of the rows a number of laths, four feet
+long, are placed in line where the first row is to be. It
+is very important to get the rows straight and an even
+distance apart. A good strong pair of horses and a
+large plow are used, a board being so placed above the
+mold-board of the plow that the loose soil will not fall
+back into the furrow. Drive the horses so that the
+middle of the evener will just come to the lath, then
+change the lath over its own length, if the rows are to
+be four feet apart, and that will mark the next row.
+Change each lath as you come to it, and when your
+first furrow is completed your second row will be all
+marked out. Return in the first row to make it deeper
+and also to straighten any bends. Shovel out the ends
+for a few feet and you will have a proper furrow to set<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span>
+asparagus roots in. Proceed with the other rows in
+the same manner, and you will have a good-looking
+plantation.</p>
+
+<p>The larger growers in Concord set the plants two
+feet apart in the row and have the rows four feet apart.
+The plants are set in the bottom of the furrow, covered
+two inches, and should level up by fall so that the
+crowns will be six or seven inches below the surface.
+The furrows may be made very deep, so that manure
+can be placed in the bottom, or fertilizer may be strewn
+before the plants are set or after. The roots should be
+spread out carefully in the bottom of the furrow, care
+being taken to have them in line. The bed should be
+cultivated with a fine-tooth cultivator or weeder often
+enough to prevent the growth of weeds. Keep the bed
+clean and do not have the trenches filled in before the
+last of September. The tops should not be cut in the
+fall of the first year, as the snow will be held by them,
+and thereby protect the roots to some extent. Some
+growers spread coarse manure on their beds in the fall
+to prevent the soil from being blown away and also to
+prevent winter killing, which, however, is rare.</p>
+
+<p>In the second year the bed may be plowed or
+wheel-harrowed in the spring as early as possible. Concord
+growers use animal manure or chemical fertilizers,
+as the case may be or as the bed may require.
+The bed should be smooth harrowed just before the
+new shoots appear, and good clean cultivation given
+during the season. After harrowing or plowing in the
+third year, sow your chemicals or fertilizer broadcast
+and harrow in. A good formula for asparagus is:
+Nitrate of soda, 300 to 400 pounds; muriate of potash,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span>
+400 pounds; and fine ground bone, 600 pounds per
+acre. The shoots will appear about May 5th, and
+should be cut for about two weeks; then let them grow
+up and cultivate well during the season.</p>
+
+<p>Home-mixing of fertilizer is practiced by some of
+the growers in this vicinity, as it is cheaper and better.
+Any intelligent farmer can, with a little study, purchase
+and mix the raw materials to advantage. Not
+so much fertilizer is used as formerly by our growers,
+who are beginning to think that we use more plant
+food than the crop needs, thus throwing away many
+dollars each year. The cost of an acre of asparagus
+when properly planted and manured is about two hundred
+dollars, varying with the cost of help, manure, etc.
+The average product of asparagus beds is about two
+hundred and eighty-eight dozen bunches per acre&mdash;probably
+less since the rust appeared in 1897.</p>
+
+<p>Asparagus is grown largely on Cape Cod. There
+the roots are planted in rows six feet apart and four or
+five feet in the row. Seaweed is used largely in connection
+with fertilizer and manure. Various grains,
+oats, rye, etc., are sometimes sown to prevent the soil
+being blown away. The method of culture is much
+the same as elsewhere.</p>
+
+<p>At Concord the asparagus season opens usually
+about May 5th. The shoots are cut two or three
+inches under ground and should be about eight inches
+in length. These are laid in handfuls on the ground
+by the cutter, each one cutting two rows. The product
+of four rows is laid in one row, making what is
+called a "basket row." These "basket rows" are
+gathered in baskets, boxes, or wheelbarrows, and taken<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span>
+to the packing-shed. The asparagus is placed on a
+table and packed in racks of uniform size, passed to
+the person who ties, and then to be butted off. The
+bunches are then washed and set up in troughs ready
+for market. Water is added in season to swell the
+bunch tight and it is then packed in bushel boxes for
+market, going in by teams each night.</p>
+
+<p>Asparagus was free from pests until 1889, when
+the asparagus beetle made its unwelcome appearance.
+Methods of fighting the beetle were unknown to growers
+generally at that time, but necessity soon taught
+us. Chickens and hens are used with good results, also
+Paris green dry was applied with an air-gun when the
+dew was on the foliage. Cutworms sometimes do the
+asparagus crop severe damage, but chickens and hens
+are a sure remedy&mdash;in fact, hens are a decided benefit
+in an asparagus field, keeping down many weeds.</p>
+
+<p>After learning to control the asparagus beetle we
+were visited by the rust, which has proved a stubborn
+foe and absorbs the sap which ought to go to the
+growing plant. Appearing in July, 1897, the rust
+seriously damaged many beds in eastern Massachusetts.
+Many remedies have been suggested, but so far
+none of them have proved perfectly satisfactory.
+Growers have been advised to cut the infected tops as
+soon as the rust appears, but such a practice is all
+wrong, however good in theory. Do not cut the tops
+until the sap has left the stalks. This is the advice of
+a large number of asparagus growers and scientific
+men who are engaged in experimental work.</p>
+
+<p>
+<span class="smcap" style="margin-left: 25em;">Charles W. Prescott.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 5em;"><small><i>Middlesex County, Mass.</i></small></span><br />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS ON LONG ISLAND</h4>
+
+<p>The cultivation of asparagus on Long Island does
+not differ materially, in most respects, from that
+practiced in other localities, other than in its extent.
+But there is probably more to be learned about its
+cultivation there than in any other section of the
+country, from the fact of its being grown under
+such changed conditions of soil. Here it can be
+shown that the character of soil is not, of itself,
+of great importance, and that on soil usually considered
+worthless&mdash;on land that can be bought,
+uncleared, at from five to ten dollars per acre&mdash;asparagus
+can be made as profitable a crop as on land considered
+cheap at one hundred dollars per acre.</p>
+
+<p>Nearly every farm, the northern boundary of
+which is the Long Island Sound, has from two to
+twenty acres of soil composed very largely of fine
+drift sand, in all respects like quick-sand in character.
+This, when mixed with light loam, as is frequently
+the case, is the most favorable land for asparagus, and
+in such it is largely grown, being unsuited to potatoes
+or cereals, and where grasses make but a feeble
+struggle for existence. Within five minutes' walk to
+the south the soil is from a lively to a quite heavy
+loam, in which corn, potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower,
+and, in fact, all other crops revel. In this soil the
+asparagus also finds a congenial home, but no better
+than in the sand, in which but little else can be grown;
+neither can it be grown here more profitably. The
+expense for fertilizers is a little more on the sandy
+soil, but the cost in labor on the heavy soil will quite<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span>
+equal the cost of extra fertilizer required on the
+light.</p>
+
+<p>Whether away from a saline atmosphere a light
+soil would be as favorable as a heavy one for the asparagus
+is a question that practical experiment only
+can settle. But it is an important one, as it is not
+generally supposed that it is possible to grow asparagus,
+at a profit, on such soils as are now being devoted
+to this crop on Long Island.</p>
+
+<p>That which has been called the barren wastes, the
+dwarf-pine and scrub-oak lands of Suffolk County,
+can be made most profitable farming lands may be a
+surprise to many, but that such is the case does not
+admit of a doubt. As evidence of this, let us state
+what is being done along these lines. Messrs. Hudson
+&amp; Sons, leading canners of asparagus, have bought a
+farm of 525 acres of as poor land as it is possible to find
+on Long Island, which they are to devote exclusively
+to this crop. They have already more than fifty acres
+planted, and are getting the whole in readiness as
+rapidly as possible. This is no experiment, but simply
+doing on a large scale what has profitably been done
+on a small one.</p>
+
+<p>On similar soils a low estimate of net profit is
+$100 per acre, and there are many instances where
+double this profit is made. The price paid last season
+by the canners was $14 per 100 bunches for first
+quality, and $6 per 100 for culls, or "tips," as they
+are usually called. With good cultivation, which
+means a liberal supply of plant food&mdash;and there is no
+crop that requires more&mdash;and the surface kept clean,
+free from weeds, and frequently cultivated, so that the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span>
+surface is at all times loose and fine to prevent evaporation,
+the average yield is 2,500 bunches per acre. If
+we estimate the tips at 25 per cent. of the crop, the
+gross receipts will amount to $200 per acre.</p>
+
+<p>After a given acreage is ready for cutting, which
+is the third year after planting, the annual cost of cultivation
+is not very much, if any, more than that of a
+crop of potatoes. It is a question whether the actual
+cost of growing and marketing an acre of asparagus is
+not less than that of an acre of potatoes. Some growers
+assert it is three times as much work to take care of a
+given acreage of asparagus as of potatoes; admitting
+it, the relative cost is stated above.</p>
+
+<p>
+<span class="smcap" style="margin-left: 25em;">C. L. Allen.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 5em;"><small><i>Nassau County, N. Y.</i></small></span><br />
+</p>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS IN NEW JERSEY</h4>
+
+<p>An important point in asparagus culture is to
+remove the top growth in the fall of the year. For
+this purpose I use a mowing-machine, then rake up
+the brush and burn it on the bed. After this I top-dress
+heavy with manure, leaving it lie on the land
+until spring.</p>
+
+<p>Just as soon as the ground is fit to work at all I put
+on a disk-harrow, and cut it about four times each way
+until it is thoroughly pulverized. Then with a smoothing-harrow
+I level it, and repeat the smoothing-harrow
+operation about once a week to keep down all weeds
+coming through. Then we let it go as long as we can,
+possibly two weeks, and at the appearance of weeds
+we take an ordinary sweet-potato ridger having a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span>
+plow on either side and run it astride the row, covering
+everything in the row. Doing this on Saturday afternoon
+holds the asparagus back over the following
+day. Then we take the middle out with a one-horse
+cultivator. This is done probably three times during
+the cutting season, which is eight weeks. With the
+help of one of these weeders, which we use at least once
+a week, we keep the bed quite clean of all weeds, and
+this I consider very essential. The cultivation should
+continue after cutting until the top growth becomes so
+large as to protect the ground, and then there will be
+but little trouble late in the season about weeds. It
+doesn't pay to grow them anywhere, and especially not
+in asparagus beds.</p>
+
+<p>In planting, the ground should be well prepared
+and furrowed out eight inches in depth, four and one-half
+feet apart, and the plants two and one-half feet in
+the row, with a little fine manure in bottom of row;
+put about two inches of soil on the plants to cover.
+Then as the sprouts come up, keep on filling the
+furrows by cultivation.</p>
+
+<p>I have been using some commercial manures the
+past two years, applying at the rate of one ton to the
+acre about the rows in the spring; then nearly a ton of
+salt to the acre applied at any time. It helps keep
+weeds down and gives the asparagus a good flavor.
+Above all, do not forget to apply the fertilizer, and
+Plenty, with a big "P," of it&mdash;either stable manure or
+commercial fertilizers. Probably there will be less
+weeds by using the latter, but there needs to be a great
+deal of the former in the beginning for several years,
+to give the bed a good body of rich earth, from which<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span>
+the plants feed. It appears to me this is the secret of
+success.</p>
+
+<p>Much depends upon how asparagus is put up for
+the market, making it look attractive, in nice, clean,
+new crates and neatly prepared bunches, and the stalks
+must be large, tender, and of good flavor. Grass from
+a strong bed grown in twenty-four hours is much more
+tender and better in every way than grass grown in
+forty-eight hours from a poor bed. We are compelled
+to cut every twenty-four hours, or the asparagus would
+waste, and the gathering is accomplished in about three
+and one-half hours each day, early in the morning.</p>
+
+<p>
+<span class="smcap" style="margin-left: 25em;">Joel Borton.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 5em;"><small><i>Salem County, N. J.</i></small></span><br />
+</p>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS IN THE SOUTH</h4>
+
+<p>There is no crop grown by the Southern trucker
+that has paid better than asparagus year after year.
+With many of the other truck crops sent North the
+growers have to contend with a host of planters
+who rush in at times to plant certain crops like
+early potatoes, peas, and beans, and whose inferior
+crops often glut the market and make the season
+unprofitable all around. These men drop out after
+a season that their particular venture did not pay, and
+the regular truckers, being well aware that they would
+do so, always redouble their efforts the year after a
+bad season with any particular crop, knowing from
+experience that then it would be certain to be profitable.</p>
+
+<p>But the asparagus crop is one into which the tem<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span>porary
+growers can not jump in and out of, for the
+crop requires special preparation of the soil and patient
+waiting and culture pending the time for reaping a
+harvest, and the men who are always ready to jump
+into the annual crops always wish to realize at once,
+and do not generally have the capital to put into a
+crop that requires several years before realizing.
+Hence the asparagus crop has been left to the regular
+market gardeners, and has been uniformly profitable
+when well managed.</p>
+
+<p>As regards soil for asparagus in the South, it should
+be deep, light, warm, and well drained, either naturally
+or artificially. The level sandy soils that abound
+in all the South Atlantic Coast region, having a compact
+subsoil of reddish clay under it at a moderate
+depth, makes the ideal soil for the early asparagus.</p>
+
+<p>In preparing such a soil for the crop, it is well to
+be thorough in the matter, for the crop is to remain
+there indefinitely, and if success is to be expected the
+previous preparation should be of the most thorough
+character. Hence, as the soils best adapted to the
+growth of the plant are commonly deficient in vegetable
+matter, which desirable characteristic can only
+be found in abundance on the lands too low and
+moist for the asparagus crop, some preparatory culture
+should be used that will tend to increase the amount of
+organic decay in the soil.</p>
+
+<p>For this purpose there is nothing better than the
+Southern field or cow pea. The land should be prepared
+by giving it a heavy dressing of acid phosphate
+and potash; and putting it in peas sown broadcast at the
+rate of a bushel or more per acre. With a heavy dressing<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span>
+of the mineral fertilizers the pea crop will be heavy,
+and should be allowed to fully ripen and decay on the
+land, to be plowed under, and the process repeated the
+following year. In the mean time the seed should be
+sown for the growth of the roots for setting the land.</p>
+
+<p>Two crops of cow-peas allowed to die on the land
+and turned under will give a store of vegetable
+matter that would be hard to get in any other manner.
+While heavy manuring with stable manures is very
+desirable where the material can be had at a reasonable
+cost, the larger part, and, in fact, nearly all of the
+Southern asparagus, must be grown by the aid of chemical
+fertilizers, and the storing up of humus in the
+land from the decaying peas is an important factor in
+the placing of the soil in a condition to render the
+chemical fertilizers of more use, since the moisture-retaining
+nature of the organic matter plays an important
+part in the solution of matters in the soil.
+Aside from this, there will be a large increase in the
+nitrogen contents of the soil through the nitrification
+of this organic matter.</p>
+
+<p>The second crop of peas should be plowed under in
+late fall when perfectly ripe and dead, so that the land
+can be gotten into condition for planting in early
+spring. The land should be thoroughly plowed, and
+if the clay subsoil comes near the surface it should be
+loosened with the subsoil plow. Furrows are then
+run out four and a half to five feet apart, going twice
+in the furrow, and then cleaning out with shovels till
+there is a trench a foot deep. In the bottom of this
+trench place a good coat of black earth from the forest,
+or, if well-rotted manure can be had, use that of course.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span>
+Set the plants twenty inches apart in the furrow, and
+by means of hand-rakes pull in enough earth to barely
+cover the crowns.</p>
+
+<p>As growth begins, the soil is to be gradually
+worked in around the advancing shoots till the soil is
+level. Now give a dressing of 1,000 pounds per acre,
+alongside the rows, of a mixture of 900 pounds of acid
+phosphate, 500 pounds of fish scrap, 200 pounds of
+nitrate of soda, and 400 pounds of muriate of potash,
+and keep the plants cultivated shallowly and flat with
+an ordinary cultivator till the tops are mature. An
+application of salt may be useful if applied in the fall
+in making some matters in the soil available, but salt
+in itself is of no use whatever to the plants. We
+would never apply salt in the spring, as it has a tendency
+to lessen nitrification and to retard the earliness
+of the shoots.</p>
+
+<p>The annual dressing of the fertilizer named should
+now be increased to a ton per acre, and it should
+be applied not later than February 1st in each
+year. After the tops have been cut in the fall it is a
+good plan to plow furrows from each side over the
+rows and to plow out the middles, for the shoots will
+always start earlier in an elevated ridge, which warms
+up earlier in the spring.</p>
+
+<p>The second year after planting cutting may begin,
+and the shoots must be cut as fast as they show, care
+being taken to cut down near the crown of the roots,
+but not to injure the other shoots that may be starting.
+After cutting is over&mdash;and the length of time the
+bed should be cut is of little importance in the South,
+for the price at the point where it is shipped will<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span>
+always tell you when to stop&mdash;the soil should be again
+worked down flat, and if the growth has not been as
+satisfactory as could be wished, a dressing of 100
+pounds per acre of nitrate of soda at this time will
+usually pay very well. Asparagus should always be
+bunched in a machine made for that purpose. The
+bunches are packed in crates just deep enough to hold
+the bunches set upright on a bed of moss, and a cover
+of the same damp moss should be placed on top.</p>
+
+<p>Where there is a demand for green asparagus the
+planting should be done more shallowly in a simple
+furrow, and the entire culture should be flat and shallow.
+The shoots are cut at the surface of the ground
+after they have attained the proper length. One thing
+is to be observed in either method, and this is that
+during the cutting season everything long enough
+must be cut daily, and that the little shoots be not
+allowed to run up and branch out. Cull the shoots
+after they are all out and bunch accordingly. Green
+shoots should be bunched by themselves and not
+mixed with the blanched ones. None but new, light
+crates should be used, for a clean and neat package
+will always favor its contents in the selling.</p>
+
+<p>
+<span class="smcap" style="margin-left: 25em;">W. F. Massey.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 5em;"><small><i>North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station.</i></small></span><br />
+</p>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA</h4>
+
+<p>The growing of asparagus for market in California
+is proving to be one of the most successful of
+its minor industries. There is a large area in the
+State which is exactly suited to the production of
+this vegetable. This is the region of sedimentary<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span>
+deposits, washed by waters that are to some extent
+brackish, or naturally saline. Commercial asparagus
+farming is limited to the reclaimed lands around
+the bay of San Francisco, the marshy deltas of the
+San Joaquin and Sacramento rivers, and the so-called
+peat lands of Orange and San Luis Obispo counties.
+Small beds, however, for local consumption are
+to be found in California as generally and frequently
+as they are in other States.</p>
+
+<p>There is a fascination about asparagus culture that
+is founded on legitimate financial returns. It is practically
+"a sure thing" when once established, and
+the conditions of climate and soil are such that the
+work attendant on production is a minimum in proportion
+to the return. No diseases of the plant have
+yet shown themselves in California, and it is seldom
+that the weather is unsteady enough to be a factor in
+limiting production. The deterring feature is the
+fact that it is not till the third year that a return can
+be expected on the investment. But as other crops,
+such as potatoes and beans, can be grown between the
+rows in the interim, the time of waiting is not so
+entirely an unproductive one as might at first be supposed.</p>
+
+<p>The methods of preparing, planting, and working
+are practically the same in all sections of California.
+The proposed beds are plowed as deeply as possible
+and thoroughly fertilized. All of the soils appropriate
+for commercial asparagus farming are so light that
+deep cultivation is a comparatively easy matter. Furrows
+for planting are then run and made double depth.
+Some growers think it worth while to distribute fer<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span>tilizer
+along these furrows and then turn for a third
+time, so as to enrich the ground immediately below the
+roots to be set out. These furrows are run from four
+to six feet apart, the latter being considered the better
+usage. In them one-year-old plants are then set by
+hand at distances varying from eighteen inches to
+three feet. The former distance is preferred by the
+Italian growers on Bay Farm Island in San Francisco
+Bay, but the Southern growers and those along
+the Sacramento River lean to the greater distance.
+The only difference seems to be whether there will be
+sufficient nutriment in the soil to force the plant into
+giving as large and tender shoots as where each plant
+is allowed a larger area. The plants are set with the
+crowns about four inches below the surface and the
+roots are carefully spread out before covering. Planting
+is done any time from November to April, but the
+middle of February is perhaps the most common time.</p>
+
+<p>The culture for the first year consists in keeping
+the soil loose and free from weeds. Ordinarily other
+crops are grown between the rows, and their cultivation
+serves to keep the ground in proper condition.
+The asparagus is allowed to come up, feather, and seed
+without interference, no cutting being done the first
+year. Care, however, is taken to cut off the tops
+close to the ground in the fall before the seed begins
+to drop&mdash;the volunteer asparagus being the worst
+enemy in culture with which the grower has to deal.
+About the beginning of the rainy season a heavy coating
+of manure is placed over the beds and left to be
+leeched in by the rains.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span></p>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 640px;">
+<img src="images/i170.jpg" width="640" height="406" alt="" title="" />
+<span class="caption">FIG. 48&mdash;VIEW OF ASPARAGUS FIELD ON BOULDIN ISLAND, CALIFORNIA</span>
+</div><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span></p>
+<p>The second year some growers cut more or less for
+market, but the bed is then longer in coming to its
+full strength and will not give so large a product the
+following years. There is a variation in the spring
+working, according to the nature of the land. Where
+the soil has a tendency to be cold, the first plowing is
+away from the rows, so as to let the sun more quickly
+down to the starting plants. Where the soil is light,
+or the season forward, this plowing is omitted. The
+latter plowings are toward the rows, the effort being
+by ridging to give a long blanched surface to the
+shoots. For the canneries where nothing but the
+white product is put up, the shoots are cut the instant
+they show their tips above the surface. The local
+market shows a preference for the greener shoot, and
+so before cutting it is allowed to stretch itself up into
+the light. The third year regular cutting begins, and
+from that time forward the beds increase in the quantity
+and quality of the product for the next fifteen
+years.</p>
+
+<p>The methods of marketing are somewhat different
+from those practiced in the East. Little or none of the
+asparagus is bunched. It is packed loose in boxes
+holding from forty to fifty pounds, and the loose
+product is retailed to the consumer by the pound. The
+first boxes begin to go out by the beginning of February,
+though small quantities can be seen in market
+as early as January 15th. The canning contracts run,
+as a rule, from March 1st to June 15th. After that the
+weather is so dry that the yield stops unless the beds
+are irrigated. In most sections, however, irrigation is
+not necessary up to this time.</p>
+
+<p>A notable exception to this is Bouldin Island, in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span>
+the San Joaquin River. This is reclaimed land, and
+lies some six or eight feet below the surface of the
+water. The soil is river silt on a peat stratum
+thirty feet deep. The top is so fine and friable that
+it does not, in spite of the surrounding river, hold
+enough moisture to keep the vegetation alive during
+the hot spring months. A north wind in May would
+lift up the whole surface of the island and carry it away
+in dust. It is an easy matter, however, to let in water
+through the dikes, and this is done in sufficient
+quantities to keep the soil in place.</p>
+
+<p>The question of profit in asparagus growing is one
+that can only be treated in a relative way. The
+industry is as yet so new, and instances of phenomenal
+returns from small holdings are so many, that it is hard
+to arrive at what might be called a commercial ratio
+of gain. It is safe to say, however, that with ordinary
+care there has never been an actual loss with
+asparagus culture in California. A low estimate of
+profit is probably $50 per acre. The cost of preparation
+and planting where diking has not been
+necessary has seldom been more than $100 per acre.
+The gross returns taken from recent years' reports
+vary from $100 to $200 per acre, so that it can readily
+be seen that the return to the asparagus farmer is very
+fair. Most of the farms in California are in rented
+land. The Bay Farm Island people pay a ground rent
+of $50 per acre. On Bouldin Island the rental is on a
+basis of 40 per cent. of the net proceeds. In Fig. 48
+is presented a view of a fully established asparagus
+field on Bouldin Island.</p>
+
+<p>
+<span class="smcap" style="margin-left: 25em;">Warren Cheney.</span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 5em;"><small><i>Alameda County, Cal.</i></small></span><br />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span></p>
+
+
+<h4>ASPARAGUS IN FRANCE</h4>
+
+<p>Asparagus is grown much more abundantly and to
+a much larger size in France than in England. The
+country is half covered with it in some places near
+Paris; farmers grow it abundantly, cottagers grow it,
+and everybody eats it. Near Paris it is chiefly grown
+for market in the valley of Montmorency and at Argenteuil,
+and it is cultivated extensively for market in
+many other places. About Argenteuil several thousand
+persons are employed in the culture of asparagus.</p>
+
+<p>It is grown to a large extent among the grape-vines
+as well as alone. The vine under field culture is cut
+down to near the old stool every year, and allowed to
+make a few growths which are tied erect to a stake.
+One plant is put in each open spot, and given every
+chance of forming a large specimen, and this it generally
+does. The growing of asparagus among the vines
+is a very usual mode, and a vast space is thus covered
+with it about here.</p>
+
+<p>It is also grown in other and special ways. Perhaps
+the simplest and most worthy of adoption is to
+grow it in shallow trenches. These are usually about
+four feet apart. The soil generally is a rather stiff
+sandy loam with calcareous matter in some parts, but
+the soil has not all to do with the peculiar excellence
+of the vegetable. It is the careful attention to the
+wants of the plant which produce such good results.
+Here, for instance, is a young plantation planted in
+March; and from the little ridges of soil between the
+trenches have just been dug a crop of small early
+potatoes. In England the asparagus would be left to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span>
+the free action of the breeze, but the French cultivators
+never leave a young plant of asparagus to the wind's
+mercy while they can find a stake of oak about a yard
+long.</p>
+
+<p>When staking these young plants they do not insert
+the support close to the bottom, as we are too apt to do
+in other instances, but a little distance off, so as to avoid
+the possibility of injuring the root; each stake leans over
+its plant at an angle of forty-five degrees, and when
+the shoots are big enough to touch it, or to be caught by
+the wind, they are tied to the stake. The ground in
+which this system is pursued being entirely devoted to
+asparagus, the stools are placed very much closer
+together than they are among the vines&mdash;say, at a distance
+of about a yard apart. The little trenches are
+about a foot wide and eight inches deep.</p>
+
+<p>The best asparagus in France is grown at Argenteuil
+and by one system mainly. The plants&mdash;one-year
+seedlings (never older)&mdash;are planted in shallow trenches
+seven or eight inches deep, the plants a little more than
+one yard apart and the lines four feet apart. No
+manure is given at planting; no trenching or any
+preparation of the ground, beyond digging the shallow
+trench, takes place. In subsequent years a little
+manure is given over the roots in autumn; the soil,
+thrown out of the trenches and forming a ridge between
+them, is planted with a light crop in spring. In all
+subsequent years the earth is placed over the crowns
+in spring and removed in autumn.</p>
+
+<p>Under this system good results are obtained in
+various soils, the only difference being that on cold
+clay soils the planting is not quite so deep. Every<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span>
+winter the growers notice the state of the young roots,
+and any spot in which one has perished they mark
+with a stick, to replace the plant the following March.
+Early every spring they pile up a little heap of fine
+earth over each crown. When the plantation arrives
+at its third year they increase the size of the mound,
+or, in other words, a heap of finely pulverized earth is
+placed over the stool, from which some, but not much,
+asparagus is cut the same year, taking care to leave the
+weak plants and those which have replaced others
+untouched for another year.</p>
+
+<p>The process of gathering is interesting to the
+stranger. Asparagus knives of various forms are
+described in both French and English books, but one
+is confidently told by the growers that they are only
+fitted for amateurs who do not care to soil their fingers.
+The cultivators here never use a knife, the work being
+done with the hands. Gatherings are made every
+second day about the end of April, but in May when
+the growth is more active the stools are gathered from
+every day.</p>
+
+<p>The French mode of cultivating asparagus differs
+from the English principally in giving each plant
+abundant room to develop into a large healthy specimen,
+in paying thoughtful attention to the plants at
+all times, and in planting in trenches instead of a
+raised bed. They do not, as is done in England, go
+to great expense in forming a mass of the richest soil
+far beneath the roots, but rather give it at the surface,
+and only when the roots have begun to grow strongly.&mdash;<span class="smcap">W.
+Robinson</span>, in "Parks and Gardens of Paris."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="INDEX" id="INDEX"></a>INDEX</h2>
+
+
+<p>
+<span style="margin-left: 11em;">PAGE</span><br />
+American varieties,                                <a href="#Page_18">18</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Barr's Mammoth,                 <a href="#Page_18">18</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Columbian Mammoth White,             <a href="#Page_19">19</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Conover's Colossal,               <a href="#Page_19">19</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Donald's Elmira,                 <a href="#Page_19">19</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Eclipse,                     <a href="#Page_19">19</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Hub,                       <a href="#Page_20">20</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Mammoth,                     <a href="#Page_20">20</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Moore's Cross-bred,               <a href="#Page_20">20</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Palmetto,                    <a href="#Page_20">20</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Purple top or green top,             <a href="#Page_21">21</a></span><br />
+<br />
+Asparagus culture in different localities,        <a href="#Page_145">145</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in New England,                 <a href="#Page_145">145</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on Long Island,                 <a href="#Page_150">150</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in New Jersey,                 <a href="#Page_152">152</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in the South,                  <a href="#Page_154">154</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in California,                 <a href="#Page_158">158</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in France,                   <a href="#Page_164">164</a></span><br />
+<br />
+Asparagus species,                                  <a href="#Page_6">6</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">plumosus nanus,                  <a href="#Page_6">6</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">medeoloides,                   <a href="#Page_6">6</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Sprengeri,                    <a href="#Page_6">6</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">falcatus,                     <a href="#Page_8">8</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">laricinus,                    <a href="#Page_8">8</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">racemosus,                    <a href="#Page_10">10</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">sarmentosus,                   <a href="#Page_10">10</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Broussoneti,                   <a href="#Page_13">13</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">officinalis,                   <a href="#Page_13">13</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">acutifolius,                   <a href="#Page_16">16</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">aphyllus,                    <a href="#Page_16">16</a></span><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Botany,                                             <a href="#Page_4">4</a><br />
+<br />
+Bunchers,                                          <a href="#Page_91">91</a><br />
+<br />
+Bunching,                                          <a href="#Page_89">89</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Canning,                                          <a href="#Page_112">112</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Eastern methods,                <a href="#Page_112">112</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Pacific coast methods,             <a href="#Page_118">118</a></span><br />
+<br />
+Crates,                                            <a href="#Page_96">96</a><br />
+<br />
+Cultivation,                                       <a href="#Page_61">61</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">the first year,                 <a href="#Page_61">61</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">the second year,                 <a href="#Page_64">64</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">the third and future years,           <a href="#Page_66">66</a></span><br />
+<br />
+Cultural varieties,                                <a href="#Page_17">17</a><br />
+<br />
+Cutting,                                           <a href="#Page_83">83</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Manner of,                    <a href="#Page_84">84</a></span><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Drying,                                           <a href="#Page_122">122</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Edible species,                                    <a href="#Page_13">13</a><br />
+<br />
+European varieties,                                <a href="#Page_21">21</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">German Giant,                  <a href="#Page_22">22</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Argenteuil,                   <a href="#Page_22">22</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Yellow Burgundy,                 <a href="#Page_22">22</a></span><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Fall treatment,                                    <a href="#Page_68">68</a><br />
+<br />
+Fertilizers and fertilizing,                       <a href="#Page_72">72</a><br />
+<br />
+Forcing,                                          <a href="#Page_100">100</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in greenhouse,                 <a href="#Page_101">101</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in hotbeds and frames,             <a href="#Page_103">103</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in field,                    <a href="#Page_104">104</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in Cornell asparagus house,           <a href="#Page_110">110</a></span><br />
+<br />
+Fungus diseases,                                  <a href="#Page_137">137</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Asparagus rust,                 <a href="#Page_137">137</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Asparagus leopard spot,             <a href="#Page_144">144</a></span><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Growing asparagus without transplanting,           <a href="#Page_32">32</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Harvesting and marketing,                          <a href="#Page_83">83</a><br />
+<br />
+Historical sketch,                                  <a href="#Page_1">1</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Insects,                                          <a href="#Page_126">126</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Common asparagus beetle,            <a href="#Page_126">126</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Twelve-spotted asparagus beetle,        <a href="#Page_133">133</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Spotted ladybird,                <a href="#Page_130">130</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Asparagus miner,                <a href="#Page_135">135</a></span><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Knives,                                            <a href="#Page_88">88</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Male and female plants,                            <a href="#Page_40">40</a><br />
+<br />
+Marketing,                                         <a href="#Page_96">96</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span>Ornamental species,                                 <a href="#Page_6">6</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Planting,                                          <a href="#Page_49">49</a><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Distance to plant,                <a href="#Page_50">50</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Depth of,                    <a href="#Page_53">53</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Manner of,                    <a href="#Page_54">54</a></span><br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Placing the roots,                <a href="#Page_59">59</a></span><br />
+<br />
+Plants, Raising of,                                <a href="#Page_30">30</a><br />
+<br />
+Pot-grown asparagus plants,                        <a href="#Page_36">36</a><br />
+<br />
+Preparation of the ground,                         <a href="#Page_45">45</a><br />
+<br />
+Preserving asparagus,                             <a href="#Page_112">112</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Raising of plants,                                 <a href="#Page_30">30</a><br />
+<br />
+Renovating old asparagus beds,                     <a href="#Page_70">70</a><br />
+<br />
+Rubber bands,                                      <a href="#Page_93">93</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Salt as a fertilizer,                              <a href="#Page_81">81</a><br />
+<br />
+Seed-growing,                                      <a href="#Page_26">26</a><br />
+<br />
+Selection of plants,                               <a href="#Page_38">38</a><br />
+<br />
+Soil and its preparation,                          <a href="#Page_43">43</a><br />
+<br />
+Sorting,                                           <a href="#Page_89">89</a><br />
+<br />
+Sorting and bunching,                              <a href="#Page_89">89</a><br />
+<br />
+Sterilizing,                                      <a href="#Page_116">116</a><br />
+<br />
+Subsoiling,                                        <a href="#Page_47">47</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Transplanting, Growing asparagus without,          <a href="#Page_32">32</a><br />
+<br />
+Tying material,                                    <a href="#Page_92">92</a><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+Variety tests,                                     <a href="#Page_22">22</a><br />
+</p>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
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+</body>
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Asparagus, its culture for home use and for
+market:, by F. M. Hexamer
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Asparagus, its culture for home use and for market:
+       a practical treatise on the planting, cultivation,
+       harvesting, marketing, and preserving of asparagus, with
+       notes on its history
+
+Author: F. M. Hexamer
+
+Release Date: March 14, 2010 [EBook #31643]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ASPARAGUS, ITS CULTURE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Tom Roch, Matt Whittaker and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images produced by Core Historical
+Literature in Agriculture (CHLA), Cornell University)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+***********************************************************************
+* Transcriber's Note: Obvious typos were fixed and use of hyphens was *
+* normalized throughout, but all other spelling and punctuation was   *
+* retained as it appeared in the original text.                       *
+***********************************************************************
+
+
+
+
+ASPARAGUS
+
+ITS CULTURE FOR HOME USE AND FOR MARKET
+
+A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE PLANTING, CULTIVATION, HARVESTING,
+MARKETING, AND PRESERVING OF ASPARAGUS, WITH NOTES ON ITS HISTORY AND
+BOTANY
+
+
+BY
+
+F. M. HEXAMER
+
+
+_ILLUSTRATED_
+
+
+NEW YORK
+ORANGE JUDD COMPANY
+1914
+
+
+
+
+_Printed in U. S. A._
+
+
+[Illustration: BEGINNING OF THE ASPARAGUS INDUSTRY IN CALIFORNIA]
+
+
+
+
+TABLE OF CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                 PAGE
+
+      PREFACE                                      vi
+   I. Historical Sketch                             1
+  II. Botany                                        4
+ III. Cultural Varieties                           17
+  IV. Seed Growing                                 26
+   V. The Raising of Plants                        30
+  VI. Selection of Plants                          38
+ VII. The Soil and Its Preparation                 43
+VIII. Planting                                     49
+  IX. Cultivation                                  61
+   X. Fertilizers and Fertilizing                  72
+  XI. Harvesting and Marketing                     83
+ XII. Forcing                                     100
+XIII. Preserving Asparagus                        112
+ XIV. Injurious Insects                           126
+  XV. Fungus Diseases                             137
+ XVI. Asparagus Culture in Different Localities   145
+      INDEX                                       167
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+Beginning of the Asparagus Industry in California
+                                                  _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                            PAGE
+
+Asparagus Plumosus Nanus                                       5
+Asparagus Sprengeri                                            7
+Asparagus Laricinus                                            9
+Asparagus Racemosus, var. Tetragonus                          11
+Asparagus Sarmentosus                                         12
+Crown, Roots, Buds, Spear                                     14
+Stem, Leaves, Flowers, Berries                                14
+Flowers                                                       15
+Palmetto Asparagus                                            21
+Pot-Grown Plant                                               37
+Horizontal Development of Roots                               51
+Trenches Ready for Planting                                   57
+Hudson's Trencher                                             58
+Root in Proper Position for Covering                          59
+Cross-section of Trenches After Planting                      60
+Asparagus Field Ridged in Early Spring                        67
+Leveling the Ridges After Cutting Season                      69
+Fertilized Asparagus Plot                                     75
+Unfertilized Asparagus Plot                                   77
+Basket of Asparagus                                           85
+Cutting and Picking Up Asparagus                              86
+Horse Carrier for Ten Boxes                                   87
+Asparagus Knives                                              89
+End and Side View of White Asparagus Bunches                  90
+Conover's Asparagus Buncher                                   91
+Watt's Asparagus Buncher                                      92
+Rack and Knives Used in New England                           93
+At the Bunching Table                                         94
+Box of Giant Asparagus                                        97
+Southern Asparagus Crate                                      98
+Tunnel for Forcing Steam Through the Soil                    107
+A Long Island Asparagus Cannery                              113
+Sterilizing Tank                                             115
+Sterilizing Room                                             117
+Interior View of a California Asparagus Cannery              119
+Perspective View of a California Asparagus Cannery           121
+Cannery in Asparagus Fields                                  123
+Common Asparagus Beetle                                      127
+Asparagus Attacked by Beetles                                129
+Spotted Ladybird                                             131
+Twelve-spotted Asparagus Beetle                              134
+Asparagus Stems Affected with Rust                           138
+Portion of Rusted Asparagus Stems                            139
+Asparagus Field on Bouldin Island                            161
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+The cultivation of asparagus for home use as well as for market is so
+rapidly increasing, and reliable information pertaining to it is so
+frequently asked for, that a book on this subject is evidently needed.
+While all works on vegetable culture treat more or less extensively on
+its cultivation, so far there has been no book exclusively devoted to
+asparagus published in America. Asparagus is one of the earliest, most
+delicious, and surest products of the garden. Its position among other
+vegetables is unique, and when once planted it lasts a lifetime; it may
+be prepared for use in great variety, and may be canned or dried so as
+to be available at any time of the year; and yet in the great majority
+of farm gardens it is almost unknown. The principal reason for this
+neglect is based upon the erroneous idea that asparagus culture requires
+unusual skill, expense, and hard work. While this was true, in a
+measure, under old-time rules, modern methods have so simplified every
+detail connected with the cultivation of asparagus as to make it not
+necessarily more expensive and laborious than that of any other garden
+crop. To describe and make clear these improved methods, to demonstrate
+how easily and inexpensively an asparagus bed may be had in every
+garden, and how much pleasure, health, and profit may be derived from
+the crop have been the principal inducements to writing this book.
+
+In a popular treatise on so widely distributed a vegetable as asparagus,
+the cultivation of which had been brought to a high state of development
+many centuries before the Christian era, there is little opportunity for
+originality. All that the author has endeavored in this little volume
+has been to collect, arrange, classify, and systematize all obtainable
+facts, compare them with his own many years' experience in asparagus
+culture, and present his inferences in a plain and popular manner. Free
+use has been made of all available literature, especially helpful among
+which has been the Farmers' Bulletin No. 61 of the United States
+Department of Agriculture, by R. B. Handy; also bulletins of the
+Missouri, New York, Ohio, New Jersey, North Carolina, Maryland,
+Massachusetts, and South Carolina and other experiment stations; the
+files of _American Agriculturist; Gardener's Chronicle_, from which
+descriptions of several ornamental species by William Watson were
+condensed; Thome's "Flora von Deutschland;" "Eintraegliche
+Spargelzucht," von Franz Goeschke; "Braunschweiger Spargelbuch," von
+Dr. Ed. Brinckmeier; "Parks and Gardens of Paris," by William Robinson;
+"Asparagus Culture," by James Barnes and William Robinson; "Les Plantes
+Potageres," by Vilmorin-Andrieux; the works of Peter Henderson, Thomas
+Bridgeman, J. C. Loudon, and others.
+
+The author desires to express his grateful acknowledgments to Mr.
+Herbert Myrick, editor-in-chief of _American Agriculturist_ and allied
+publications, for critically reading the whole manuscript; to Prof. W.
+G. Johnson, Charles V. Mapes, C. L. Allen, A. D. McNair, Superintendent
+Southern Pines Experimental Farm; Prof. W. F. Massey, Robert W. Nix,
+Robert Hickmott, Charles W. Prescott, Joel Borton, and all others who by
+their help, suggestions, and advice have aided him in the preparation of
+this work.
+
+F. M. HEXAMER.
+
+_New York, 1901._
+
+
+
+
+ASPARAGUS
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+HISTORICAL SKETCH
+
+
+The word "asparagus" is said to be of Persian origin. In middle Latin it
+appears as _sparagus_; Italian, _sparajio_; old French, _esperaje_; old
+English, _sperage_, _sparage_, _sperach_. The middle Latin form,
+_sparagus_, was in English changed into _sparagrass_, _sparrow-grass_,
+and sometimes simply _grass_, terms which were until recently in good
+literary use. In modern French it is _asperge_; German, _spargel_;
+Dutch, _aspergie_; Spanish, _esperrago_.
+
+The original habitat of the edible asparagus is not positively known, as
+it is now found naturalized throughout Europe, as well as in nearly all
+parts of the civilized world. How long the plant was used as a vegetable
+or as a medicine is likewise uncertain, but that it was known and highly
+prized by the Romans at least two centuries before the Christian era is
+historically recorded. According to Pliny, the Romans were already aware
+of the difference in quality, that grown near Ravenna being considered
+best, and was so large that three spears weighed one pound. The elder
+Cato has treated the subject with still greater care. He advises the
+sowing of the seed of asparagus in the beds of vine-dressers' reeds,
+which are cultivated in Italy for the support of the vines, and that
+they should be burned in the spring of the third year, as the ashes
+would act as a manure to the future crop. He also recommends that the
+plants be renewed after eight or nine years.
+
+The usual method of preparing asparagus pursued by the Roman cooks was
+to select the finest sprouts and to dry them. When wanted for the table
+they were put in hot water and cooked a few minutes. To this practice is
+owing one of Emperor Augustus's favorite sayings: "_Citius quam asparagi
+coquentur_" (Do it quicker than you can cook asparagus).
+
+While the indigenous asparagus has been used from time immemorial as a
+medicine by Gauls, Germans, and Britons, its cultivation and use as a
+vegetable was only made known to the people by the invading Roman
+armies. But in the early part of the sixteenth century it was mentioned
+among the cultivated garden vegetables, and Leonard Meager, in his
+"English Gardener," published in 1683, informs us that in his time the
+London market was well supplied with "forced" asparagus.
+
+The medicinal virtues formerly attributed to asparagus comprise a wide
+range. The roots, sprouts, and seeds were used as medicine. The fresh
+roots are diuretic, perhaps owing to the immediate crystalizable
+principle, "asparagine," which is said to be sedative in the dose of a
+few grains. A syrup made of the young shoots and an extract of the roots
+has been recommended as a sedative in heart affections, and the _species
+diuretica_--a mixture of asparagus, celery, parsley, holly, and sweet
+fennel--was a favorite preparation for use in dropsy and gravel. Among
+the Greeks and Romans it was one of the oldest and most valued
+medicines, and to which most absurd virtues were attributed. It was
+believed that if a person anointed himself with a liniment made of
+asparagus and oil the bees would not approach or sting him. It was also
+believed that if the root be put on a tooth which aches violently it
+causes it to come out without pain. The therapeutic virtues of asparagus
+seem to have been held in almost as high esteem by the ancients as those
+of ginseng are esteemed by the Chinese to this day.
+
+
+
+
+II
+
+BOTANY
+
+
+The genus Asparagus belongs to the Lily Family. It comprises about one
+hundred and fifty species, and these are spread through the temperate
+and tropical regions of the Old World. One-half of these species are
+indigenous to South Africa, and it is from this region that the most
+ornamental of the greenhouse species have been obtained.
+
+All the species are perennial, with generally fleshy roots or tubers.
+The stems are annual in some, perennial in others, most of them being
+spiny, climbing shrubs, growing to a length of from five to twenty or
+even fifty feet. The true leaves are usually changed into spines, which
+are situated at the base of the branches and are often stout and woody.
+The false leaves, termed cladodia, are the linear or hair-like organs
+which are popularly called leaves; they are in reality modified
+branches. These cladodia are nearly always arranged in clusters at
+intervals along the branches, and the flowers generally spring from
+their axils. They usually fall off the hardy species in winter, and they
+are easily affected by unfavorable conditions in all the species. Most
+of them flower and fruit freely under cultivation, so that seeds are
+available for propagation.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 2--ASPARAGUS PLUMOSUS NANUS]
+
+
+ORNAMENTAL SPECIES
+
+_A. medeoloides_ (_Myrsiphyllum asparagoides_), popularly known as
+Smilax.--For many years this has been, and is yet, one of the most
+commonly grown and the most serviceable of the plants used by florists
+as "green." It is readily grown from seed in the greenhouse. While a few
+other species of asparagus have been close rivals, it is yet unexcelled
+for many purposes of floral decorations.
+
+_A. plumosus_ (the plumy asparagus).--A very graceful climbing plant
+which for finer decoration has largely taken the place of smilax, its
+foliage being finer than that of the most delicate ferns, and will last
+for weeks after being cut. The whole plant is of a bright, cheerful
+green. Its branches spread horizontally, and branch again in such a
+manner as to form a flat, frond-like arrangement, the leaves being very
+numerous, in clusters of about a dozen, bright green, and one-half inch
+long. A native of South Africa, where it climbs over bushes and branches
+in moist situations. There are several named varieties of this, most of
+which have originated in gardens. The most distinct are _A. tenuissimus_
+and _A. plumosus nanus_, the fern-like appearance of which is seen in
+Fig. 2.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 3--ASPARAGUS SPRENGERI]
+
+_A. Sprengeri._--This is one of the best and most attractive house
+plants of recent introduction. It is of graceful form and habit when
+grown as a pot plant, but it is equally well suited for planting in
+hanging baskets. Its fronds are frequently four feet long, of a rich
+shade of green, and very useful for cutting, retaining their freshness
+for weeks after being cut. As a house plant it has exceeded
+expectations, as it stands dry atmosphere better than the older kinds of
+ornamental asparagus, and is not particular as to any special position.
+It delights in a well-enriched soil, rather light in composition, with
+plenty of drainage, and grows very rapidly. It is decidedly pretty when
+in bloom, its little flowers being pure white on short racemes, and the
+anthers are of a bright orange color. Fig. 3 gives a good idea of its
+graceful habit.
+
+_A. falcatus._--One of the most striking twining plants for a large,
+temperate house. At the Kew Gardens, in London, England, is an enormous
+specimen of this species which is trained against the northern
+staircase, where it has formed a perfect thicket two yards through and
+twenty-five feet high, of long, rope-like, intertwining, spinous,
+fawn-colored stems, some of them fully fifty feet long, and clothed with
+wiry, woody branches, bearing whorls of leaves from two to three inches
+long and nearly one-fourth of an inch wide, falcate and bright green.
+The young stems are thick and succulent and gray-green, mottled with
+brown. For large conservatories, and particularly in moist, shady
+corners, where ordinary climbers will not thrive, this is an ideal
+plant. It is a native of the tropics of Asia and Africa, as well as the
+Cape.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 4--ASPARAGUS LARICINUS]
+
+_A. laricinus_ (Fig. 4).--This handsome species has been in the Kew
+collection at least twenty years. It is grown in the succulent house,
+where, from a vigorous root system, it sends up annual stout succulent
+shoots, which grow to a length of about twelve feet, and when fully
+developed are decidedly ornamental. The stems are perennial, terete,
+dark brown, woody, one-half inch in diameter at the base, very spinous,
+freely branched, and branches zigzag and gray, the leaves in clusters
+one-fourth inch apart, hair-like, one and one-half inches long, bright
+green, persistent. Flowers axillary, many in a cluster, small,
+campanulate, white. Berries globose, dull red, one seeded, one-sixth of
+an inch in diameter. Common in various parts of South Africa. It is an
+excellent pillar plant.
+
+_A. racemosus._--This species is spread throughout the tropics of Africa
+and Asia; the Cape form of it is represented at Kew under the name of
+variety _tetragonus_, as shown in Fig. 5. This is a vigorous grower,
+with woody stems nine feet long, prickly at the base, fawn colored,
+freely branching above, each branch having at its base a sharp spine
+three-quarters of an inch long. The leaves are of a gray-green hue,
+four-angled, one-quarter of an inch long. Flowers in racemes two inches
+long, whitish, very fragrant. Berry red, globose, pulpy, one-seeded. An
+excellent climber for rafters, pillars, etc., growing vigorously under
+ordinary treatment. Its root system is a dense mass of tubers.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 5--ASPARAGUS RACEMOSUS, VAR. TETRAGONUS]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 6--ASPARAGUS SARMENTOSUS]
+
+_A. sarmentosus_ (Fig. 6).--An elegant evergreen species from South
+Africa, where it grows freely in moist situations, forming dense, brushy
+stems with short prickles, and studded with white, starry, fragrant
+flowers, which are followed with bright scarlet, pea-like berries; has
+stems four feet high, freely branched and clothed with dark green flat
+leaves three inches long. It is also grown in pots and baskets for
+the Cape-house, and when in flower it is greatly admired.
+
+_A. Broussoneti._--A beautiful hardy perennial climber from the Canary
+Islands, growing ten feet high; feathery foliage and scarlet berries. In
+the autumn this is very ornamental.
+
+Among the most noteworthy of other ornamental species are: _A.
+Aethiopicus_, _Africanus_, _Asiaticus_, _Cooperi_, _crispus_,
+_declinatus_, _decumbens_, _lucidus_, _retrofractus_, _scandens_,
+_tenuifolius_, _trichophyllus_, _umbellatus_, _verticillatus_,
+_virgatus_, etc., etc.
+
+
+EDIBLE SPECIES
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 7--ASPARAGUS CROWN, ROOTS, BUDS, AND SPEAR]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 8--ASPARAGUS STEM, LEAVES, FLOWERS, AND BERRIES]
+
+_Asparagus officinalis._--While the young sprouts of a few other species
+may be used as food, this is the only one which has found a permanent
+place in cultivation. It is a branching, herbaceous plant, reaching a
+hight of from three to seven feet; the filiform branchlets, three to
+seven inches long, less than one-quarter inch thick, are mostly
+clustered in the axils of minute scales. The rootstock, or "crown," is
+perennial, and makes a new growth each year of from one to three inches,
+extending horizontally, and generally in a straight line. It may
+propagate from both ends, or from only one, but in either case the older
+part of root stalk becomes unproductive and finally dies. Fig. 7 shows
+the new portion of the rootstock crowned with buds for the production of
+new shoots, while the older portion bears the scars and dead scales of
+previous growths. From the sides and the lower part of the rootstock
+numerous cylindrical, fleshy roots start and extend several feet
+horizontally, but do not penetrate the soil deeply. In the course of
+time the older roots become hollow and inactive without becoming
+detached from the rootstock. The young root formation always takes place
+a little above the old roots, which circumstance explains why the
+asparagus plants gradually rise above the original level, thus
+necessitating the annual hilling up or the covering of the crowns with
+additional soil.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 9]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 10]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 11]
+
+The asparagus flowers are mostly solitary at the nodes, of
+greenish-yellow color, drooping or filiform, jointed peduncles;
+perianth, six-parted, campanulate, as seen in Fig. 8. Anthers, introrse;
+style, short; stigma, three-lobed; berry, red, spherical, three-celled;
+cells, two-seeded. While the flowers are generally dioecious--staminate
+and pistillate flowers being borne on different plants--there appear
+also hermaphrodite flowers, having both pistils and fully developed
+stamens in the same flower. Fig. 9 shows a pistillate, Fig. 10 a
+staminate, and Fig. 11 a hermaphrodite or bisexual flower.
+
+In one case, at least, the author has also observed that a plant which
+has been barren of seed at first changed into a seed-bearing plant the
+following year. Similar changes in the sexuality of strawberries have
+been observed under certain conditions. These facts may explain, in a
+measure, the difficulty experienced in raising permanently sterile
+asparagus plants.
+
+_Asparagus acutifolius._--A native of Southern Europe and Northern
+Africa. It has a fleshy rootstock, hard, wiry, brown stems, five to
+seven feet high, with rigid branches three to six inches long, thickly
+closed, with tufts of gray-green, hair-like, rigid leaves, which in
+exposed situations are almost spinous. Flowers yellow, a quarter of an
+inch in diameter, fragrant. The young sprouts are tender, and, when
+cooked, of a peculiar aromatic flavor. In their native home they are
+used like the cultivated kind.
+
+_A. aphyllus._--Indigenous to Greece, where the young shoots are
+commonly used as food, especially during Lent.
+
+
+
+
+III
+
+CULTURAL VARIETIES
+
+
+Although but one species of edible asparagus has found its way into
+general cultivation, many varieties and strains are recognized.
+
+Up to within a comparatively recent period it was thought that there
+existed only one distinct kind, or variety, of asparagus. As late as
+1869 so keen an observer as Peter Henderson believed that "the asparagus
+of our gardens is confined to only one variety, and the so-called giant
+can be made gigantic or otherwise, just as we will it, and the purple
+top variety will become a green top whenever the composition of the soil
+is not of the kind to develop the purple, and _vice versa_. All
+practical gardeners know how different soils and climates change the
+appearance of the same variety. Seeds of cabbage taken from the same bag
+and sown at the same time, but planted out in soils of light sandy loam,
+heavy clayey loam, and peat or leaf-mold, will show such marked
+differences when at maturity as easily to be pronounced different sorts.
+This, no doubt, is the reason why the multitude of varieties of all
+vegetables, when planted side by side to test them, are so wonderfully
+reduced in number."
+
+But after inspecting an acre of ordinary asparagus and an acre of
+Abraham Van Siclen's Colossal--which was afterward introduced as
+Conover's Colossal--at Jamaica, L. I., N. Y., Mr. Henderson wrote: "A
+thorough inspection of the roots of each lot proved that they were of
+the same age when planted. The soil was next examined, and found to be
+as near the same as could be, yet these two beds of asparagus showed a
+difference that no longer left me a shadow of a doubt of their being
+entirely different varieties."
+
+In but few vegetables do the conditions of soil, locality, mode of
+cultivation, and other circumstances affect the quality, size, and
+appearance as much as in asparagus. It is therefore difficult to
+distinguish fixed and permanent varieties from mere local strains and
+forms secured by selection.
+
+Through natural and artificial selection, through use of seed of strong
+shoots from superior roots, there has been improvement in the size and
+yield of asparagus; from the peculiar adaptability of soil and climate,
+and the effect of manure and high cultivation, there have appeared
+certain variations in the product of different beds which have led to
+the bestowing of a new name; but the effect of this care and these
+favorable conditions is not sufficiently strong to produce distinct
+varieties with fixed characteristics. Therefore, with correct and
+rational treatment of the plant from the time of seeding through all the
+stages of culture, satisfactory results may be reached with almost any
+of the varieties on the market.
+
+
+AMERICAN VARIETIES
+
+_Barr's Mammoth_ (Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth).--Originated with
+Crawford Barr, a prominent market gardener of Pennsylvania. It is one of
+the earliest varieties, is very productive, and grows to the largest
+size. In Philadelphia it is much sought after, and brings the highest
+prices.
+
+_Conover's Colossal_ (Van Siclen's Colossal).--Originated with Abraham
+Van Siclen, of Long Island, N. Y., and was introduced by S. B. Conover,
+a commision merchant of West Washington Market, New York City, some
+thirty years ago. The superiority of this variety over all other kinds
+known at that time made it soon supplant all other varieties, and it is
+to this day better and more favorably known than any other sort.
+
+_Columbian Mammoth White._--This was introduced by D. M. Ferry & Co., in
+1893. The immense shoots are clear white, and, in favorable weather,
+remain so until three or four inches above the surface, without earthing
+up or any other artificial blanching. The crown or bud of the young
+stalk is considerably smaller than the part just below it, thus further
+distinguishing the variety. All but a very few of the seedlings will
+produce clear white shoots, and the green ones can be readily
+distinguished and rejected when planting the permanent bed.
+
+_Donald's Elmira._--Originated by A. Donald, Elmira, N. Y., and was
+first introduced by Johnson & Stokes, Philadelphia, Pa. This is
+characterized by the delicate green color of its stems, different from
+any other kind. Its stalks are very tender and succulent, while its size
+is all that can be desired.
+
+_Eclipse_ (Dreer's Eclipse).--A light green mammoth strain of excellent
+quality and attractive appearance. The stalks, not rarely, measure two
+inches in diameter, and even when twelve to fifteen inches long are
+perfectly tender and of a delicate light green color.
+
+_Hub._--Originated in New Hampshire several years ago, and was
+introduced by Joseph Breck & Sons, Boston, Mass. Although not generally
+catalogued, it is a distinct and valuable variety that has made a
+decided record for itself in the tests of the Kansas Experiment Station,
+where its yield, by weight, was greater than any other.
+
+_Mammoth._--This is a somewhat indefinite term, as almost any prominent
+seedsman and grower who has a particularly good and large strain of
+asparagus suffixes it to his own name. Among the best known of these are
+Vick's Mammoth, Maule's Mammoth, Prescott's Mammoth, etc.
+
+_Moore's Cross-bred._--This originated with J. B. Moore, who for twenty
+years was awarded the first prize on asparagus at the exhibitions of the
+Massachusetts Horticultural Society, at one of which the weight of
+twelve stalks was 4 pounds 6-1/4 ounces. It retains the head close until
+the stalks are quite long, and is of uniform color, while for tenderness
+and eating quality it is excelled by none. It is particularly
+recommended for cultivation in New England.
+
+_Palmetto._--A variety of Southern origin, but suitable for the North
+also. At the South it is somewhat earlier than Conover's Colossal, but
+its great advantage is that it is almost destitute of, what dealers
+call, culls, nearly all shoots being of a uniform and large size. The
+bunch from which the engraving (Fig. 12) was made measured twenty-two
+inches in circumference, and contained forty-eight stalks of nine
+inches in length and remarkably uniform in size. It was taken on March
+30th from a field of fifty acres, near Charleston, S. C. But the
+greatest point in its favor is its comparative security from the attacks
+of rust.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 12--BUNCH OF PALMETTO ASPARAGUS]
+
+_Purple Top_ and _Green Top_.--These were the only distinct sorts in
+cultivation before the introduction of Conover's Colossal, but are now
+almost unknown to the trade and cultivators.
+
+
+EUROPEAN VARIETIES
+
+The named varieties of asparagus of European origin are very numerous,
+as almost every locality in which asparagus is cultivated extensively
+and successfully has given its name to a strain more or less distinct.
+Generally these varieties differ only in a single characteristic, and
+these differences, for the most part, are so little that they are lost
+when grown under different climatic and soil conditions. The
+best-informed authorities recognize three cultivated varieties, which
+have distinct commercial characteristics and whose seeds reproduce them
+in the seedlings.
+
+_German Giant._--This variety embraces most of the German and French
+sorts--the Giant Dutch Purple, Ulm Giant, Giant Brunswick, Large Erfurt,
+Early Darmstadt, and many others.
+
+_Argenteuil._--Of this three sub-varieties are recognized--the early,
+intermediate, and late; and these are the kinds grown almost exclusively
+in the vicinity of Paris, France, where its culture and improvement have
+steadily developed for centuries. Under good culture the late Argenteuil
+produces stalks from three to six inches in circumference, at eight
+inches below the tips.
+
+_Yellow Burgundy._--The distinctive characteristic of this variety is
+that the young shoots below the surface of the soil are light yellow
+instead of white to tips, being greenish-yellow. It is also claimed to
+be more rust-resisting than other European sorts.
+
+
+VARIETY TESTS
+
+To determine the comparative effects of manuring on different varieties
+of asparagus, and also their comparative earliness, Prof. S. C. Mason
+and his assistant, W. L. Hall, of the Kansas Experiment Station, have
+made some interesting and instructive experiments, the results of which
+are given in Bulletin 70, as follows:
+
+"The seed of ten varieties of asparagus was planted. A good stand was
+secured, and the young plants were cultivated during the summer in the
+usual way. Early the following spring the entire patch was dug up and
+the roots heeled in. The same ground was then prepared for a permanent
+plantation, by plowing it deeply and marking it with furrows four feet
+apart. These furrows were made as deep as possible, but after the loose
+soil had run back into them they were on the bottom hardly six inches
+below the level of the ground. In these furrows the roots of the
+seedlings were planted (240 feet of row for each variety), making
+altogether a patch of 35.25 square rods, or a little more than one-fifth
+of an acre (.22 of an acre). The plants were set about a foot apart in
+the row, and covered only an inch or two above the crown, leaving along
+the rows depressions some two inches deep, which were gradually filled
+up during the summer, by the many cultivations. During the winter the
+stalks were cleared off, but nothing was done with the patch in the
+spring more than to cut and note the earliest shoots, the first cutting
+of which was made April 13th. The patch was cultivated during summer as
+before, except that the size of the plants interfered somewhat--many of
+the plants growing six feet high and correspondingly broad. During the
+fall the north half of each variety was manured, at the rate of fifty
+loads per acre, with strong barnyard manure, and in the spring the
+effect was noted.
+
+"The following table gives results as shown by the records of ten
+cuttings made the spring of 1897, from April 20th to May 19th,
+inclusive; varieties averaged in order of yield:
+
+========================================================================
+VARIETIES                                 |      YIELDS IN POUNDS
+240 feet of row in each, one-half manured +---------+-----------+-------
+and one-half unmanured                    |_Manured_|_Unmanured_|_Total_
+------------------------------------------+---------+-----------+-------
+ 1 Hub                                    |   31    |    27     |  58
+ 2 Donald's Elmira                        |   29    |    29     |  58
+ 3 Vick's New Mammoth                     |   26    |    20     |  47
+ 4 Palmetto                               |   20    |    18     |  39
+ 5 Moore's Cross-bred                     |   19    |    15     |  35
+ 6 Conover's Colossal                     |   16    |    17     |  33
+ 7 Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth            |   17    |    16     |  33
+ 8 Columbian Mammoth White                |   18    |    13     |  32
+ 9 Dreer's Eclipse                        |   16    |    14     |  30
+10 Giant Purple Top                       |   15    |    14     |  29
+                                          +---------+-----------+-------
+   Totals                                 |  207    |   183     | 394
+========================================================================
+
+"Of the two heaviest yielding varieties, Hub and Donald's Elmira, the
+last named is the earliest, though Hub is also quite early. As nearly as
+can be judged from the notes, the ten varieties rank for earliness about
+as follows, though all kinds yielded something at the first cutting:
+
+{10 Giant Purple Top.
+{ 7 Barr's Philadelphia Mammoth.
+{ 2 Donald's Elmira.
+
+{ 6 Conover's Colossal.
+{ 3 Vick's New Mammoth.
+{ 1 The Hub.
+{ 9 Dreer's Eclipse.
+
+  4 Palmetto.
+  5 Moore's Cross-bred.
+  8 Columbian Mammoth White.
+
+"Those included within a brace have little or no difference of season.
+The numbers mark their rank with regard to yield, 1 being the highest.
+The ground occupied by this plantation is a rather low bottom-land,
+being built up of a clay silt from the former overflow of two creeks,
+mixed with vegetable mold. It is rather too compact for the best growth
+of asparagus, as it contains very little sand."
+
+
+
+
+IV
+
+SEED GROWING
+
+
+The asparagus plant begins to produce seed when two years old. When
+fully developed the stalks are from five to six feet in hight, with
+numerous branches upon which are produced a profusion of bright scarlet
+berries, containing from three to six seeds each. It is not advisable,
+however, to harvest seed from plants less than four years old.
+
+To save the seed the stalks are cut close to the ground as soon as the
+berries are ripe, which may be known by their changing color, from green
+to scarlet, and softening somewhat. The entire stalks are then cut off,
+tied in bundles, and hung up in a dry place safe from the attacks of
+birds, some kinds of which are very fond of this seed. After the berries
+are fully dried they are stripped off by hand, or thrashed upon a cloth
+or floor, and separated from the chaff. They are then soaked in water
+for a day or two to soften the skin and pulp of the berries, after which
+they are rubbed between the hands, or mashed with a wooden pounder, to
+break the outer shells. The separation of the pulp from the seed is
+accomplished by washing. When placed in water the seeds will settle with
+the pulp and the shells will readily pass away in pouring off the water.
+To clean the seeds thoroughly the washing has to be repeated three or
+four times. It is then spread on boards or trays to dry in the sun and
+wind. After the first day it should be removed from the sun, but exposed
+to the air in a dry loft, spread thin for ten days or more. When
+thoroughly dried the seed is stored in linen or paper bags until needed.
+
+When cheapness of the seed is the main consideration such promiscuous
+harvesting may be permissible, but when only the best is desired careful
+selection and preparation becomes necessary. Even if the parent plants
+are of choice types, not all the seeds from them are equally good. The
+seed, for instance, which has been gathered from a stool which has
+flowered side by side with an inferior kind, and at the same time, may
+be worthless, because it has been fertilized badly. Then the last heads
+generally yield nothing but doubtful seed which seldom reproduces the
+proper type. The seeds which grow at the end of the shoots also, as well
+as those produced by the upper and lower extremities of the stem, have
+the same defect.
+
+In order to insure the production of the very best asparagus seed a
+sufficient number of pistillate or seed-bearing plants, which produce
+the strongest and best spears, should be selected and marked so that
+they may be distinguished the following spring when the shoots appear.
+These clumps should be close together and near some staminate or male
+plants which have to be marked likewise, as without their presence
+fertile seed can not be produced. The number of the male to the female
+plants should be about one to four or five. The following spring all the
+sprouts of the selected male plants are allowed to grow without cutting
+any. On each hill of the female plants the two strongest and earliest
+stalks are allowed to grow, cutting the later appearing spears with the
+others for market or home use. Thus these early stalks of both male and
+female plants bloom together before any other stalks, and the blooms on
+the female plants will be fertilized with the pollen of the selected
+male plants. This last is of prime importance, for on proper
+fertilization depends the purity of the seed as well as the vigor of the
+resultant plant. Not all seed of even a good plant properly fertilized
+should be used for reproduction, as of the seeds gathered from any plant
+some will be better than others. Only the largest, plumpest, and best
+matured seeds should be used, for by saving these the most nearly
+typical plants of the sort will be most certainly produced. The
+selection of the best seed from typical plants is as essential to
+success as are good soil, thorough cultivation, and heavy manuring.
+
+The best seeds are produced from the lower part of the stalk, hence it
+is well to top the plant after the seed is well set, taking off about
+ten inches, and to remove the berries from the upper branches, that all
+the strength may go to the full development of the more desirable
+berries. If, after this has been done, there is more than sufficient
+seed for the purpose desired, a second discrimination can be made
+between the seed of plants which produce numerous berries and those
+which are shy bearers, the latter being desirable, as this indicates a
+tendency in the plant to produce stalk rather than seed, and it is as a
+stalk producer that asparagus is valuable.
+
+Harvesting, cleaning, and preserving the seed is, of course, to be done
+carefully; the separation of the heavy and the light seeds can be
+accomplished by means of water, while the larger can be selected from
+the resultant mass by the use of a properly meshed sieve.
+
+
+
+
+V
+
+THE RAISING OF PLANTS
+
+
+Asparagus can be propagated by division of the roots, but this method
+gives so unsatisfactory results that it is rarely practiced. Raising the
+plants from seed is therefore the only method worth considering. The
+seed may be sown either in the fall or spring. But far more important
+than the time for sowing is the quality of the seed. While asparagus
+seed retains its vitality for two or more years, it is not safe to use
+seed older than one year. Fresh seed may be recognized by its glossy
+black color and uniform smooth surface, while old seed has a smutty gray
+color and its surface is generally rough and wrinkled. Yet even with
+this as a guide it is not easy to distinguish bad from good seed, and
+still more difficult, if not impossible, is it to distinguish the seed
+of different varieties. It is therefore advisable to procure seed only
+from dealers of undoubted reliability and pay a fair price for it rather
+than to accept poor seed as a gift. A uniformity of the individual
+plants in the asparagus bed or field is a matter of prime importance;
+only large, fully developed seeds should be used, screening out and
+rejecting all small and inferior ones.
+
+In northern latitudes spring sowing is preferable to fall sowing. The
+ground of the seed-bed should be well drained and fairly retentive of
+moisture. As soon as the soil admits of working it should be well
+pulverized and enriched with decomposed manure. On a small scale a
+spading-fork is the best implement for preparing soil for nursery rows
+of asparagus plants.
+
+Straight lines should be marked about fifteen inches apart and drills
+made about an inch deep when the sowing is done very early in the
+season, and one-half to one inch deeper when the sowing is done later.
+In these drills the seed should be dropped two or three inches apart.
+The covering may be made with a hoe, after which the soil should be well
+pressed down with the foot. As the seed is slow to germinate--in from
+four to six weeks, according to weather conditions--it is well to sow
+with it a few radish seeds, which will soon appear and mark the lines of
+the drills, so that cultivation may begin at once. Soaking the seed in
+luke-warm water for twenty-four hours before sowing will hasten its
+germination.
+
+The cultivation of the young plants consists in keeping the soil about
+them light, and free from grass and weeds. Most of this work can be done
+with a garden cultivator, or a hoe and rake or prong hoe, but some hand
+weeding is generally necessary in addition. Strict attention to this
+will save a year in time, for if the seed-bed has been neglected, it
+will take two years to get the plants as large as they should be in one
+year if they had been properly cared for. In consequence of this very
+frequent neglect of proper cultivation of the seed-bed, it is a common
+impression that the plants must be two years old before transplanting.
+One pound of seed will produce about 10,000 plants, but as many of these
+will have to be thinned out and poor ones rejected, it is not safe to
+count upon more than one-half of this number of good plants. The number
+of plants required for an acre varies according to the manner of
+planting. If planted in rows three feet apart and two feet in the rows,
+it will require 7,260 plants per acre; if planted three by four, 3,630
+per acre.
+
+
+SOWING THE SEED WHERE THE PLANTS ARE TO REMAIN
+
+Growing asparagus without transplanting is gradually finding many
+advocates among those who raise only the green article. It is not only a
+cheaper but in some respects a better method than the raising of the
+plants in a special seed-bed, from which they are transplanted after a
+year or two. "The plan is very simple," wrote Peter Henderson in
+_American Agriculturist_, "and can be followed by any one having even a
+slight knowledge of farming or gardening work. In the fall prepare the
+land by manuring, deep plowing, and harrowing, making it as level and
+smooth as possible for the reception of the seed. Strike out lines three
+feet apart and about two to three inches deep, in which sow the seed by
+hand or seed-drill, as is most convenient, using from five to seven
+pounds of seed to each acre. After sowing, and before covering, tread
+down the seed in the rows with the feet evenly; then draw the back of
+the rake lengthwise over the rows, after which roll the whole surface.
+
+"As soon as the land is dry and fit to work in the spring, the young
+plants of asparagus will start through the ground, sufficient to define
+the rows. At once begin to cultivate with hand or horse cultivator, and
+stir the ground so as to destroy the embryo weeds, breaking the soil in
+the rows between the plants with the fingers or hand weeder for the same
+purpose. This must be repeated at intervals of two or three weeks during
+the summer, as the success of this plan is entirely dependent on keeping
+down the weeds, which, if allowed to grow, would soon smother the
+asparagus plants, that, for the first season of their growth, are weaker
+than most weeds. In two or three months after starting, the asparagus
+will have attained ten or twelve inches in hight, and it must now be
+thinned out, so that the plants stand nine inches apart in the rows. By
+fall they will be from two to three feet in hight and, if the directions
+for culture have been faithfully followed, strong and vigorous.
+
+"When the stems die down (but not before) cut them off close to the
+ground, and cover the lines for five or six inches on each side with two
+or three inches of rough manure. The following spring renew cultivation,
+and keep down the weeds the second year exactly as was done during the
+first, and so on to the spring of the fourth year, when a crop will be
+produced that will well reward all the labor that has been expended.
+Sometimes, if the land is particularly suitable, a marketable crop may
+be secured the third year, but as a rule it will be better to wait until
+the fourth year before cutting much, as this would weaken the plants. To
+compensate for the loss of a year's time in thus growing asparagus from
+seed, cabbage, lettuce, onions, beets, spinach or similar crops that
+will be marketable before the asparagus has grown high enough to
+interfere with them, may be planted between the rows of asparagus the
+first year of its growth with but little injury to it."
+
+
+GOOD CROPS TWO YEARS FROM SEED
+
+In answer to the many inquiries as to how asparagus can be grown to
+weigh two and three-fourths pounds per bunch of twenty-six stalks from
+plants two years old from seed, as exhibited at a recent American
+Institute spring exhibition, George M. Hay, of Connecticut, writes in
+_American Gardening_ as follows:
+
+"Select a piece of ground where the soil is light, but of a good depth,
+and plow thoroughly. About the 1st of May mark off the rows three or
+four feet apart--for myself I prefer the latter distance as giving
+plenty of room for cultivation. Run a two-horse plow over the same
+furrow two or three times and you will have a depth of from fourteen to
+eighteen inches.
+
+"Trenches having been all made, we come to the most important
+part--namely, manuring. In order to give the young plants a good start
+after germination we have to use liberal quantities of well-rotted
+stable manure, and in this the young plants make roots that in a short
+time are surprising. I use a one-horse load of manure to every
+seventy-five feet of drill, tramping it well down, and with a rake draw
+from each side of the trench soil to cover the manure to a depth of from
+two to three inches. The surface is raked level, and with the end of a
+rake or hoe a furrow one inch deep is drawn.
+
+"We are now ready for the seed, which should have been soaked in tepid
+water for at least twenty-four hours. This will insure the immediate
+starting of the seed when the soil is moist and has not had a chance to
+dry out. If unsoaked seed is used and we have a dry spell for two or
+three weeks, the seed will be almost useless by the time it receives
+moisture enough to start.
+
+"When the asparagus is two or three inches high thin out to one foot
+apart, being very careful not to disturb the plants left. A piece of a
+stick cut to the shape of a table-knife is an ideal tool for thinning
+out the young plants. It will be necessary to weed the rows by hand,
+while the plants are very small, for a distance of six inches on each
+side, as the cultivator, if run too close, will cover up the young
+plants. Keep the horse cultivator at work as often as possible to
+maintain moisture for the young roots.
+
+"By fall you will be surprised to learn how far the young roots have
+traveled and the crowns prepared for next year's crop. Cover the rows
+with stable manure for the winter, and in spring give a dressing of one
+pound of nitrate of soda to one hundred feet of drill, and you will be
+well repaid for the extra labor and outlay by being able to cut
+asparagus of extra size in two years from the time of sowing the seed,
+doing away with the transplanting of two-year-old roots, and then
+waiting two more years before the first crop can be cut."
+
+The principal objection which has been made against this system of not
+transplanting is that it does not admit of a careful choice of plants,
+as the plants must be kept in the places where sown, while in the
+transplanting method we need use only the choicest plants; then, if two
+or three seeds come up close together, it is very difficult to thin
+them out, and if left they will produce an inferior growth.
+
+
+POT-GROWN ASPARAGUS PLANTS
+
+In the tests made at the Missouri Experiment Station, Prof. J. C.
+Whitten found that it is much better to plant the seeds in six inches of
+rich, sandy soil in the greenhouse or hotbed, in February or early
+March, than to wait two or three months for outdoor planting. Professor
+Whitten advises to "sow liberally, for seven-eighths of the seedlings
+should be discarded. When the seedlings are three inches high, select
+those which have the thickest, fleshiest, and most numerous stems, and
+pot them. They vary more than almost any other vegetable. Many that
+appear large and vigorous will have broad, flat, twisted, or corrugated
+stems. Discard them. Beware, also, of those that put out leaves close to
+the soil. These will all make tough, stringy, undesirable plants. The
+best plants are those which are cylindrical, smooth, and free from
+ridges. They shoot up rapidly, and attain a hight of two inches before
+leaves are put out. They look much like smooth needles. This matter of
+selecting the best plants for potting, and subsequent planting out, is
+of the greatest importance in asparagus culture.
+
+"These young plants should first be put in small pots and moved into
+larger ones as soon as they are well rooted. They may need to be shifted
+twice before they are planted out-of-doors, which should be done when
+danger of frost is over. Started in this way they continue to grow from
+the time they are planted out and reach very large size the first
+season. In the case of nursery-grown plants, where seeds are sown
+directly out-of-doors, the young seedlings start very slowly, are very
+tender during their early growth, and if the weather is unfavorable they
+hardly become well established before autumn."
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 13--ONE-YEAR-OLD POT-GROWN ASPARAGUS PLANT]
+
+Fig. 13 shows a one-year-old plant started in February in the greenhouse
+and transplanted to the field the first of May. Plants grown in this way
+reach as good size in one year as the nursery-grown plants usually do in
+three years.
+
+
+
+
+VI
+
+SELECTION OF PLANTS
+
+
+That strong, healthy, one-year-old plants are in every way to be
+preferred to two or three year old ones has been demonstrated by many
+carefully conducted experiments, and is now universally recognized by
+intelligent and observant asparagus growers. The most noteworthy and
+accurate experiments in this line were made by the famous French
+asparagus specialist M. Godefroy-Leboeuf, who planted twelve stools of
+one, two, and three years old respectively in the same soil under the
+same conditions and at the same time. Calling those plantings Nos. 1, 2,
+and 3, the following are the results obtained:
+
+     _First Year._--No. 1.--All the stools came up before May 4th, and
+     were well grown.
+
+     No. 2.--Ten stools showed above ground before May 4th, one on the
+     10th, and one appeared to be dead. The asparagus heads were very
+     fine--finer, indeed, than those of No. 1.
+
+     No. 3.--Eight stools showed above ground before May 4th, one on the
+     12th, and three gave no signs of life. The heads were very fine at
+     first, but they became bent toward the end of the year (September
+     15th), and were much weaker than those of No. 2.
+
+            *       *       *       *       *
+
+     _Second Year._--No. 1.--Well-grown, regular, and strong heads,
+     which measured on September 15th one inch in circumference.
+
+     No. 2.--Well-grown but irregular heads, somewhat weaker than those
+     of No. 1.
+
+     No. 3.--Only pretty well-grown heads, very irregular, some of the
+     stools having as many as eight or ten, but all very weak. One stool
+     died after growing two heads.
+
+            *       *       *       *       *
+
+     _Third Year._--No. 1.--Magnificent growths, the heads measuring on
+     April 10th from two inches to three and one-quarter inches in
+     circumference.
+
+     No. 2.--Growth passable only, but very irregular. Some of the
+     stools were very small. The finest of them produced heads which
+     from April 8th to 10th only measured two and one-half inches in
+     circumference.
+
+     No. 3.--Growth very poor and very irregular. Some of the stools
+     continued to produce small heads not much thicker than a quill pen,
+     the largest being from one and one-half inch to two inches in
+     circumference.
+
+            *       *       *       *       *
+
+     _Fourth Year._--No. 1.--Growth very remarkable. The heads began to
+     show on April 3d, 4th, 5th, 7th, and 10th. Some were from three and
+     one-quarter inches to four inches in circumference, and measured
+     four and three-quarter inches. Fifty of the heads formed a bundle
+     which weighed seven pounds.
+
+     No. 2.--Growth passable, but later than No. 1. The heads made their
+     first appearance on April 6th, 10th, and 11th. Many of them were
+     very small; fifty of them barely made half a bundle, and only
+     weighed three and three-quarter pounds.
+
+     No. 3.--Growth but poor, and somewhat late. The heads made their
+     appearance on April 4th, 6th, 9th, and 11th; one did not show till
+     the 22d. Fifty heads barely formed half a bundle and only weighed
+     two and one-half pounds.
+
+     To sum up, it is clear that the plants of a year old in their
+     fourth season--that is to say, after having been planted out for
+     three years--gave a bundle weighing seven pounds, while those of
+     two years old only gave three and three-quarter pounds, and those
+     of three years old only two and one-half pounds; in other words,
+     taking round numbers, the plantation made with the one-year-old
+     plants produced double the crop of the two-year-old plants and
+     treble that of the three-year-old plants. The reader may easily
+     draw his conclusions from the preceding facts.
+
+Equally important is a careful selection of the individual plants to be
+set out. A crown with four or five strong, well-developed buds is far
+better than one with a dozen or more of weak and sickly ones, as the
+latter will always produce thin and poor spears of poor quality. It is
+therefore highly to be recommended to select only plants with not over
+six buds and discard all others. The roots should be strong and of
+uniform thickness, succulent and not too fibrous. Dry or withered roots
+have to be cut off, and plants with many bruised or otherwise damaged
+roots should be rejected entirely. The best roots are the cheapest.
+
+
+MALE AND FEMALE PLANTS
+
+It has long been observed that all of the asparagus plants in a bed do
+not produce seeds, owing to the fact that the male and female flowers in
+asparagus are nearly always borne on separate plants. Seed bearing is an
+exhaustive process, and, as might be supposed, those plants that have
+produced seed have less vigor than those that have not. In order to
+determine the difference in vigor between the seed bearing and non-seed
+bearing plants, Prof. William J. Green, horticulturist of the Ohio
+Experiment Station, staked off fifty of each in a plantation of half an
+acre. When the cuttings were made the shoots taken from male and female
+plants were kept separate, and the weight of each recorded in Bulletin
+No. 9, Volume III., of the Ohio Station, as follows:
+
+"The cuttings were made at regular intervals and in the ordinary manner,
+as for market purposes. The weight of shoots taken at each cutting is
+not given in the table, since the facts are quite as well shown by
+stating the aggregate weight for periods of ten days each. The division
+into periods is made for the purpose of showing comparative earliness.
+This could be shown in a more marked degree by taking the first and
+second cuttings alone, but they were too limited in quantity to admit of
+conclusions being drawn from them; hence they are included with the
+other cuttings in the same period.
+
+PRODUCT FROM FIFTY PLANTS EACH, MALE AND FEMALE
+
++========================+=============+============+
+                         |_Product from|_Product from
+                         | fifty male  | fifty female
+                         |   plants_   |   plants_
++------------------------+-------------+------------+
+                         |  _Ounces_   |  _Ounces_
+ First period, 10 days   |     37      |     21
+ Second period, 10 days  |    104      |     68
+ Third period, 10 days   |    266      |    164
+ Fourth period, 10 days  |    203      |    154
+                         +-------------+------------+
+ Total for the season    |    610      |    407
++========================+=============+============+
+
+"This shows a gain of the male over the female plants of seventy-six per
+cent. for the first period, and a fraction less than fifty per cent. for
+the whole season. Reversing the standard of comparison, it will be seen
+that the female plants fall below the male forty-three per cent. for the
+first period, and a little more than thirty-three per cent. in the
+total. In no case did the female plants produce equally with the male.
+
+"If comparative earliness is determined by the date of first cutting
+alone, there is no difference between the male and female plants, since
+the first cutting was made on both at the same date; but taking quantity
+of product into consideration, which is the proper method, there is a
+decided difference, the gain of the male over the female plants being
+seventy-six, fifty-two, sixty-three, and thirty-one per cent. for the
+four periods respectively. The difference in yield between the two was
+greatest at first, and diminished toward the last, which practically
+amounts to the same thing as the male being earlier than the female.
+There is a still further difference between the two in quality of
+product, the shoots of the female plant being smaller and inferior to
+those of the male.
+
+"It is not safe to draw conclusions from such limited observations as
+these, further, at least, than to accept them as representing the truth
+approximately. Allowing a wide margin for possible error, there would
+still seem to be sufficient difference in productive capacity between
+the male and female plants to justify the selection of the former and
+rejection of the latter when a new plantation is to be started. If the
+figures given in the table are taken as a basis, the gain in the crop,
+if the male plants alone were used, would each season pay for all the
+plants rejected, and leave a handsome margin at the end of the term of
+years when an asparagus bed has served its period of usefulness. Male
+plants can be secured by division of old plants, or by selecting those
+that bear no seed, after they have attained the age of two years."
+
+In summing up the results of this experiment, Professor Green states
+that male asparagus plants are about fifty per cent. more productive
+than female plants, and the shoots being larger have a greater market
+value.
+
+
+
+
+VII
+
+THE SOIL AND ITS PREPARATION
+
+
+As asparagus in its wild state is usually found growing in light and
+sandy soils along or near the seashore, it has long been supposed that
+it could not be cultivated in other localities and soils. While it is
+true that asparagus succeeds best in a sandy, rich, and friable loam,
+naturally underdrained and yet not too dry, there is not another
+vegetable which accommodates itself more readily to as varying soils and
+conditions. There is hardly a State in the United States in which at
+present asparagus is not grown more or less extensively and profitably,
+and the most famous asparagus districts of France and Germany are
+situated at great distances from the seashore.
+
+The question of what soil to use is, as a rule, already settled; we have
+to use the soil we have. Any good garden soil is suitable for asparagus,
+and if it is not in the most favorable condition, under existing
+circumstances, it can easily be made so. The soil should be free from
+roots, stones, or any material that will not readily disintegrate, or
+that will interfere with the growth of the spears, and with the knife in
+cutting. Fruit or other trees, or high shrubs, must not be allowed in
+the asparagus bed, because of the shade they throw over the beds, and
+because their roots make heavy drafts upon the soil. Nor should high
+trees, hedges, hills, or buildings be so near as to shade the beds,
+because all the sunshine obtainable is needed to bring the spears
+quickly to the surface. Whenever practicable the asparagus bed should be
+protected from cold winds, and so slope that the full benefit of the
+sunshine will be obtained during the whole day. Brinckmeier, in his
+"Braunschweiger Spargelbuch," gives the following three rules for
+guidance in selecting a location for asparagus beds:
+
+"1. One should choose, in reference to ground characteristics, open,
+free-lying land, protected to the north and east [which, for American
+conditions, should be north and west], of gradual slope, free from trees
+or shrubbery.
+
+"2. The field should be exposed to the rays of the sun all day long;
+therefore, a southern exposure is desirable, or, if that is not
+obtainable, a southwesterly or southeasterly slope, because either east,
+west, or north exposure will cause shade during a greater or less
+portion of the day.
+
+"3. Standing, stagnant ground water, which cannot be drawn off by
+drainage, is to be avoided, the requirements of the plants indicating a
+somewhat damp subsoil, but not too high ground water."
+
+For commercial purposes on a large scale, and when the trucker has the
+choice of location, a well-drained, light, deep, sandy loam, with a
+light clay subsoil, is to be preferred to any other. Heavy clay soil, or
+land with a hard-pan subsoil, or, in fact, any soil that is cold and
+wet, is totally unfit for profitable asparagus growing, unless it is
+thoroughly underdrained and made lighter by a plentiful addition of sand
+and muck.
+
+Freedom from weeds is very desirable, even more so than great
+fertility, for the latter can be produced by heavy manuring, which the
+future cultivation will require; and to the end that weeds may be few,
+it is well that for a year or two previous to planting the land should
+have been occupied by some hoed crop, such as potatoes, beets, cabbage,
+etc. Land on which corn has been growing for two or three years is in
+excellent condition for an asparagus field, provided it has been heavily
+manured one year previous to the planting of the roots.
+
+
+PREPARATION OF THE GROUND
+
+Asparagus differs from most other vegetables in that it is a perennial,
+and when once planted properly, in suitable soil, it will continue to
+produce an annual crop for a generation if not for an indefinite period,
+while if the work is done carelessly and without consideration for the
+plant's requirements the plantation will never prove satisfactory and
+will run out entirely in the course of a few years. The establishing of
+an asparagus bed is naturally more expensive than the planting and
+raising of annual vegetables. In addition to this, the plants have to be
+taken care of for three years before a crop can be harvested. On the
+other hand, an asparagus bed is an investment for a lifetime, and the
+dividends derived from it increase in proportion to the care and
+thoroughness bestowed upon the preparation of the land.
+
+It is at once apparent, then, that nothing should be neglected to bring
+the soil into the best possible condition before planting. This truth
+was fully recognized by the gardeners of former years who practiced
+most extraordinary methods in order to bring the land into the most
+favorable condition for asparagus. Even now in some European countries,
+where labor is cheap, the entire ground is trenched to a depth of three
+or four feet, turning in at the same time all the available manure,
+seaweed, and other fertilizing material.
+
+A famous old-time asparagus bed in England was made in this manner: "The
+land was trenched three feet deep in trenches three feet wide and cast
+up into rough ridges, after a crop of summer peas. All decaying
+vegetation in the rubbish yards and corners was at the same time well
+sorted and turned up. Early in autumn also were added some old mushroom,
+melon, and cucumber bed material, a lot of manure from piggeries, cow
+houses, and stables, a quantity of road-grit and sand, a quantity of
+ditch and drain parings, turfy loam and sods, quite three feet thick.
+These were all turned over four times and well incorporated together,
+between Michaelmas and Lady Day, as one would a dungheap, the whole
+being left in large ridges exposed to the frost. By April this compost
+was in a kindly state; it was, therefore, laid down and planted with
+good, clean one-year-old asparagus plants, which certainly grew in a
+most extraordinary way."
+
+Another elaborate way of making an asparagus bed, formerly practiced in
+France, is described by Dr. Maccullogh as follows: "A pit the size of
+the intended plantation is dug four feet in depth, and the mold taken
+from it must be sifted, taking care to reject all stones, even as low in
+size as a filbert nut. The best part of the mold must then be laid aside
+before making up the beds. The materials of the bed are then to be laid
+in the following proportions and order: Six inches of common dunghill
+manure, eight inches of turf, six inches of dung as before, six inches
+of sifted earth, eight inches of turf, six inches of very rotten dung,
+eight inches of the best of earth. The last layer of earth must then be
+well mixed with the last of dung. The compartment must now be divided
+into beds five feet wide by paths constructed of turf two feet in
+breadth and one foot in thickness."
+
+A bed prepared in this manner, and planted and cultivated with as much
+painstaking care, will no doubt produce asparagus of unsurpassed
+quality, and may last forever. Yet the use of modern implements and a
+better knowledge of the nature and requirements of the plant have
+demonstrated that first-class asparagus can be produced with far less
+expense and labor. While a deep and loose soil produces earlier and
+better crops than a heavy and shallow one, indiscriminate deepening of
+the soil by trenching or other means is not always desirable, even where
+the cost does not come into consideration. When the subsoil is very
+light and poor and deficient in humus, the placing of the better surface
+soil below and the infertile lower strata above, trenching would be a
+positive detriment. The same would be the case where the subsoil
+consists of heavy impervious clay.
+
+In the fall preceding planting the land should be plowed deeply and left
+in the rough state during the winter. Subsoiling has often been
+recommended, yet practical growers but rarely make use of the subsoil
+plow in the preparation of asparagus plantations, although the value of
+subsoiling where the subsoil is heavy can not be doubted. Where stable
+or barnyard manure can be had cheaply, and the soil is heavy, a liberal
+coat spread broadcast over the surface and left to the action of the
+weather during winter will ameliorate the ground considerably. In most
+cases, however, the same object may be obtained by applying the manure
+in spring. Joseph Harris mentions a case in which a bed was plowed and
+subsoiled in the fall and the soil filled with manure, while another bed
+near by was planted without manure, or extra preparation of any kind,
+relying entirely on artificial fertilizers after planting, and the
+latter was by far the better bed. As early in spring as the ground is in
+suitable condition to be worked it has to be plowed and harrowed and
+brought into as perfect condition as possible.
+
+
+
+
+VIII
+
+PLANTING
+
+
+Throughout the Middle and Northern States, spring, as soon as the soil
+can be worked to good advantage, is decidedly the most favorable time
+for planting asparagus. If it is not practicable to plant thus early,
+the work may sometimes be delayed up to the middle of June. In planting
+thus late, however, preparation has to be made for watering the plants
+in case of drouth, else failure be inevitable. It is also necessary to
+do the work as expeditiously as possible, so as not to expose the roots
+to the drying influences of the sun and wind. Fall planting is advisable
+only in climates where there is no danger of winter-killing of the
+roots.
+
+After the ground has been plowed and harrowed, or spaded and raked over,
+and brought into as mellow a condition as possible, the rows for
+planting are to be laid out. It is usually recommended to have the rows
+run north and south, so as to readily admit the sunlight. When this is
+not practicable, however, it need not deter any one from making an
+asparagus bed, as it is more important to have the rows run with the
+slope of the land than in any particular direction of the compass, in
+order to provide ready surface drainage.
+
+
+DISTANCE TO PLANT
+
+As to the best distance between the rows and the plants in the rows
+there is a wide difference of opinion, more so than with almost any
+other cultivated plant. No unvarying rule can be laid down on this
+point, as it depends largely upon the mechanical condition, depth, and
+fertility of the soil. In a rich, moderately heavy soil, the roots may
+be planted closer than in a poor, light soil. The tendency of the
+present day is for giving the plants considerably more room than what
+formerly was thought to be ample. Intelligent observers could not fail
+to notice that crowded asparagus beds produce later and smaller crops,
+and of inferior size and quality; that they do not last as long; and
+that they are more liable to attacks from insects and fungi than when
+more room is given to the plants.
+
+Gardeners of but a few decades ago had no idea of the possibility of
+raising a profitable crop of asparagus planted four or five feet apart,
+and would have looked with derision upon any one advocating so wild a
+scheme. The remains of run out, old-time asparagus beds are still in
+evidence in many old farm gardens. The rows in these were originally one
+foot apart and the plants in the rows even closer than this, and perhaps
+after every third or fourth row there was a path two feet wide. Of
+course, in such a bed, after a few years, the entire ground became a
+solid mass of roots, and the stalks became smaller and tougher from year
+to year.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 14--HORIZONTAL DEVELOPMENT OF A FOUR-YEAR-OLD
+ASPARAGUS ROOT]
+
+In most asparagus sections special customs prevail, and even in these
+different growers have their individual preferences; but all agree that
+asparagus should never be planted closer than two feet in rows three
+feet apart. For the home garden there is no better plan than to plant
+but a single row, with the plants two or three feet apart, along the
+edge or border of the ground, but not nearer than four or five feet to
+other plants, and in case of grape-vines even more room should be given.
+Here they require but little care, and the plants have an unlimited
+space for the extension of their roots in search of moisture and food.
+Asparagus needs considerable water, and an acre of land will hold so
+much water and no more. The more plants there are on an acre the less
+water there will be for each plant, and what is true of water is also
+true of plant food.
+
+In field culture the distance adopted by asparagus growers varies from 3
+x 3 feet (4,840 plants per acre); 3 x 4 feet (3,640 plants per acre); 4
+x 4 feet (2,722 plants per acre); 4 x 5 feet (2,178 plants per acre); 5
+x 6 feet (1,452 plants per acre); 6 x 6 feet (1,210 plants per acre),
+and even more. If the idea is to have the plants so far apart that their
+roots can not interlace, twenty feet each way would not be too
+extravagant a distance, under favorable conditions, as will readily
+become apparent by a glance at Fig. 14. This illustration is an exact
+reproduction of the root system of an asparagus plant four years from
+the seed. The roots spread out upon a level floor measured thirteen feet
+from tip to tip, the single roots averaging the thickness of a lead
+pencil. This root grew in Madison County, Ill., and was washed out of
+the ground--without having any of its roots torn--by the unusually heavy
+spring rains which caused the Piasa River to overflow its banks and sent
+a current rushing through the asparagus field in which it grew. If the
+plant had remained in its position a few years longer its roots would
+probably have extended ten feet in each direction.
+
+From this it does not follow, however, that asparagus should be planted
+twenty or even ten feet apart to produce the largest returns, but it
+plainly shows why the roots should not be planted as closely together
+as was customary in former years; and it obviously demonstrates that
+when land is cheap and manure and labor high, asparagus can not be hurt
+by giving it plenty of room. It should also be considered that
+earliness, size, and quality make a great difference with the price and
+profits when early and large shoots are in demand. It might be possible
+to get double the number of shoots per acre from thick than from thin
+planting, but they might be so small and spindling as not to be worth
+the labor and expense of cutting and marketing.
+
+
+DEPTH OF PLANTING
+
+Contrary to the all but universal belief, asparagus is not a deep-rooted
+plant. In the wild state its most frequent habitat is on the fertile
+marshes of the shoreline in Europe, on ground but a few inches above the
+tidewater which permeates the sandy subsoil. As the roots can not live
+in water, they naturally grow to long distances parallel with the
+surface and retain this habit under cultivation. The tendency of growth
+in the asparagus roots in this direction is obviously demonstrated in
+Fig. 14.
+
+The proper depth of planting asparagus roots varies somewhat, according
+to the character of the soil, the method of cultivation, and the kind of
+spears desired, whether white or green. As the new crowns rise somewhat
+above the old ones annually, it seems but rational that the plants
+should have sufficient room for the new growths before their crowns
+become even with the surface of the land. When the crown once comes near
+the level of the soil it is impossible to give proper cultivation,
+unless the entire bed be raised by adding soil to the whole surface.
+
+While it is true that the deeper the crowns are planted the later they
+will start in the spring, this is of account only during the first few
+years. Besides, the factor of earliness is not of nearly as much
+importance now as it was before northern markets were so bountifully
+supplied with the southern grown crops several months before the opening
+of the northern season. Shallow-planted asparagus sprouts earlier, but
+soon exhausts itself, sending up spindling, tough shoots, while the
+deeper-planted crowns produce large and succulent sprouts throughout the
+season. When green asparagus is desired, and there is no danger of the
+beetles eating the sprouts before they are fit for use, a depth of two
+or three inches is sufficient, but for white or blanched asparagus a
+depth of from eight to ten inches is necessary.
+
+
+MANNER OF PLANTING
+
+As in other details of asparagus culture, the methods of planting have
+undergone very material changes. The formerly usual practice of digging
+deep trenches was not well founded--in the light of our present
+experience and knowledge--and could be useful only for drainage. How
+little regard was paid to the nature and requirements of the plant may
+readily be perceived by reading the following directions for making an
+asparagus bed, but little over half a century ago, in Bridgeman's "Young
+Gardeners' Assistant":
+
+"The ground for the asparagus bed should have a large supply of
+well-rotted dung, three or four inches thick, and then be 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 two or three inches of thoroughly rotted manure over the whole
+surface, and dig the ground over again eight or ten inches deep, mixing
+this top-dressing, and incorporating it well with the earth.
+
+"In family gardens it is customary to divide the ground thus prepared
+into beds, allowing four feet for every four rows of plants, with alleys
+two feet and a half wide between each bed. Strain your line along the
+bed six 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
+to the line nearly upright; when one trench is opened, plant that before
+you open another, placing the plants upright ten or twelve inches
+distance in the row, and let every row be twelve inches apart.
+
+"The plants must not be placed flat in the bottom of the trench, but
+nearly upright against the back of it, and so that the crown of the
+plants must also stand upright, and two or three inches below the
+surface of the ground, spreading their roots somewhat regularly against
+the back of the trench, and at the same time drawing a little earth up
+against them with the hand as you place them, just to fix the plants in
+their due position until the row is planted; when one row is thus
+placed, with a rake or hoe draw the earth into the trench over the
+plants, and then proceed to open another drill or trench, as before
+directed, and fill and cover it in the same manner, and so on until the
+whole is planted; then let the surface of the beds be raked smooth and
+clear from stones, etc.
+
+"Some gardeners, with a view to having extra large heads, place their
+plants sixteen inches apart in the rows instead of twelve, and by
+planting them in the quincunx manner--that is, by commencing the second
+row eight inches from the end of the first and the fourth even with the
+second--the plants will form rhomboidal squares instead of rectangular
+ones, and every plant will thus have room to expand its roots and leaves
+luxuriantly."
+
+In diametrical contradistinction, and as an example of the very plainest
+and simplest of modern methods, Joseph Harris wrote: "If you are going
+to plant a small bed in the garden, stretch a line not less than four
+feet from any other plant, and with a hoe make holes along the line,
+eighteen inches or three feet apart, four inches deep, and large enough
+to hold the plants when the roots are spread out horizontally. Do not
+make deep holes straight down in the ground and stick the roots in as
+you would a cabbage, but spread out the roots. After the roots are set
+out cover them with fine soil, and that is all there is to it. Then move
+the line three feet from the first row and repeat the planting until the
+bed is finished. In the field make the rows with a common corn-marker,
+three feet apart each way, and set out a plant where the rows cross. It
+is but little more work to plant an acre of asparagus than an acre of
+potatoes."
+
+Between these extreme methods many different directions for planting
+asparagus have been given and practiced. Modern methods have not only
+greatly simplified the planting, but have also materially reduced the
+expense, increased the crop, and improved the quality of the product.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 15--TRENCHES READY FOR PLANTING]
+
+After the ground has been properly prepared, it is marked off in
+parallel rows from three to five or more feet apart, according to the
+preferences of the grower. The easiest way to open these trenches is by
+plowing a furrow each way, and, if necessary, going over the ground a
+sufficient number of times to make the furrows from eight to ten inches
+deep. After this the loose soil is thrown out with a shovel or a wide
+hoe, so as to leave the trenches at a uniform depth of ten to twelve
+inches and of the same width at the bottom, as seen in Fig. 15. By
+rigging a piece of board on the mold-board of the plow more soil is
+thrown out, so that usually it will not be necessary to go over the
+ground oftener than twice. The Messrs. Hudson & Son, of Long Island,
+have devised for their own use a "trencher" (Fig. 16), which with a good
+team opens the trench to the desired depth in one operation and at a
+great saving of labor.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 16--HUDSON'S TRENCHER]
+
+If the entire ground has been heavily fertilized, plowing manure in the
+trenches will not be necessary, yet many experienced asparagus growers
+think that it pays to scatter some fertilizing material into the
+trenches before planting. A favorite plan with Long Island growers is to
+mix half a ton of ground bone, or fish scrap, with one hundred pounds of
+nitrate of soda per acre, and thoroughly incorporate this mixture with
+the soil to a depth of three inches before setting the plants. Others
+prefer thoroughly decomposed manure spread over the bottom of the
+furrow, to a depth of about three inches, before setting the plants.
+Others prefer thoroughly decomposed manure spread over the bottom of the
+furrow, to a depth of about three inches, and covering it with two
+inches of fine soil. If the roots are to be planted four or more feet
+apart it will be sufficient to throw a shovelful of manure where the
+roots are to be placed. This is then spread out so as to make a layer
+of about three inches, which is then covered with soil.
+
+
+PLACING THE ROOTS
+
+The proper planting of the roots is the most critical point in asparagus
+culture, as upon the manner in which this is performed--more than upon
+other detail--depends the success, yield, duration, and profit of the
+plantation. Almost any other neglect can be remedied by after-treatment,
+but careless and faulty planting, never. Whatever care and personal
+attention the grower may give to this work will be repaid manyfold in
+future returns.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 17--ASPARAGUS ROOT IN PROPER POSITION FOR COVERING]
+
+As stated before, only strong, healthy one-year-old plants with three or
+four strong buds should be used, so as to insure an even growth over the
+entire field, and at every stage of the work great care must be taken
+not to expose the roots to the drying influences of sun and winds. When
+everything is in readiness for planting, the roots are placed in the
+trench, the crown in the center and the rootlets spread out evenly and
+horizontally, like the spokes of a wheel, and at once covered with three
+inches of fine, mellow soil, which is pressed around them. If the ground
+is dry at planting-time it should be pressed down quite firmly about the
+roots, so as to prevent their drying out, and to hasten their growth.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 18--CROSS-SECTION OF ASPARAGUS BED AFTER PLANTING]
+
+To still more insure success it is an excellent plan to draw up little
+hills of soil in the bottom of the trench over which to place the roots
+with the crowns resting on the top, thus raising the crowns a few inches
+above the extremities of the roots and providing for them a position
+similar to what they stood in before transplanting, as seen in Fig. 17.
+
+The subsequent covering of the roots can usually be done with a
+one-horse plow, from which the mold-board has been removed, passing down
+the sides of the row. This leaves the plants in a depression, the soil
+thrown out in opening the rows forming a ridge on each side, as shown in
+Fig. 18. This depression will gradually become filled during the process
+of cultivation the succeeding summer.
+
+
+
+
+IX
+
+CULTIVATION
+
+
+As generally understood, the chief object of cultivation is to kill
+weeds. This is an erroneous idea, however, as the appearance of weeds
+serves simply as Nature's reminder of the necessity of immediate
+cultivation. On ground cultivated as thoroughly as it should be for the
+best development of the crop there will rarely be any weeds to kill, as
+their germs have been destroyed by the process of cultivation before
+they could make their appearance above the ground.
+
+
+CARE DURING THE FIRST YEAR
+
+The cultural work in the asparagus bed during the first year consists in
+loosening the soil at frequent intervals, and especially as soon after
+rain as the ground becomes dry enough for cultivation. Frequent and
+thorough cultivation is necessary not only to keep down the weeds, but
+also to prevent the formation of a crust on the soil after rain, and to
+provide a mulch of loose earth for the retention of moisture. In field
+culture the work is best done with a one-horse cultivator or a
+wheel-hoe, and on a small scale with a scuffle-hoe and a rake. As the
+sprouts grow up small quantities of fine soil should be drawn into the
+trenches from time to time, but during the early part of the season
+great care must be exercised not to cover the crowns too deeply.
+
+Some growers advise to work the soil away instead of toward the plants,
+considering the four inches of soil with which the roots are covered at
+planting sufficient for the first year. While this may be true in a wet
+or moderately moist summer, in a season of drouth the additional mulch
+of mellow soil can not but be beneficial to the young and tender plants.
+Especial care is required when working around the young sprouts, so as
+not to cover, break, or in any way injure any of them.
+
+In the garden bed it pays to stake the canes when they are but a foot
+high, so as to prevent the wind from disturbing the stools in the soil
+by swaying the shoots backward and forward. Careful gardeners insert
+stakes for this purpose at the time of planting, before the roots are
+covered with soil, so as to guard against the danger of injuring any of
+them. The best material for this tying is raffia, or Cuban bast. In
+field culture staking is usually not practicable, partly on account of
+the cost, and also because where there are many plants growing close
+together they furnish some mutual protection to one another. The same
+end may also be accomplished--partly, at least--by throwing up a furrow
+on each side of the rows of plants. Precautions of this kind are
+important in localities exposed to high winds, as their neglect may
+often cause greater loss than it would have cost to provide proper
+protection.
+
+Another important work in the asparagus bed during the first year is to
+keep close and constant watch over the asparagus beetle, and at its
+first appearance to apply the remedies recommended in the chapter on
+injurious insects. Plants deprived of their foliage at this early stage
+of their life have but a poor chance to recover from the loss.
+
+If it is found that some of the plants have not started by the middle of
+June, it is best to replace them with growing plants of the same age,
+which should have been kept in a reserve bed for this purpose. If this
+replanting is done carefully, so as not to mutilate any of the roots,
+and on a cloudy day, it is best not to cut back the tops very severely.
+Unless a copious rain sets in soon after planting, the roots have to be
+heavily watered, after which they will keep on growing at once without
+suffering any setback.
+
+The formerly all but universal practice was to cover the roots with
+manure after the stalks had been removed in the fall for fear of frost
+injuring or killing the roots. In sections where winters are very severe
+this may still be desirable, as may be seen from the statement of so
+keen an observer as Professor J. C. Whitten, of the Missouri Experiment
+Station: "Most writers advise applying dressing of old fine manure
+during the growing season when the plants can use it. In our soil better
+results are obtained by applying it in winter. It prevents the soil from
+running together and hardening, and also prevents the sprouts from
+coming through, as they otherwise often do, too early in spring, and
+becoming weakened by subsequent severe freezing."
+
+As the reverse of this plan, M. Godefroy-Leboeuf, the famous French
+authority, recommends "to clear out of the trenches the soil which has
+fallen into them from the sides of the mounds, and also remove from
+above the stools a portion of that with which they were covered at the
+time they were planted--say, to a depth of one and one-half inches--so
+that the action of the frost may open the soil and that the rain may
+penetrate and improve it; also that during the first fine days of spring
+the sun may warm the surface of the soil and penetrate as far as the
+stools. There is no fear that the action of the frost should hurt the
+plants. Asparagus will never freeze as long as the stool is covered with
+a layer of soil one and one-half to one and three-fourth inches in
+depth."
+
+If the rows are not less than four feet apart a crop of some other
+vegetables may be raised between them. Beans, dwarf peas, lettuce,
+beets, or any kinds which do not spread much, are suitable for the
+purpose. These by-products will help considerably toward paying the cost
+of cultivating the main crop, besides having a tendency to keep the soil
+cool and moist, a condition of no little importance to the asparagus.
+
+
+CARE DURING THE SECOND YEAR
+
+The treatment of the asparagus plantation during the second year does
+not differ materially from that of the first season after planting. The
+ground has to be stirred frequently and kept scrupulously clean, and a
+sharp lookout must be kept for the advent of injurious insects. As soon
+as berries appear on the tops they should be stripped off and destroyed,
+as the ripening seed absorbs a large share of the nourishment which
+ought to go to the development and strengthening of the crowns which are
+to produce the following year's crop.
+
+Even with the best of care, some plants will die out from time to time,
+although the more thoroughly the ground has been prepared at the time of
+planting, and the better the quality of the roots planted, the fewer
+failures of this kind will occur. These blank spaces are not only
+constant eyesores to the methodical gardener, but in the course of
+several years the aggregate shortage of crops will be considerable,
+while the amount of labor and fertilizer will be the same as in a fully
+stocked plantation. Therefore, such vacancies should be filled in the
+spring, not only of the second year, but whenever they occur in future
+seasons.
+
+The best way to replant these dead or dying roots is to go over the rows
+each fall, before the ground freezes, and drive a stake wherever there
+is a plant missing, as in the spring, before the plants have started, it
+would be difficult, if not impossible, to indicate the blank spaces. For
+replanting in the second year good strong two-year-old roots should be
+used. For the third and future years it is best to raise and keep a
+supply of a sufficient number of reserve plants for this special purpose
+in a similar manner as is done for forcing. As early in spring as the
+season permits these clumps should be carefully lifted and transferred
+to the permanent plantation. For three-year and older beds good strong
+three-year-old roots should be used, as younger ones would have but a
+poor chance between two older and well-established clumps.
+
+
+CARE DURING THE THIRD AND FUTURE YEARS
+
+The third year cutting may begin in a moderate way, but too much should
+not be attempted. If all the conditions of growth have been favorable
+half a crop may be cut without injuring the roots, but under no
+circumstances should cutting in the third year be continued for more
+than three weeks. The general care of the bed during the third year is
+similar to that of the second, with the exception that the soil is
+worked more toward the rows, ridging them slightly.
+
+In the spring of the third and each succeeding year, as soon as the
+ground can be worked it should be plowed between the rows, turning the
+soil toward and over the crowns, leaving a dead furrow between the rows,
+as seen in Fig. 19. If bleached asparagus is desired, these ridges over
+the rows should be twelve inches higher than the bottom of the dead
+furrows between the rows, and when the soil is very light and sandy a
+hight of fifteen inches is preferable. For green asparagus the ridges
+are left lower, and the shoots are allowed to grow several inches above
+the ground before cutting, provided the asparagus beetle does not
+appropriate them sooner.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 19--PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF AN ASPARAGUS FIELD PROPERLY
+RIDGED IN EARLY SPRING MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION]
+
+After the furrows are plowed out between the rows a home-made ridger is
+used to smooth the ridges and complete the work. This is formed of two
+heavy oak boards shod with tire iron, sloping upward and backward,
+attached to a pair of cultivator wheels. This requires a good team, one
+horse walking on either side of the row. On the light soils of Long
+Island this implement works to perfection, but on stiff lands a
+two-horse disk-wheel cultivator, with two disks on each side, going
+astride of each row and throwing up fresh soil upon the ridge, proves
+more effective. The same implements are used for renewing the ridges
+during the cutting season, which will be required about once a week, as
+the rains beat them down and the sun bakes a crust upon the top.
+
+Immediately after the cutting season is over the ridges are leveled, by
+plowing a furrow from each side of the center (Fig. 20), after which the
+land is harrowed crosswise until the surface is level and smooth. As
+long as practical, surface cultivation should be given, especially after
+rains, but usually at this time the plants make such rapid and vigorous
+growth that there will be little time for the work. Their tops and
+branches soon fill the entire space and quickly shade the ground so
+densely as to keep down weed growth. Of course, whatever tall weeds may
+spring up here and there have to be pulled out by hand.
+
+
+FALL TREATMENT
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 20--LEVELING THE RIDGES AFTER THE CUTTING SEASON]
+
+The fall clearing of the plantation is an important part of asparagus
+culture. As soon as the berries are turning red--but not before--the
+stalks should be cut off even with the ground. If left longer the
+berries will drop off, their seeds will soon become embedded in the
+ground and fill the soil with seedling asparagus plants, which are about
+the most obstinate weed in the asparagus bed. If cut sooner they are not
+sufficiently matured, and the roots are deprived of their nourishment.
+All the brush should be removed at once to an open field and burned, so
+as not to provide lodging-places for injurious insects and fungi. Some
+recommend leaving the seedless plants as a mulch during the winter, but
+the possible benefit of this is so insignificant that it is not worth
+while to leave them for a second cleaning in spring, when time is far
+more valuable.
+
+
+RENOVATING OLD ASPARAGUS BEDS
+
+The principal causes of asparagus beds running out are that in the first
+place ten plants are set out in a space where only one could thrive;
+then that the ground is not rich enough and had no proper cultivation;
+and last, but not least, that the cutting of the stalks has been carried
+to excess. What to do with the old bed is sometimes a perplexing
+question, especially when a place changes hands and the new proprietor
+has more progressive ideas than the former one had.
+
+Let the old bed stay, and set out a new one according to rational
+methods. Some years ago the writer came into possession of an asparagus
+bed which was known to be forty years old, and may have been much older.
+It was a solid mass of roots without any distinguishable rows. The
+spears produced were so small and tough that the first impulse was to
+dig up the roots. But as this proved to be a more formidable task than
+was anticipated, another plan was pursued. In autumn the bed was thickly
+covered with fine yard manure. The following spring the bed was marked
+out into strips of two feet in width. When the sprouts appeared those in
+every alternate strip were cut clean off during the entire summer, and
+the others allowed to grow. In the autumn of the year another heavy
+application of manure was given to the entire bed. The following year
+but few shoots appeared in the strips which had been cut all through the
+summer. These were treated the same as before, and in the third year not
+a sprout appeared in the alleys. The stalks left for use improved
+greatly during the first year and the third year were of good
+serviceable size and quality, so that even after the new bed, which had
+been planted at the time this experiment was commenced, came into
+bearing, the old one was retained for several years longer. Probably if
+the vacant strips had been made three or four feet wide the result would
+have been still better. This experience suggests the idea that the
+easiest and least expensive way of exterminating an old asparagus bed is
+to persistently mow down all the shoots for a season or two.
+
+
+
+
+X
+
+FERTILIZERS AND FERTILIZING
+
+
+Asparagus is a gross feeder. There is hardly another plant in
+cultivation upon the vitality of which so great a demand is made. The
+cutting of all its sprouts, or shoots, as soon as they appear above the
+ground, for several weeks, is an abnormal and enormous tax upon the
+plant, which is thus forced to extra exertion in order to reproduce
+itself and perpetuate its kind. Therefore, it should have the most
+tender care, and an abundance of nourishing and readily available food.
+The earliness, tenderness, size, and commercial value of the product
+depends principally on the rapidity of its growth, and, as this is
+materially promoted by the richness of the soil, it is evident that the
+plants should receive all the food they can assimilate during the
+growing season.
+
+There is a wide difference of opinion among growers as to which is the
+best kind of manure to use. Whatever the individual preferences may be,
+there is this satisfaction to know that no kind of plant food can come
+amiss on the asparagus bed, although the use of some kinds and
+combinations may be more economical than others. Formerly animal manures
+only were thought to be of any use for asparagus, and there are still
+some growers who cling to this opinion. In recent years, however, there
+has been a decided reaction in this regard in some of the principal
+asparagus sections. The objections made against stable manure are that
+it is more expensive to handle, that it is apt to get the land full of
+weeds, and that it does not contain sufficient phosphoric acid and
+potash. At present many growers use commercial fertilizers exclusively,
+convinced that asparagus needs liberal feeding of potash and more
+nitrogen than is generally supposed to be required.
+
+The composition of 1,000 parts of fresh asparagus sprouts is, according
+to Wolff:
+
+Water                    933   parts
+Nitrogen                   3.2   "
+Ash                        5.0   "
+Potash                     1.2   "
+Soda                       0.9   "
+Lime                       0.6   "
+Magnesia                   0.2   "
+Phosphoric acid            0.9   "
+Sulphuric acid             0.3   "
+Silica                     0.5   "
+Chlorine                   0.3   "
+
+This analysis shows very accurately what a given weight of asparagus
+abstracts from the soil, but it does not, and can not, show or even
+indicate certain indispensable demands. In this, as in other cases, the
+analysis of a crop is a very uncertain guide to its proper
+fertilization. It should be clearly understood by every cultivator of
+the soil that no rigidly fixed formulas can be given for any one crop on
+all soils. The question of quantity of application and of proportion
+must always, in the very nature of the case, remain more or less a
+matter of individual experiment. The following formula, given by Prof.
+P. H. Rolfs, makes a good asparagus fertilizer:
+
+Nitrogen                                  4 per cent.
+Potash                                    5    "
+Available phosphoric acid                 7    "
+
+One thousand five hundred pounds of the above formula should be applied
+per acre. When possible apply twenty to forty tons of vegetable
+material, such as partially rotted rakings of barnyard manure. Where
+such vegetable matter is procurable, the quantity of nitrogen may be
+decreased proportionately. If manure is obtainable, allowance should be
+made for the fertilizing elements contained therein.
+
+An excellent formula for one ton of asparagus fertilizer, given by Prof.
+W. F. Massey, consists of:
+
+200 lbs. nitrate of soda
+700  "   cottonseed-meal
+800  "   acid phosphate (13 per cent.)
+300  "   muriate of potash
+
+This will yield 4.9 per cent. ammonia, 6.1 per cent. available
+phosphoric acid, 8.4 per cent. potash.
+
+The effects of the application of a scientifically balanced fertilizer
+ration upon asparagus is clearly illustrated in Fig. 21, which presents
+a photographic reproduction of an experimental plat of the North
+Carolina State Horticultural Society at Southern Pines, N. C.,
+fertilized with
+
+250 lbs. nitrate of soda
+400  "   acid phosphate
+160  "   muriate of potash
+
+per acre, while Fig. 22 shows a plat of equal size which remained
+unfertilized.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 21--NORTH CAROLINA'S EXPERIMENT FARM ASPARAGUS PLOT;
+FERTILIZED]
+
+The following table gives the amounts of different fertilizer materials
+necessary to give the desired quantity of each element:
+
+_Element_                _Pounds of different materials for one acre_
+                         { 800 to 1,000 lbs. cottonseed-meal; or
+Nitrogen                 { 350 to    400  "   nitrate of soda; or
+                         { 275 to    300  "   sulphate of ammonia; or
+                         { 400 to    600  "   dried blood.
+
+                         { 300 to 500 lbs. kainit; or
+Potash                   { 150 lbs. muriate of potash; or
+                         { 150 to 300 lbs. sulphate of potash
+
+Phosphoric acid          { 750 to 1,000 lbs. acid phosphate; or
+                         { 600 to   800 dissolved bone.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 22--NORTH CAROLINA EXPERIMENT FARM ASPARAGUS PLOT;
+UNFERTILIZED]
+
+"Asparagus requires very heavy manuring, and yet its composition would
+not indicate it," writes Mr. Charles V. Mapes. "The explanation is found
+in the fact that it must grow very rapidly, otherwise it is tough,
+stringy and flavorless, the same as with radishes. If it had a long
+season to grow in, like timothy hay, it might grow successfully in very
+poor soil. A half ton of timothy hay contains about as much plant food,
+and in similar proportions, as two thousand bunches of asparagus, or
+five thousand quarts of strawberries, and yet while this quantity of hay
+will grow on an acre of almost any poor soil, the strawberries or
+asparagus for a fair crop per acre require a rich garden soil. If the
+hay were obliged to make as rapid growth as the asparagus, then it also
+would require rich soil. With the strawberry there is but the lapse of a
+few weeks from the time of blossoming to the full development of its
+fruit. The plants need a superabundance of plant food within easy reach,
+otherwise the fruit is small and inferior. The plant can not bear
+profitable fruit and at the same time be compelled to struggle for
+existence. The same is the case with asparagus. Neither of these crops
+can take up out of the soil all the fertilizer that needs to be applied
+for their successful growth, and therefore there is necessarily a large
+quantity of plant food unused and left over in the soil."
+
+For these reasons, asparagus, while not necessarily an exhaustive crop,
+requires heavy manuring. One ton of high grade vegetable manure is none
+too much per acre, and is small, particularly in the expense, as
+compared with the larger quantities of stable manure per acre, as
+recommended by some successful growers. As already stated, formerly it
+was thought necessary to place large quantities of manure in the bottom
+of the deep trenches in which the young plants were set out, in order
+that sufficient fertility might be present for several years for the
+roots, as after the plants were once planted there would be no further
+opportunity to apply the manure in such an advantageous place. This
+theory has been found erroneous and the practice has been demonstrated
+to be rather a waste than otherwise, and besides the roots of asparagus
+thrive better when resting upon a more compact soil; nor is it necessary
+that the soil should contain great amounts of humus, or be in an
+extremely fertile condition when the plants are first put out, since by
+the system of top-dressing a moderately fertile soil soon becomes
+exceedingly rich and equal to the demands which the plants make upon
+it.
+
+The plan of top-dressing beds during the fall or early winter is
+gradually giving way to the more rational mode of top-dressing in the
+spring or summer. It was believed that autumn dressing strengthened the
+roots and enabled them to throw up stronger shoots during the following
+spring. This is a mistake, however. In the Oyster Bay region formerly
+all manuring was done in the spring, but the practice of applying all
+fertilizers immediately after the cutting is finished is rapidly
+increasing. The reason for this is found in the fact that, during the
+growth of the stalks, after the cutting season is over, the crowns form
+the buds from which the spears of next season spring, and it is probable
+that it is principally during this period that the roots assimilate and
+store up the materials which produce these spears. This being true, the
+plant food added to the soil and becoming available after the cessation
+of vegetation in the autumn can have little, if any, effect upon the
+spears which are cut for market the following spring; it first becomes
+of use to the plant after the crop has been cut and the stalks allowed
+to grow. Thus the manuring of the autumn of 1901 will not benefit the
+grower materially until the spring of 1903.
+
+Nevertheless, some highly successful asparagus raisers continue to apply
+fertilizers in the spring, as evidenced by the following directions
+given by one of the most prominent growers in the Oyster Bay district.
+"After the roots have been set in the drill, put enough soil on them to
+cover about two inches. Then sow about 500 pounds of high grade potato
+fertilizer per acre in the drill. As the weeds commence to grow,
+cultivate and hoe, letting the soil cave down in the drill. About the
+middle of the season sow about 500 pounds more of fertilizer in the
+drill. Continue to cultivate and hoe the remainder of the season. At the
+end of the season the drill should be entirely filled up. The second
+year sow about 2,000 pounds of fertilizer per acre broadcast, plow the
+ground and harrow it down level, and keep the ground clean. The third
+year open the drill over the asparagus with a one-horse plow, broadcast
+2,000 pounds of fertilizer per acre about the time the shoots begin to
+show, and back-furrow it up with a plow over the drill to form a ridge.
+Then smooth the ridge down with a home-made implement resembling a
+snow-plow reversed. Cut every morning all the shoots that show through
+the ground. Do not cut more than four weeks in the first cutting season.
+Continue to broadcast 2,000 pounds of fertilizer per acre every year."
+
+From what has been said in regard to the various methods of applying
+fertilizers to asparagus, it will be readily understood that it can make
+but little difference how it is distributed, whether on the rows,
+between the rows, or broadcast, so long as enough of it is put on the
+land. In an established asparagus bed the entire ground is a dense
+network of roots, and wherever the fertilizer is put some of the roots
+will find it, but not those of the plants over the crowns of which it
+has been planted; not more so than the feeding roots of an apple tree
+can reach a heap of manure piled around its trunk.
+
+
+SALT AS A FERTILIZER
+
+Salt is but little used now by commercial asparagus growers, though it
+has been recommended for this crop from time immemorial. About the
+principal advantage to be derived from its use is that of killing weeds
+without injuring asparagus, although it may be applied in sufficient
+quantities to injure the asparagus. The indirect fertilizing value of
+salt is mainly due to the fact that it has the power of changing
+unavailable forms of plant food into available forms; but this object
+may be secured cheaper and better by the use of kainit. In sandy soils
+it may encourage the supply of moisture, but on naturally moist and
+retentive soils heavy dressings of salt may do more harm than good.
+
+Much of the benefits to asparagus for which salt gets credit is its use
+in a small way in the home garden, due to the fact that not dry salt,
+but the brine and residue of the pork and corned beef barrels is applied
+to the asparagus beds. This brine is rich in animal matter extracted
+from the meat, and usually also in saltpeter, which has been used in
+pickling. The latter substance alone, without the addition of salt,
+exerts a strong fertilizing effect upon the plants.
+
+After a series of carefully conducted experiments by Mr. Charles V.
+Mapes, he writes:
+
+"Salt was only effectual as a fertilizer in proportion as the soil
+contained accumulated supplies of plant food, either from previous
+manurings or from natural strength. Asparagus, unlike nearly all other
+crops, will stand almost unlimited quantities of salt without injury. It
+also thrives near the seashore, and it was therefore generally believed
+that liberal quantities of salt were a necessity to its successful
+growth. Experience has shown, however, that its presence is not at all
+necessary for its growth, and that the reason that a bed to which salt
+has been applied shows quickened and improved growth is that the salt
+dissolves out of the soil plant food which, without the presence of the
+salt, would have become too slowly reduced to available condition for
+producing good crops. The salt acted practically as a stimulant and
+added nothing except chlorine and soda, neither of which in any
+considerable quantity is essential for growing this crop. It is this
+dissolving action that takes place in the soil whenever any soluble salt
+or fertilizer, like kainit, potash salts, acid phosphates, etc., be
+applied to the soil, that is often mistaken for a manuring one. The
+result is an exhaustion, not a strengthening, of the soil. The crop is
+grown at the expense of the limited supply of food that the soluble salt
+can act upon. The fertilizer has acted practically as a stimulant."
+
+
+
+
+XI
+
+HARVESTING AND MARKETING
+
+
+The chief labor in asparagus culture is the cutting and bunching. As it
+is of the greatest importance that the work be done promptly and
+expeditiously, it is desirable to have more help than is wanted merely
+for the asparagus, and then, when the asparagus is ready for market,
+they can go to hoeing and tilling other crops. Five acres in full
+bearing will require from six to eight men from four to six hours per
+day to do the cutting and three or four to do the bunching. A successful
+farmer in western New York, who has four acres of asparagus, employs
+eight or ten boys and girls, for from three to six hours per day, to do
+the cutting and three women to bunch it. The women are paid by the
+bunch, and work five to ten hours per day. Piecework, if properly done,
+is nearly always cheaper than day work, and is better for the employes
+and the employer.
+
+
+CUTTING
+
+As has been stated in a previous chapter, cutting should not begin until
+the plants have become strong and vigorous, which requires two or three
+years from the planting. In the latitude of New York City the cutting
+season commences usually the last week in April and closes July 10th,
+although but few growers cut after the 1st, particularly if the season
+has been a favorable one. Except on old and well-established plantings,
+cutting should not extend for more than six or seven weeks. Some growers
+cut asparagus as long as it pays to ship, regardless of the damage done
+to the plants. The old rule to discontinue cutting asparagus when green
+peas are abundant is a safe one to follow, especially in the home
+garden. Unlike other crops, about as much can be cut each day, or at
+each cutting, as the day before, during the season, varying only
+according to the weather.
+
+_Manner of cutting._--The mode of cutting asparagus varies according to
+the requirements of the markets, whether green or white stalks are
+desired. Whatever individual preferences may be, the fact is that in New
+York City, and some other large market centers, 75 per cent. of the
+asparagus sold is white or blanched, and it would be useless to try to
+persuade the buyers to take any other. To show how extreme the
+convictions are in this matter of taste, we quote from Prof. J. F. C. Du
+Pre, of the Clemson Agricultural College: "Why any one should prefer the
+almost tasteless, insipid white to the green 'grass,' into which the
+sunshine has put the flavor of ambrosia, is beyond my comprehension." On
+the other hand, Leboeuf, the famous asparagus expert of Argenteuil,
+writes: "Properly blanched asparagus is infinitely more tender and
+delicate than green. To serve up green asparagus is to dishonor the
+table."
+
+In recent years a compromise has been made between the two styles. By
+allowing the tops of the hilled-up sprouts to grow four inches above the
+surface, the upper half of the stalk is green while the lower half
+remains white.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 23--BASKET OF ASPARAGUS READY FOR THE BUNCHING SHED]
+
+For green asparagus the sprouts are cut when six or seven inches high,
+and then only so far below the surface as to furnish a stalk about nine
+inches long. For the white style the rows have to be ridged twelve
+inches above the crowns, and the stalks are cut as soon as the tops show
+above the ground, the cutting off being eight or nine inches below the
+surface.
+
+Whichever method is followed, it is very important to cut every day
+during the season, and to cut clean at each cutting, taking all the
+small sprouts as well as the large ones. If the weak and spindling
+shoots are allowed to grow they will draw away the strength from the
+roots, to the injury of the crop.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 24--CUTTING AND PICKING UP ASPARAGUS IN A TEN-ACRE
+FIELD OF C. W. PRESCOTT, MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASS.]
+
+When cutting, the sprout is taken in the left hand and the knife run
+down close alongside of it to the proper depth, carefully avoiding other
+spears that are just beginning to push up all around the crown. Then the
+handle of the knife is moved away from the stalk, to give it the proper
+slant, the knife shoved down so as to sever the stalk with a tapering
+cut, and at the same time the stalk is pulled out. After cutting, the
+asparagus should be removed out of the sun as soon as possible to
+prevent its wilting and discoloring. Usually this is done by dropping
+the stalks in a basket which, when full (Fig. 23), is carried to the
+bunching shed. On large plantations, however, the cutters leave the
+stalks on the ground to be picked up by boys following closely, as seen
+in Fig. 24. To facilitate the picking up and carrying away, horse
+carriers are used, as shown in Fig. 25.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 25--HORSE CARRIER FOR TEN BOXES OF ASPARAGUS]
+
+In some sections of Europe, especially at the famous asparagus regions
+of Argenteuil, a knife is never used. According to W. Robinson: "The
+slightly hardened crust around the emerging bud and on top of the little
+mound is pushed aside, the fore and middle finger separated are then
+thrust deeply into the soft soil, pushing the earth outwards. If a
+rising shoot be met with on the way down, it is carefully avoided. A
+second plunge of the two fingers and pushing out of the earth usually
+brings them to the hardened ground about the crest of the root; the
+forefinger is then slipped behind the base of the shoot fit to gather,
+and rushed gently outward, when the shoot at once snaps clean off its
+base. This plan has the advantage of leaving no mutilated shoots or
+decaying matter on the ground. Once gathered, care is taken that the
+shoot is not exposed to the light, but placed at once in a covered
+basket. As soon as the stalk is gathered, the earth is gently and
+loosely drawn up with the hand, so as to leave the surface of the mound
+as it was before, not pressing the earth in any way, but keeping it
+quite free. The shoots are not rubbed or cleaned in any way--it would
+disfigure them, and they do not require it."
+
+_Knives._--There are several styles of knives for cutting asparagus, but
+an ordinary ten-inch butcher-knife with the point cut square off,
+leaving the end about an inch and a quarter wide and ground sharp like a
+chisel, answers the purpose as well as any of the implements made
+especially for the purpose. Another serviceable tool for cutting
+asparagus is a carpenter's thin firmer-chisel, one and one-half inches
+wide, nearly flat, and the thinnest that can be obtained ground on the
+convex side or back, about an inch from the end, which should be rounded
+off on the inside to prevent them from injuring sprouts near by. Other
+styles of asparagus knives are seen in Fig. 26.
+
+
+SORTING AND BUNCHING
+
+In some local markets asparagus is sold loose, by weight, in which case
+but little regard is paid to the size and length and color of the
+stalks, nor to the style of packing. This is the most profitable way for
+the grower to sell, as it saves him all the expense and labor of
+bunching, and as even the smallest stalks are thus salable, there is no
+waste whatever, while the prices obtained are about the same as those
+for first-class bunches--that is, two pounds of loose asparagus sell for
+about the same price as a full-sized bunch. But in city markets
+asparagus could hardly be sold in such a condition, and it is of first
+importance that it should be carefully graded and neatly bunched.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 26--VARIOUS ASPARAGUS KNIVES]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 27--END AND SIDE VIEW OF PRIME WHITE ASPARAGUS
+BUNCHES]
+
+_Sorting._--Careful growers assort into three sizes: extras, primes, and
+seconds. The size and weight of the bunches vary somewhat in different
+markets. Bunches varying from six to twelve inches in length are
+received at wholesale centers, but the most convenient and popular size
+for a bunch of prime white asparagus is eight and one-half inches long,
+averaging thirty spears, and weighing two pounds. The side view of one
+and the end view of three bunches of this size of white asparagus are
+shown in Fig. 27. To assure uniformity some ingenious contrivances have
+been invented, most of which are a great improvement over the old-time
+bunchers, consisting merely of a board with four pins, six inches long,
+and placed about four inches apart each way, to form a square. Two
+strings, usually of bast matting, were laid down on the board, which was
+set on a bench up against the wall, or had a back made of another board
+tacked on it at right angles. The asparagus was laid on the buncher
+between the pins, the tops touching the back or wall to keep them even.
+When the bunch was large enough the strings were tied firmly, and the
+butt end of the bunch cut square.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 28--CONOVER'S ASPARAGUS BUNCHER]
+
+_Bunchers._--The modern bunchers are constructed of cast iron and are
+easily handled. One of the first to come into use was Conover's (Fig.
+28). The principle of the operation is that the stalks are placed
+between two brass strips, a hinged cover is brought down by means of a
+lever and held in place until the strings are tied. Two ties should be
+used, one placed about two inches from either end. The bunch must be
+tied so tightly that it will not loosen in handling and transportation
+to market. The Watt's Buncher (Fig. 29), used extensively in New Jersey,
+is so arranged that the arms may be adjusted to any size bunch desired
+by simply loosening the bolts at either end, and pulling out the arms so
+as to fit the shape of the bunch, and thus both ends can be bunched
+properly. The style of buncher and knives in favor with growers in the
+famous asparagus region near Concord, Mass., are seen in Fig. 30, and
+the process of bunching in Fig. 31.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 29--WATT'S ASPARAGUS BUNCHER]
+
+_Tying materials._--Twine, Cuban bast, sisal, and various other
+materials are used for tying, but nothing is better for this purpose
+than raffia fiber. This is obtained from the raffia or rofia palm, a
+native of the island of Madagascar. The tree sends enormous branches
+from near the ground, the pinnate leaves of which produce this fiber.
+One palm frond will produce eighty to one hundred long, green leaflets
+from two to five feet in length, and from this the fiber is prepared.
+"Silk lamba" is also a product of this palm. Raffia fiber is now
+extensively used for tying up plants, for grafting, and many other
+purposes, as it is very strong, as soft as silk, and is not affected by
+moisture or changes of temperature, and it does not break or ravel when
+folded or knotted.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 30--RACK AND KNIVES USED IN NEW ENGLAND]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 31--AT THE BUNCHING TABLE]
+
+_Rubber bands._--The use of rubber bands for fastening asparagus bunches
+has recently been found to have some advantages not possessed by other
+materials. Prof. W. J. Green, of the Ohio Experiment Station, writes in
+Bulletin No. 9: "The work can be done more rapidly and better. The
+saving in time is fully one-third, which will pay for the increased cost
+of rubber over string, reckoning wages at seventy-five cents per day.
+This difference might be less where expert tyers are employed, or very
+low rates per hundred bunches are paid. In any case, the work can be
+done in a manner that is much more satisfactory to dealers with rubber
+than with string. This is owing to the fact that rubber holds the
+bunches intact, while string allows them to fall apart and to become
+unsightly. Doubtless, in some cases, dealers would be willing to pay
+more for bunches fastened with rubber than for those put up in the
+ordinary manner. Even though no difference is made in price for
+asparagus put up by the two methods, the bunches fastened with rubber
+bands sell more readily than those tied with string.
+
+"Rubber bands can be bought for two dollars per pound, and the size best
+adapted to the purpose run about two thousand bands per pound, or
+sufficient for one thousand bunches. This makes rubber bands cost about
+two cents per dozen bunches more than string, if the saving in labor is
+not taken into consideration.
+
+"The saving in the item of labor depends, of course, upon the kind of
+labor employed. In determining the relative value of the two methods not
+only must cost of labor be taken into consideration, but the character
+of the market as well. When competition is not strong careful bunching
+is not a matter of great importance, but in many markets it is essential
+that the bunches be put up in such a manner that they will not fall
+apart. In such cases rubber bands will more than pay for their extra
+cost, by insuring more ready sales, if not by increasing the price.
+
+"The method employed in bunching with rubber bands is to slip a band
+over an ordinary teacup--one with straight sides and without a handle;
+fill the cup with asparagus shoots, the heads downward, and then slip
+the band from the cup to the bunch. This makes a bunch of about the
+right size, and gives the upper end a nicely rounded appearance. All
+that remains to be done is to slip on another band and to square the
+butts with a sharp knife. Possibly a metallic cup would answer better,
+being thinner, but a teacup is not objectionable in this particular. If
+smaller bunches are desired than the smallest cup that can be found, it
+is not necessary to fill the cup."
+
+
+MARKETING
+
+During the entire process of cutting, sorting, bunching, and packing
+great care must be exercised not to bruise or in any way injure the
+heads, as the gummy juice of these soon heats and spoils the whole. They
+should also be kept cool and dry, else the moisture causes decay. Of
+course if, when cutting, the ground is wet, some of the soil will adhere
+to the lower ends of the stalks; this has to be rinsed off in clean
+water, but not by immersing the entire stalk.
+
+If the bunches are to be kept over night, before packing, the butts
+should be dipped in clean water and stood on end on a cold cellar
+bottom, or upon grass or hay that has been thoroughly wet; but the
+crowns, or the green portions of the sprouts, should never be sprinkled
+or wet. It is a common practice to set the bunches in shallow pans
+containing water, but this is apt to give a bitter taste to the stalks.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 32--BOX OF GIANT ASPARAGUS READY FOR SHIPMENT]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 33--SOUTHERN ASPARAGUS CRATE, CONTAINING 24 BUNCHES
+OF GREEN ASPARAGUS]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 34--END PIECE OF SOUTHERN CRATE]
+
+_Crates._--There is no standard shape or size of crates for shipping
+asparagus, and in the wholesale markets of New York City a great variety
+of styles is found. Of late ordinary twenty-four or thirty-two quart
+berry crates have come into favor with near by growers, as they are
+cheap, light, and easily handled. In these the bunches are laid down
+flat, in tiers, alternating the butt ends so that when the crates are
+full the top row is level with the cover. Some growers, of very fine
+asparagus even, use solid wooden boxes. Fig. 32 shows such a box
+containing three dozen bunches. A crate with the top a few inches
+narrower than the bottom has the advantage that it holds the bunches
+more firmly together than straight-sided boxes. Fig. 33 shows a crate
+containing two dozen bunches of green asparagus ready for shipment, with
+the exception of the slats to be nailed on the side. Fig. 34 shows the
+shape of the end pieces. These crates are made of various sizes,
+according to the length of the bunches. The crate here illustrated was
+24 inches long, 12 inches high, 19 inches wide at the bottom, and 14-1/2
+inches at the top, inside measurement. The end boards were 7/8 of an
+inch thick, and the slats about half an inch.
+
+In shipping to a distant market some thoroughly wet grass, or sphagnum
+moss, should be put in the bottom of the crate, the bunches stood on
+ends, butt down, and pressed so tightly together that they can not move
+or shift in handling. The crate should have a tight bottom and ends. The
+sides may be tight half way up, and the rest of the sides and the top
+should be slatted. This keeps the butts moist and the tops dry and
+cool.
+
+
+
+
+XII
+
+FORCING
+
+
+The forcing of asparagus in various methods has been practiced for
+centuries, and is rapidly developing into an important industry. The
+forcing may be done in any place where a temperature of 50 deg. to 60 deg.
+can be secured, in the greenhouse, hotbed, pit, cellar, or in the garden
+and field. Whichever plan is pursued, the management of the plants to be
+forced is the same. The roots should not be less than three years old,
+and, if obtainable, four or five-year-old plants are to be preferred.
+These may be dug up from ordinary out-of-door plantations, or, if the
+forcing is to be done on a large scale and as a permanent industry, the
+plants have to be grown from seed for this special purpose. To keep up a
+continuous succession new sowings have to be made every year. The sowing
+of the seed and the management of the plants during the first year is
+the same as described in Chapter V.
+
+The following year, as early as the season permits, the one-year-old
+seedlings are planted out in rows, to develop as much strength as
+possible. As the plants are to remain only two years in the nursery bed,
+they may be placed closer than in a permanent plantation. A distance of
+two and one-half feet between the rows and one foot in the rows is,
+however, the narrowest limit, and, where enough ground is available,
+three by one and one-half or two feet would be still better. By
+purchasing one-year-old plants a year's time may be gained, but
+otherwise there are decided advantages in raising one's own plants.
+During the following two seasons the ground has to be kept in the best
+possible tilth, and at the end of the third season from seed the roots
+may be dug just before the ground is likely to freeze. In lifting the
+roots it is important not to expose them to the drying influence of the
+sun and air more than is unavoidable. It is also important to preserve
+the entire clump intact with as much soil adhering to the roots and
+crown as possible. They are then placed in a shed, pit, or cool cellar,
+and covered with sand or soil to prevent their drying out. Moderate
+freezing does not injure the roots, and some growers think that it even
+adds to their forcing value.
+
+
+FORCING IN THE GREENHOUSE
+
+With florists the forcing of asparagus has this important advantage:
+that the income obtained from it is nearly all gain, as the space under
+the benches, which may thus be utilized, is of but little use for other
+purposes. If the floor under the benches is soil this is dug out so as
+to form a pit about a foot deep, or at least a few inches deeper than
+the clumps are high. Three or four inches of good rich soil is scattered
+over the bottom, and upon this the clumps are placed close together.
+Dry, mellow soil is then scattered between and over the clumps, so that
+the crowns are covered one or two inches, and given a thorough watering.
+If blanched shoots are desired, the crowns will have to be covered with
+six or eight inches of soil. The same object may be obtained by shutting
+off the light, which can easily be accomplished under greenhouse
+benches. Where it is not practicable to make excavations under the
+benches, a pit may be constructed by placing boards against the posts
+and filling in the space thus furnished. To secure a succession, new
+roots from the reserve stock have to be planted every three or four
+weeks.
+
+For the first week or ten days after placing the roots in the
+forcing-pit they should be kept rather cool, so as to give them a chance
+to become established. A temperature of 45 deg. to 50 deg. is best, at
+first. Afterward it should be raised to 55 deg. to 60 deg., and during
+the day it may rise as high as 80 deg. to 85 deg. But, as a rule, very
+high temperatures induce a spindling growth. During the entire forcing
+process asparagus requires a large amount of water, but unless it has the
+chill taken off, and ample means for drainage are provided, it may do far
+more harm than good. The interval between the time of planting and the
+first cutting varies greatly, according to the temperature and other
+conditions.
+
+The following are actual dates of asparagus forcing under benches at
+Cornell University: Plants taken from an old patch November 29th and set
+under benches three days later. December 4th, shoots just pushing
+through. December 8th, first shoots cut, averaging nine inches long.
+December 14th, first good cutting, shoots running from six to fifteen
+inches long. December 18th, second good cutting. December 26th, a good
+cutting, some of the shoots having remained too long and become woody;
+some of these shoots were two feet long. January 10th, a heavy cutting.
+January 19th, cut about half as many shoots as on the 10th. January
+30th, cut about as much as on the 19th, but shoots growing smaller.
+February 10th, small cutting of weak shoots. Beyond this time there were
+no shoots worth cutting.
+
+
+FORCING IN HOTBEDS AND FRAMES
+
+The forcing of asparagus in hotbeds does not differ materially from that
+in the greenhouse, except in the supply of heat. "A most suitable place
+for forcing asparagus," writes William Scott, in _Garden and Forest_,
+"is a frame about four feet deep with one-fourth inch hot-water pipe
+running around it. About two and one-half feet of fresh stable litter
+should be put into the frame and firmly packed, with an inch or two of
+sand spread over it. This bed should be allowed to stand until the heat
+of the manure has declined to about 70 deg., and not below 65 deg., before
+the crowns are placed on it. For this work advantage should be taken of a
+day when the weather is mild, as the crowns are easily damaged by frost.
+Large crowns five or six years old are preferable to smaller ones for
+forcing. They may be placed rather closely together in the frame, but
+the distance apart must be regulated by their size. The roots should be
+spread evenly over the surface and covered with six inches of sand.
+Little water will be required, as the steam from the manure affords
+considerable moisture; but if the bed should become dry, it may be
+moistened with water of the same temperature as the soil in the frame. A
+little air may be admitted, when the day is bright and warm, to keep
+the temperature from rising above 80 deg. When the points of the shoots
+begin to appear above the sand the crop is ready to cut. When ground is
+plentiful, a supply of forcing crowns can be kept up by sowing a little
+seed every year, having five or six successions, the oldest plants being
+forced for cutting."
+
+With French gardeners it is customary to plunge the frames in warm
+stable manure and place the roots directly in the manure, packed as
+closely together as possible. A mere sprinkling of soil is placed over
+them. As a result the shoots come up very thick. Only strong, fine
+three-year-old roots are used, and as many as five crops of roots follow
+each other through the autumn, winter, and spring in the same frame.
+Straw mats are used to cover the frames at night.
+
+
+FORCING IN THE FIELD
+
+Forcing asparagus where it is grown in the field has a twofold advantage
+over removing the roots to a warm place. First, it saves the trouble and
+expense of transplanting them, which must be done with much care; and,
+second, it saves the plants from being ruined by the forcing process.
+Plants forced in the field where they grow will, if given good care,
+regain their vigor in a season or two, and may be used again for
+forcing. By this latter method a better quality and a larger quantity of
+marketable asparagus is also secured.
+
+Various means have been devised to force asparagus in the field, where
+it is so well established that it continues growth in the summer as
+though it had not been forced the previous winter. A simple and rather
+common method of accomplishing this is to place barrels over clumps of
+asparagus very early in the spring and pile fermenting manure about
+them, the warmth from the manure forcing the shoots into rapid growth.
+When the forcing season is over and the danger from frost is past the
+barrels are removed, and the plants continue growth in the open air.
+Sometimes asparagus is forced by placing frames, covered with sash, over
+the plants in the field, the rows of asparagus being set rather close
+together. This is considered a very profitable method by many market
+gardeners. Another method of forcing asparagus in the field is to dig
+ditches between the rows and fill them with fermenting manure. The
+surface of the bed may also be mulched with manure. The latter plan is
+extensively practiced by French market gardeners.
+
+At the beginning of November the pathways between the beds of asparagus
+are dug up about two feet in depth and width. The soil coming from the
+pathway is divided very carefully and put about eight inches thick on
+the surface of the bed. The trench is filled up with fresh stable
+manure, not litter, and frames are placed on the bed. The manure should
+rise as high as the top of the frames and the lights be entirely covered
+with mats and litter to prevent the heat accumulating in the frame from
+escaping. In about two or three weeks the asparagus begins to show
+itself on the surface of the bed. Many market gardeners cover the whole
+of the bed inside the frames to a thickness of three or four inches with
+manure, to force the vegetation more quickly; but in this case the
+manure must be removed when the asparagus begins to shoot. When the
+shoots are about three inches out of the ground they may be cut. The
+mats must be taken off in the daytime, but the heat must be well kept
+up, else the roots and buds will fail to push. The beds are forced every
+second year only. The gathering of the asparagus may continue for about
+two months but no longer, or the plantation would be injured. When the
+gathering is over the frames are taken away, and the soil which was dug
+up from the alleys is put back again.
+
+An ingenious method of forcing asparagus in the field by means of
+shallow tunnels was devised and successfully carried out by Prof. J. C.
+Whitten, at the Missouri Experiment Station, who gives the following
+account in Bulletin No. 43:
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 35--TUNNEL THROUGH THE ROWS OF ASPARAGUS FOR FORCING
+STEAM THROUGH THE SOIL]
+
+"The field selected for the experiment was planted to asparagus about
+ten years ago. The plants were in fair vigor, though of a small variety.
+The first section forced embraced six rows, four feet apart, and fifty
+feet long. Fig. 35 shows this section with one tunnel uncovered.
+Trenches were first made between the rows. This was done by plowing
+between them, twice in a place, throwing the furrows on the plants so as
+to cover each row with two furrows of loose earth. These trenches
+between the rows were then made uniform by means of the spade. When
+finished they were three or four inches lower than the crowns of
+asparagus in the adjacent rows. These trenches were then covered with
+twelve-inch boards, which rested on four-inch blocks, placed at frequent
+intervals along either side of the trenches. This formed tunnels
+between the rows for conducting the steam. To guard against the steam's
+escaping, two or three inches of soil was placed over the boards, and
+the asparagus patch was then covered with five or six inches of horse
+manure. This covering was to prevent the heat from escaping from the
+soil too rapidly. It was then ready for the steam to be turned into the
+tunnels.
+
+"To conduct the steam a one and one-half inch pipe was carried above
+ground from the boiler to one end of the central tunnel, a distance of
+one hundred and eighty-five feet. A steam hose long enough to reach each
+tunnel was attached to this pipe through which to blow steam into the
+tunnels. It was not the idea to give a constant supply of steam, but to
+discharge a little into the tunnels each afternoon, or as often as was
+necessary to maintain sufficient warmth. A piece of tile was inserted
+into the mouth of each tunnel to prevent the discharging steam from
+tearing away the earth.
+
+"The first steam was turned into the tunnels on November 14th. Steam was
+discharged into each tunnel, not to exceed five minutes at a time, in
+order not to heat the earth too hot in any single place. It required
+about one hour of steaming the first day to bring the bed up to the
+required temperature of sixty degrees. The distribution of heat
+throughout the bed was very uniform and satisfactory. The moist steam
+seemed to permeate the soil equally in all directions.
+
+"After the first day very little steaming was necessary until the
+asparagus began to be produced. On an average the bed was steamed about
+twice in three days and then only for about five minutes for each
+tunnel. The soil and horse manure mulch seemed to hold the heat very
+well, the frequent steamings keeping up fermentation in the mulch.
+
+"The first asparagus was cut November 24th, ten days after the first
+steam was applied. The stems were cut just before they got through the
+soil and were perfectly bleached. They were as large as those ordinarily
+produced during the normal period of growth in spring, and were far more
+crisp and delicious.
+
+"Cuttings of asparagus were made almost daily for about a month, when
+the growth became somewhat weak. The last cutting was made on December
+22d. During the month 141 bunches of the ordinary market size, and
+weighing about one-half pound each, were cut from this bed of 25 x 50
+feet. This was equivalent to 300 feet of row or 100 hills of asparagus.
+
+"Exhausting steam into the asparagus bed, instead of returning it to the
+boiler in an inclosed circuit, would at first seem to be a wasteful
+process of heating. Experiment showed, however, that the circumstances
+justified this method. Heating a bed of this kind by a circuit of
+steam-pipes or hot-water pipes is very unsatisfactory. The heat from
+pipes very soon dries out the soil around the tunnels, destroying its
+power to conduct heat. In this way the bed becomes too hot and dry
+adjacent to the tunnels and too cold a short distance from them. It also
+becomes necessary to maintain heat in the pipes a good part of the time.
+
+"By blowing steam directly into the tunnels the soil is kept moist; the
+steam has a penetrating effect, and permeates all parts of the bed,
+giving a uniform heat throughout; this moist steam keeps up a continual
+fermentation of the manure mulch, thus giving heat, and only occasional
+brief steamings are necessary.
+
+"Care must be taken not to use too much steam at one time, or the plants
+may be ruined by overheating. Our asparagus rows were four feet apart,
+the tunnels midway between them were only eight inches wide, and yet we
+found that five minutes at a time was as long as was safe to force steam
+into a single tunnel.
+
+"These experiments have been so successful as to indicate that any one
+provided with a steam-heating plant could successfully force asparagus
+for the markets in this manner."
+
+Another plan of forcing asparagus in the field, devised by Prof. L. H.
+Bailey, is thus described in his "Forcing Book": "The Cornell asparagus
+house--if it may be called a house--is about twenty by fifty feet and
+the frame is made of steam-pipes. The sides, or walls, are only eighteen
+inches high, and the frame consists simply of a ridge and three pairs of
+rafters. The steam-heating pipe or riser is just beneath the ridge, and
+this feeds two returns upon either side of the house, next the walls.
+When it is desired to force the asparagus, canvas or muslin is stretched
+over the frames. No difficulty has been found in starting the asparagus
+into growth in January and February. The cover is left on and the heat
+kept up until all danger of frost is past, when the canvas is removed
+and the plants grow naturally out-of-doors. The secret of this method
+will no doubt be found to lie in allowing the plantation to become very
+thoroughly established (at least, three or four years old) before
+forcing is attempted, in the very best tillage and fertilizing during
+the summer while the plants are growing, in taking off the cover just as
+soon as settled weather comes, and in not cutting the plants until after
+that time."
+
+
+
+
+XIII
+
+PRESERVING ASPARAGUS
+
+
+CANNING
+
+The canning factory has made asparagus a vegetable for every day of the
+year instead of being a luxury for a few weeks, as was formerly the
+case. The canners have made it a farm crop instead of a garden product.
+To a great extent canning has transformed the farm into a garden,
+increasing the profits from every acre planted many fold. In many
+localities an acre of what was formerly considered a sandy waste is now
+yielding more than double the net profit of the best acre under
+cultivation in ordinary farm crops.
+
+_Eastern methods._--The pioneers in this industry on Long Island, N. Y.,
+have been the Messrs. Hudson & Sons, who have extensive plants at
+Mattituck and Riverhead, each of them as complete as mechanical skill
+and enterprise can make them. Each plant consists of a storehouse, 50 x
+150 feet; a packing-house, 40 x 125 feet; and a can manufactory, 25 x 60
+feet. A steam-engine of ten horse-power is required for hoisting,
+pumping, and for generating gas for the soldering-heaters, and a boiler
+of one hundred horse-power to generate steam for sterilizing the
+asparagus. A perspective view of one of the plants is seen in Fig. 36.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 36--PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF A LONG ISLAND ASPARAGUS
+CANNERY]
+
+The asparagus, as it comes from the growers, is in bunches seven and
+one-half inches long and weighing two and one-half pounds each. These
+bunches are put under a cutter and cut to six and five-eighths inches;
+they are then untied and put in a tank four feet wide by eight feet long
+and two feet deep, in which they are washed as carefully as it is
+possible to do it. It is then hoisted up to what is called the blanching
+tank, which contains forty gallons. In this it is kept at a scalding
+heat for one-half hour, when it is ready for the cans. These are filled
+by women who soon become very dextrous, which is always the case when
+the pay is in proportion to the amount of work done. Each can contains
+just one and one-half pounds. Exact weight is imperative, as are details
+in all manufacturing establishments. Great care is exercised in packing,
+so that there are no bruised or broken heads, and that on opening the
+can the stalks may appear as well as if cut fresh from the garden. After
+the asparagus is in the cans they are filled with a weak brine, which
+not only expels the air, but adds materially to the flavor of the
+asparagus.
+
+The cans are then taken to the soldering-bench for sealing up. There
+systematic labor is noticeable, as every detail of canning must be
+carried on systematically to make it profitable. The soldering-irons
+used are hollow and the exact size of the caps, which fit perfectly the
+grooves made for them. A single turn of the iron finishes the work.
+Before the caps are put in their places a small hole is made in each to
+allow the gas, which is generated by the heat from the soldering, to
+escape. Without this precaution it would be impossible to hermetically
+seal the cans. A single drop of solder closes the small opening, and the
+cans are ready for the retorts for sterilizing.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 37--STERILIZING TANK]
+
+Here two methods are employed--dry steam, which is the quicker method,
+and boiling in a closed tank. Most of the first-class stock is
+sterilized in the latter. This tank (Fig. 37) is in three sections, in
+all twenty feet long, each section holding five hundred cans. The cans
+are put in iron cribs and are pushed in and taken out with steam
+elevators. As soon as the cans are lowered the sections are closed
+tightly and the steam is turned on. The first process of sterilization
+lasts twenty minutes, when the tank is opened, the cans taken out, and a
+vent given each. This permits the accumulated gas to escape, which, if
+allowed to remain, would materially injure the quality of the asparagus,
+both in flavor and preservation. For this work a small prick punch is
+used, which makes a hole not larger than a pin's head. This vent is
+almost immediately closed with a single drop of solder and the cans are
+again returned to the tanks, where the same operation of cooking is
+repeated. Another twenty minutes completes the work, when the cans are
+removed to the packing-room, where they are labeled, wrapped, and packed
+ready for shipment. The cans or boxes are seven inches long, four wide,
+and two and one-half deep. A view of the sterilizing-room is presented
+in Fig. 38.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 38--VIEW OF STERILIZING-ROOM]
+
+The culls, which are put up as tips, are small-sized and crooked heads
+which, although of equal value as a vegetable, are not shipped to
+market, as they would detract from the value of the first quality, and
+are considered by both farmers and canners as by-products. These are cut
+to three and one-half inches in length, and then go through the same
+process in canning as the first quality, except that dry steam only is
+used in sterilization. After going through the blanching process the
+tips are put in round cans, four inches in diameter and five inches
+high. After soldering up these cans they are put in the retorts, which
+are three feet square, each containing five hundred cans, and treated
+with steam two hundred and fifty pounds to the inch. The cans remain in
+these retorts half an hour. Then they are taken out, vented, put back
+again, and remain under the same pressure another half hour, when the
+work is completed.
+
+By rigid economy even in the most minute detail, and by the skill
+required in the knowledge of canning, asparagus can now be had at a
+reasonable price at all seasons of the year, which is a boon to both
+producer and consumer. At $14.00 per one hundred bunches for No. 1 and
+$7.00 per hundred bunches for No. 2, or culls, asparagus is one of the
+most profitable of agricultural crops, and even at one-half these prices
+it is a much better paying crop than potatoes at 50 cents per bushel.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 39--INTERIOR VIEW OF A CALIFORNIA ASPARAGUS CANNERY]
+
+_Pacific Coast methods._--Canning and preserving of asparagus in
+California is carried on on as grand a scale as are most other
+undertakings. An idea of the extent and importance of this comparatively
+new industry may readily be conceived when it is considered that one
+establishment alone, The Hickmott Asparagus Canning Co., on Bouldin
+Island, in the San Joaquin River, has recently shipped an entire
+train-load of canned asparagus from San Francisco to New York. This
+train consisted of fifteen freight-cars containing 600 cases each,
+making a total of 9,000 cases, averaging forty-eight pounds each, thus
+making an actual weight of 432,000 pounds. By far the larger portion of
+the yearly asparagus crop in California is canned or preserved in glass,
+and in that shape sent to the East, exported to England and the
+continent of Europe, and, in fact, to every civilized country of the
+world. For canneries where nothing but the white product is put up the
+shoots are cut the instant they show their tips above the surface. The
+canneries are located as near the fields as possible, the effort being
+to get the product in glass or cans before it becomes in any way
+withered, the important point being that asparagus is never allowed to
+become dried.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 40--PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF CANNING PLANTS AT BOULDIN
+ISLAND]
+
+The method employed at Bouldin Island, where a crop of 1,500 acres is
+canned annually, is to have troughs containing running water in shady
+places in the fields. The asparagus, as fast as cut, is brought to these
+troughs, and is thoroughly washed. These troughs are just wide enough to
+take in the shoots of the proper length for canning, and each piece is
+trimmed before being immersed. From the troughs the asparagus is taken
+to the sorting table, then on to the scalding vats until it reaches the
+fillers, where is completed the systematic handling of this product,
+packing it to perfection, nothing remaining except to be labeled, when
+it is ready to be forwarded to the markets of the world. The entire
+process from the time the stalks are taken from the ground to the time
+they are ready for the table consumes less than six hours. The process
+throughout is a marvel of cleanliness, particular attention and stress
+being laid on every detail connected with it. No bleaching agents or
+anything foreign or deleterious whatever is used in the packing of
+this plant. In Fig. 39 is seen the interior of one of these canneries,
+where the especially constructed solderless cans of the company are
+being packed. Everything connected with the growing, harvesting, and
+canning is done on Bouldin Island, save only the printing of the labels.
+That the operators may be lodged in comfort the company has erected
+modern cottages for their employes who have families, besides
+well-equipped boarding-houses. The development and growth of this
+asparagus cannery is one of the marvels of California. Starting ten
+years ago with a rented boiler, under the arched dome of the sky for a
+roof, and nothing but the shade of weeping willows for a storehouse, as
+seen in the Frontispiece, it has developed into a superb plant, equipped
+with all modern appliances. During the active season 1,500 hands are
+employed directly and indirectly by the canning company, and the
+estimated output for the average season is 150,000 cases. Figs. 40 and
+41 present perspective views of some of the asparagus canneries on
+Bouldin Island.
+
+
+DRYING
+
+Although the drying of asparagus is not much practiced in America, it is
+well worth the attention of those who at times have a surplus of fresh
+stalks. Dried asparagus is especially recommended for soups and sauces,
+and if properly prepared it is no less desirable as a table vegetable.
+Dried asparagus keeps indefinitely, and cost of transportation is
+largely reduced. For the latter purpose medium-sized spears are most
+suitable, as they dry more evenly than larger ones. Some recommend the
+peeling or scalding of the stalks before drying, but this is not
+essential, and, if desired, may be done after steaming. On a large scale
+the drying may be done in any modern evaporator.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 41--CANNERY IN ASPARAGUS FIELDS]
+
+For home use the most satisfactory way is to string the stalks with a
+large needle and strong thread through the butt ends of the stalks, and
+hang them along buildings or fences where they are exposed to the full
+rays of the sun. To insure a uniform drying it is important that all the
+spears on the string are of the same thickness, as the thicker ones
+require more time to dry than those of smaller size. When the air is dry
+and warm one day's exposure to the sun will be sufficient to dry them.
+Otherwise the strings will have to be hung up in the kitchen in the
+evening, or in some other dry place over night, to be brought out again
+the following morning, until the asparagus is perfectly dry. It is then
+ready to be put in boxes or loose bags and stored in a dry place. If the
+stalks have been peeled before drying, when desired for use they are
+placed in cold water for half an hour, some salt is added, and they are
+cooked like fresh asparagus.
+
+For preparing dried asparagus that has not been peeled before drying,
+Dr. Brinckmeier recommends taking a sufficient number of the dried
+stalks and place them in water, which, while not boiling, is very near
+the boiling point, and keeping them there until they resume their
+succulent, smooth, fresh appearance. To keep the water just right a
+double boiler is best, with the stalks in the inner one. The water in
+the outer vessel should be kept at a steady boil. As the stalks resume
+the fresh appearance, take them out carefully one by one and place in
+cold water until cooled, after which place on a dish to dry. They should
+be carefully scalded to remove the hard outside skin, done up in a
+bundle, either by tying with strings or wrapping in a piece of netting,
+placed in boiling water, to which a little salt has been added, and
+allowed to remain there a few moments--a very few, for it cooks
+quickly--until done.
+
+These methods are recommended for white asparagus only, and when
+properly dried and cooked asparagus so treated is by many considered to
+be hardly distinguishable from the freshly cut, although it looses its
+white color in the process. Smaller and green stalks may be dried on
+wire frames or wooden racks over the kitchen stove, similar to apples.
+
+
+
+
+XIV
+
+INJURIOUS INSECTS
+
+
+While a number of different insects feed upon the asparagus plant, there
+are only two species which have so far become extensively distributed
+and caused serious damage in the United States. Both of these were
+imported from Europe, and are limited for their food supply to the
+asparagus plant.
+
+
+THE COMMON ASPARAGUS BEETLE[A]
+
+(_Crioceris asparagi_)
+
+This beetle is by far the most important enemy of the asparagus plant.
+It was first noticed in this country at Astoria, L. I., now a part of
+New York City, in 1859, but its actual introduction into that locality
+occurred about 1856. The injury inflicted by this insect is due to the
+work of both adults and larvae upon the tender shoots, which they render
+unfit for market, early in the season. Later they destroy, by
+defoliation, growing plants, and are particularly injurious to
+seedlings, the roots of which are weakened by having their tops
+devoured. Larvae, as well as beetles, attack the tenderest portions of
+the plants, but the latter gnaw with seemingly equal relish the
+epidermis, or rind, of the stems. The beetles are also accused of
+gnawing young shoots beneath the surface, causing them to become woody
+and crooked in growth.
+
+The beetle illustrated in Fig. 42 is a most beautiful creature--from the
+entomologist's point of view--slender and graceful in form, blue-black
+in color, with red thorax and lemon-yellow and dark blue elytra or wing
+covers, with reddish border. Its length is a trifle less than one-fourth
+of an inch.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 42--COMMON ASPARAGUS BEETLE
+
+_a_, beetle; _b_, egg; _c_, newly hatched larva; _d_, full-grown larva]
+
+From the scene of its first colonization in Queen's County, N. Y., the
+insect migrated to the other truck-growing portions of Long Island. It
+soon reached southern Connecticut, and has now extended its range
+northward through Massachusetts to New Hampshire. Southward it has
+traveled through New Jersey, where it was first noticed in 1868, to
+southern Virginia. At present it is well established in the principal
+asparagus-growing sections of New England, of New Jersey, Delaware, and
+Maryland, and is present in Pennsylvania, New York, and Ohio. The
+question of distribution is an important one, as this species is rapidly
+extending its range. In a very few years we may expect its spread to
+other portions of the States in which it is now local, and later it will
+naturally move westward to Indiana and other States west and south of
+there.
+
+The insect passes the winter in the beetle state under convenient
+shelter, and toward the end of April or early in May, according to
+locality, or at the season for cutting the asparagus for market, issues
+from its hibernating quarters and lays its eggs for the first brood. The
+eggs are deposited endwise upon the stem or foliage, and in the early
+spring upon the developed stalks, usually in rows of from two to six, or
+more. In from three to eight days the eggs hatch, the young larvae,
+commonly called "grubs" or "worms," presenting the appearance indicated
+in Fig. 42, _c_. They at once begin to feed, and are from ten days to a
+fortnight, according to Fitch and others, in attaining full growth. When
+full grown the larva appears as in Fig. 42, _d_. It is soft and fleshy,
+much wrinkled, and in color dark gray or olive, which usually becomes
+lighter and yellowish with age. The mature larva enters the earth, and
+here, within a little rounded, dirt-covered cocoon which it forms, the
+pupa state is assumed. In from five to eight or more days the adult
+beetle is produced, which soon issues from the ground in search of food
+and of a suitable place for the continuance of the species. In Fig. 43
+is shown a spray of asparagus, with the common asparagus beetle in its
+different stages, asparagus top at the right showing eggs and injury.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 43--SPRAY AND TOP OF ASPARAGUS ATTACKED BY BEETLES]
+
+The duration of the life cycle is about thirty days from the time the
+eggs are laid until the insects attain maturity, but the time is shorter
+in the hotter parts of a season than in the cooler days of May or
+September. In the District of Columbia the eggs, in the warmest part of
+midsummer, develop in three days and the pupae in five days. From this it
+may be estimated that, in the very warmest weather, the development of
+the insect may be effected in about three weeks from the time the egg is
+laid. In colder climates and in spring and autumn the development from
+egg to beetle will require from four to perhaps seven weeks. In the
+northern range of the species, two and perhaps three broods are usually
+produced, and farther southward there is a possibility of at least a
+fourth generation. In the latitude of the District of Columbia the
+beetles usually disappear to enter into hibernation in the latter days
+of September.
+
+The common asparagus beetle has very efficient checks in the shape of
+predaceous insects, which prey upon its larvae and assist in preventing
+its undue increase. One of the most active of these predaceous insects
+is the spotted ladybird (_Megilla maculata_ DeG.), represented in its
+several stages in the illustration (Fig. 44.) The adult of this beetle
+is rose-colored, with numerous black spots. The spined soldier-bug
+(_Podisus spinosus_ Dal.) and the bordered soldier-bug (_Stiretrus
+anchorado_ Fab.) are also useful as destroyers of asparagus beetle
+larvae, which they catch and kill by impaling them upon their long beaks
+and sucking out their juices. Certain species of wasps and small
+dragon-flies also prey upon the larvae. Asparagus beetles are very
+susceptible to sudden changes of temperature, and immense numbers of
+hibernating beetles are sometimes killed in winter during severe cold
+spells following "open" weather.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 44--SPOTTED LADYBIRD
+
+_a_, larva; _b_, empty pupal skin; _c_, beetle, with enlarged antenna
+above]
+
+_Remedies._--The common asparagus beetle, under ordinary circumstances,
+may be held in restraint by the simplest means. Chickens and ducks are
+efficient destroyers of the insect, and their services are often brought
+into requisition for this purpose. A practice that is in high favor
+among prominent asparagus growers is to cut down all plants, including
+volunteer growth, in early spring to force the beetles to deposit their
+eggs upon new shoots, which are then cut every day before the eggs have
+time to hatch. Another measure of value consists in permitting a portion
+of the shoots to grow and serve as lures for the beetles. Here they may
+be killed with insecticides, or the plants, after they become covered
+with eggs, may be cut down and burned, and other shoots be allowed to
+grow up as decoys. One of the best and least expensive remedies against
+the larvae is fresh air-slacked lime dusted on the plants in the early
+morning while the dew is on. It quickly destroys all the grubs with
+which it comes in contact. The lime may be conveniently applied by means
+of a whisk-broom or a Paris green sifter. Even dry road dust applied in
+this manner will have a beneficial effect. The special merit of these
+insecticides is that they can be used without the least danger upon
+young shoots being cut for market or home use.
+
+Paris green and other arsenites, applied dry in powder, mixed with flour
+or plaster, or in solution, answer equally well, after cutting has
+ceased, and possess the advantage of destroying beetles as well as
+larvae. One pound of Paris green to a barrel of fine plaster makes a
+sufficiently strong mixture. It may be necessary to make two of these
+applications at intervals or as often as the larvae reappear on the
+plants. Powdered hellebore mixed with flour, one part to ten, or in
+solution of one ounce of hellebore to three gallons of water, is also
+very effective against the young larvae. Pyrethrum or buhach may be used
+in similar manner, and kerosene emulsion has been highly recommended by
+some experimenters. In hot weather, when the soil is dry, the larvae may
+be brushed or shaken from the plants so that they will drop to the
+heated ground, where they die, being unable to regain the shelter of the
+plants. Whichever methods for the destruction of this pest are adopted,
+unless the work be done thoroughly and with concerted action by all the
+growers in the section, the relief can not be permanent.
+
+
+THE TWELVE-SPOTTED ASPARAGUS BEETLE
+
+(_Crioceris 12-punctata_ Linn)
+
+The presence of this insect in America was first detected in 1881, and
+it is still much rarer and consequently less injurious than the
+preceding species. In Europe, where it is apparently native, it is
+common but not especially destructive. The chief source of damage from
+this species is from the work of the hibernated beetles in early spring
+upon the young and edible asparagus shoots. Later beetles as well as
+larvae appear to feed exclusively upon the berries. The eggs are
+deposited singly, and apparently by preference, upon old plants toward
+the end of shoots, which, lower down, bear ripening berries, and they
+are attached along their sides instead of at one end, as in the case
+with the eggs of the common species. Soon after the larva hatches from
+the egg it finds its way to an asparagus berry, enters it, and feeds
+upon the pulp. In due time it leaves the first berry for another one,
+and when full growth is attained it deserts its last larval habitation
+and enters the earth, where it transforms to pupa and afterward to the
+adult beetle. The life cycle does not differ materially from that of the
+common species, and there are probably the same or nearly as many
+generations developed.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 45--TWELVE-SPOTTED ASPARAGUS BEETLE
+
+_a_, beetle; _b_, larva; _c_, second abdominal segment of larva; _d_,
+same of common asparagus beetle]
+
+This species is at present distributed throughout the asparagus-growing
+country of New Jersey, particularly in the vicinity of the Delaware
+River, the whole of Delaware, nearly the entire state of Maryland, the
+District of Columbia, the southeastern portion of Pennsylvania bordering
+the state line of New Jersey, northeastern Virginia in the vicinity of
+the western shore of the Potomac River, Staten Island, and Monroe
+County, N. Y., the last mentioned being the most northern locality known
+for the species. The mature beetle in life rivals the common asparagus
+beetle in beauty, but may be distinguished by its much broader wing
+covers and its color. The ground color is orange red, each wing cover is
+marked with six black dots, and the knees and a portion of the under
+surface of the thorax are also marked with black, as seen in Fig. 45,
+_a_. The beetle as it appears on the plant when in fruit very closely
+resembles, at a little distance, a ripe asparagus berry. The full-grown
+larva is shown in Fig. 45, _b_. It measures, when extended,
+three-tenths of an inch, being of about the same proportions as the
+larva of the common species, but is readily separable by its ochraceous
+orange color. Fig. 45, _c_, shows the second abdominal segment of larva,
+and _d_ same of the common asparagus beetle, much enlarged.
+
+_Remedies._--The remedies are those indicated for the common asparagus
+beetle, with the possible exception of caustic lime and other measures
+that are directed solely against that species, but the habit of the
+larva of living within the berry places it for that period beyond the
+reach of insecticides. The collection and destruction of the asparagus
+berries before ripening might be a solution of the problem, but it is
+questionable if recourse to this measure would be necessary, save in
+cases of an exceptional abundance of the insect.
+
+
+THE ASPARAGUS MINER
+
+(_Agromyza simplex_)
+
+In a recent bulletin from the New York Experiment Station, Prof. F. A.
+Sirrine describes a comparatively new and injurious insect on asparagus.
+It was discovered on Long Island, and injures the young plants by mining
+just underneath the outside surface. The habits of this creature are
+such that there is little chance of applying remedies for its
+destruction. Cultural and preventive measures seem to be the most
+practical, and are suggested. The parent insect is a small fly, which
+deposits its eggs for the first brood early in June, and no doubt much
+can be done toward keeping the pest under control by not allowing small
+shoots to grow during the cutting season. Professor Sirrine is of the
+opinion that where young beds are put out yearly the pest can be kept in
+check by pulling and burning the old stalks. He points out the fact that
+the stalk should be pulled in the fall rather than in the spring, as it
+is difficult to pull them early in the season, and in many cases the
+dormant stage of the insect is left in the ground.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[A] Condensed from an official report by J. H. Chittenden of the United
+States Department of Agriculture.
+
+
+
+
+XV
+
+FUNGUS DISEASES
+
+
+Asparagus is subject to the attacks of a number of fungi, the most
+widespread and destructive being the "rust," the cause of which is a
+fungus described by De Candolle as _Puccinia asparagi_ in the year 1805.
+From this it is seen that the rust upon the asparagus has been known to
+scientists for nearly a hundred years, and it is but reasonable to
+suppose that more or less of this fungus has existed beyond the history
+of man.
+
+The first mention of asparagus rust in the United States was by Dr.
+Harkness, who claimed to have observed it on the Pacific Coast in 1880,
+although it is doubtful whether the genuine asparagus rust was ever
+found there. The first mention of it in the Eastern States was in the
+fall of 1896, and since then its range has been widening each year. Dr.
+Byron D. Halsted, of the New Jersey Experiment Station, was the first to
+call attention to it, and made it the subject of careful study. The
+results and conclusions derived from his experiments were published in a
+special bulletin, and from this the greater part of the following has
+been condensed.
+
+
+RECOGNITION OF THE RUST
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 46--ASPARAGUS STEMS AFFECTED WITH RUST]
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 47--PORTION OF RUSTED ASPARAGUS STEMS]
+
+When an asparagus field is badly infested with the rust the general
+appearance is that of an unusually early maturing of the plants (Fig.
+46). Instead of the healthy green color there is a brown hue, as if
+insects had sapped the plants or frost destroyed their vitality. Rusted
+plants, when viewed closely, are found to have the skin of the stems
+lifted, as if blistered, and within the ruptures of the epidermis the
+color is brown, as shown in Fig. 47. The brown color is due to
+multitudes of spores borne upon the tips of fine threads of the fungus,
+which aggregate at certain points and cause the spots. The threads from
+which the spores are produced are exceedingly small and grow through the
+substance of the asparagus stem, taking up nourishment and causing an
+enfeebled condition of the victim, which results in loss of the green
+color and the final rustiness of the plant, due to the multitude of
+spores formed upon the surface. These spores are carried by the wind to
+other plants, where new disease spots are produced; but as the autumn
+advances a final form of spore appears in the ruptures that is quite
+different in shape and color from the first ones produced through the
+summer. The spores of late autumn, from their dark color, give an almost
+black appearance to the spots.
+
+There is another form which the rust fungus assumes not usually seen in
+the asparagus field, but may be found in early spring upon plants that
+are not subjected to cutting. This is the cluster-cup stage, so named
+because the fungus produces minute cups from the asparagus stem, and in
+small groups of a dozen to fifty, making usually an oval spot easily
+seen with the naked eye. This stage of the fungus comes first in the
+order of time in the series, and is met with upon volunteer plants that
+may grow along the roadside or fence row, or in a field where all the
+old asparagus plants have not been destroyed.
+
+
+METHODS OF TREATING THE RUST
+
+All the cultivated varieties of asparagus are readily affected by the
+rust, although it has been found that some varieties, notably Palmetto,
+are less susceptible to its attacks than others. The most effectual
+means of controlling the disease are spraying, burning of the brush,
+cultivation, and irrigation.
+
+_Spraying._--Dr. Halsted, in his first experiments, used soda-bordeaux,
+hydrate-bordeaux, and potash-bordeaux. The spraying began June 2d, and
+ten sprayings were applied during the season. The applications were made
+with a knapsack pump, and therefore were far more expensive than they
+would have been if the sprayings were made with horse-power. With the
+fungicide costing $5.00 per acre, and a machine that would spray two or
+more rows at a time, it would be possible to reduce the cost to $10.00
+per acre, or even less. In effectiveness the soda-bordeaux stood first.
+Between the other fungicides there was but little difference. The best
+results showed a reduction of rust of about one-quarter, which is not as
+satisfactory a result as had been expected.
+
+In the spraying work conducted by Professors G. E. Stone and R. E.
+Smith, at the Massachusetts Experiment Station, the results were more
+encouraging. The solutions used were potassium sulfide, saccharate of
+lime, and bordeaux mixture. The spraying was done with a knapsack
+sprayer, provided with a Vermorel nozzle, and after the first
+application it became evident that the practice was of little importance
+on account of the difficulty in making the solution stick to the plant.
+For successful spraying of asparagus a finer nozzle is required than any
+that is now in the market.
+
+In some other experiments carried out on a small scale the asparagus
+plants were practically covered with solutions, when they were put on
+with an ordinary cylinder atomizer, and the lime solutions showed
+excellent sticking qualities; but with the ordinary coarse nozzle the
+solutions would run off of the glossy epidermal covering of the plant
+very readily. Should the spraying of asparagus ever become a necessity,
+then some apparatus which can be strapped to a horse's back should be
+used. The narrow space between the rows forbids the use of the ordinary
+mounted appliances, and if spraying is to be carried on upon a large
+scale, it would be better to have the spraying mixture carried in some
+manner on the horse's back. In this way it would be possible to carry
+some thirty or forty gallons of mixture through the narrow rows.
+
+_Burning the affected tops._--There can be no doubt that by the burning
+of the infested brush, after the cutting season, innumerable rust spores
+are destroyed. But if this is done before the stalks are entirely dead
+new ones will spring up at once, and in a few days will be as badly
+affected as the first. The burning of the tops in the summer has,
+moreover, a decidedly injurious effect upon the roots, seriously
+weakening their vitality, and making the growth of the following year
+still more susceptible to the infection.
+
+In the autumn, however, after the stalks are dead and dry, this damage
+does not prevail, and the spores upon old brush can be destroyed by
+burning the asparagus stems either as they stand in the field or by
+cutting and throwing the brush into piles. By the latter method many of
+the smaller branches will be broken off and scattered upon the ground,
+giving a suitable place for the spores to remain over the winter. For
+the same reason it is an advantage to burn the brush in autumn instead
+of the spring, and thus prevent the large loss of spores that would
+obtain. In other words, burn the plants as soon as they become brown
+and lifeless, for any delay means the breaking up of the brittle, rusty
+plants, and a heavy sowing of the spores upon the ground. If the fire
+could go over the whole field of standing brush, that would be the most
+effective destruction. At best, with these precautions, many of the
+spores will get scattered upon the soil, and it would be well to
+sprinkle a thin coat of lime upon the ground and leave it there during
+the winter. If this could be followed by a turning under of the surface
+soil in the spring, it would bury the spores that might still be living,
+so that they would be out of reach.
+
+_Cultivation and irrigation._--It has been observed that the injury to
+asparagus plants, as a result of rust, has been confined to dry soils,
+although there are places where beds in close proximity showed
+remarkable differences as to infection; and that robust and vigorous
+plants, even where cultivated on apparently dry soil, are capable of
+resisting the summer or injurious stage of the rust.
+
+In view of all the experiments so far made, and the experiences of
+practical asparagus growers, Stone and Smith conclude that: "The best
+means of controlling the rust is by thorough cultivation in order to
+secure vigorous plants, and in seasons of extreme dryness plants growing
+on very dry soil with little water-retaining properties should, if
+possible, receive irrigation."
+
+From a knowledge of the occurrences of the rust in Europe, and from
+observations made in Massachusetts, they are led to believe that the
+outbreak of the asparagus rust is of a sporadic nature, and is not
+likely to cause much harm in the future, provided attention is given to
+the production of vigorous plants.
+
+
+ASPARAGUS LEOPARD SPOT
+
+Attention was called to this new disease by Prof. W. G. Johnson, in
+Bulletin No. 50, Maryland Experiment Station, September, 1897. It was
+observed in a limited area in the asparagus growing section on the
+eastern shore of Maryland. The disease belongs to the group of
+anthracnoses, and is regarded by Dr. B. D. Halsted as a new species. In
+some places growers have mistaken it for the work of asparagus beetles.
+In general appearance it is very striking, the characteristic spots
+resembling the coat of the leopard. It has, therefore, been called
+"asparagus leopard spot," to distinguish it readily from rust. The
+disease has been found only in a comparatively small area, but, no doubt
+will be found in other places later. Asparagus growers should,
+therefore, be on their guard and watch it. The remedies thus far
+successfully used are the same as those for rust.
+
+
+
+
+XVI
+
+ASPARAGUS CULTURE IN DIFFERENT LOCALITIES
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN NEW ENGLAND
+
+Asparagus was grown in Concord, Mass., in a limited way as early as
+1825. Mr. Edmund Hosmer used to carry it to market in season on his milk
+wagon. Timothy Prescott and F. R. Gourgas grew garden patches before
+1840. To John B. Moore belongs the credit of growing and improving
+asparagus in this section of the State. Mr. Moore selected the most
+promising shoots, and by a judicious system of culture succeeded in
+placing on the market a valuable variety in the shape of Moore's
+Cross-bred. Most of the "giant" asparagus grown in Concord to-day could
+be traced to the plants produced by his skill. A sample bunch of twelve
+stalks, twelve inches long, from Moore's Cross-bred plants weighed four
+pounds eight ounces. In 1872 the first bed of asparagus of any size was
+set out by Mr. George D. Hubbard, who was laughed at by his neighbor
+farmers, who saw only ruin for the young man. The next year Mr. Hubbard
+set out more, so that for twenty years he was probably the largest
+grower in Massachusetts.
+
+Most of the leading varieties are grown in Concord, but the farmers are
+looking for a rust-proof variety and hope to find one. The Palmetto has
+not rusted as badly as other kinds, but has not been grown so
+extensively. One-year-old roots should be set by all means, as they
+start sooner, grow more vigorously, and in the end pay better. The roots
+should be carefully selected from vigorous stock. A very large part of
+Concord asparagus is planted on sandy soil--_i.e._, good, rich, mellow
+corn land. This kind of land needs more manure, but then the crop is
+more satisfactory and the labor bill is not so high. The land previous
+to setting to asparagus should be well tilled and manured.
+
+Land for asparagus beds should be plowed late in the fall, and if stable
+manure can be afforded should be applied liberally. In the spring plow
+again early and harrow well. The roots should be planted in April as
+soon as the ground can be worked. After determining the direction of the
+rows a number of laths, four feet long, are placed in line where the
+first row is to be. It is very important to get the rows straight and an
+even distance apart. A good strong pair of horses and a large plow are
+used, a board being so placed above the mold-board of the plow that the
+loose soil will not fall back into the furrow. Drive the horses so that
+the middle of the evener will just come to the lath, then change the
+lath over its own length, if the rows are to be four feet apart, and
+that will mark the next row. Change each lath as you come to it, and
+when your first furrow is completed your second row will be all marked
+out. Return in the first row to make it deeper and also to straighten
+any bends. Shovel out the ends for a few feet and you will have a proper
+furrow to set asparagus roots in. Proceed with the other rows in the
+same manner, and you will have a good-looking plantation.
+
+The larger growers in Concord set the plants two feet apart in the row
+and have the rows four feet apart. The plants are set in the bottom of
+the furrow, covered two inches, and should level up by fall so that the
+crowns will be six or seven inches below the surface. The furrows may be
+made very deep, so that manure can be placed in the bottom, or
+fertilizer may be strewn before the plants are set or after. The roots
+should be spread out carefully in the bottom of the furrow, care being
+taken to have them in line. The bed should be cultivated with a
+fine-tooth cultivator or weeder often enough to prevent the growth of
+weeds. Keep the bed clean and do not have the trenches filled in before
+the last of September. The tops should not be cut in the fall of the
+first year, as the snow will be held by them, and thereby protect the
+roots to some extent. Some growers spread coarse manure on their beds in
+the fall to prevent the soil from being blown away and also to prevent
+winter killing, which, however, is rare.
+
+In the second year the bed may be plowed or wheel-harrowed in the spring
+as early as possible. Concord growers use animal manure or chemical
+fertilizers, as the case may be or as the bed may require. The bed
+should be smooth harrowed just before the new shoots appear, and good
+clean cultivation given during the season. After harrowing or plowing in
+the third year, sow your chemicals or fertilizer broadcast and harrow
+in. A good formula for asparagus is: Nitrate of soda, 300 to 400 pounds;
+muriate of potash, 400 pounds; and fine ground bone, 600 pounds per
+acre. The shoots will appear about May 5th, and should be cut for about
+two weeks; then let them grow up and cultivate well during the season.
+
+Home-mixing of fertilizer is practiced by some of the growers in this
+vicinity, as it is cheaper and better. Any intelligent farmer can, with
+a little study, purchase and mix the raw materials to advantage. Not so
+much fertilizer is used as formerly by our growers, who are beginning to
+think that we use more plant food than the crop needs, thus throwing
+away many dollars each year. The cost of an acre of asparagus when
+properly planted and manured is about two hundred dollars, varying with
+the cost of help, manure, etc. The average product of asparagus beds is
+about two hundred and eighty-eight dozen bunches per acre--probably less
+since the rust appeared in 1897.
+
+Asparagus is grown largely on Cape Cod. There the roots are planted in
+rows six feet apart and four or five feet in the row. Seaweed is used
+largely in connection with fertilizer and manure. Various grains, oats,
+rye, etc., are sometimes sown to prevent the soil being blown away. The
+method of culture is much the same as elsewhere.
+
+At Concord the asparagus season opens usually about May 5th. The shoots
+are cut two or three inches under ground and should be about eight
+inches in length. These are laid in handfuls on the ground by the
+cutter, each one cutting two rows. The product of four rows is laid in
+one row, making what is called a "basket row." These "basket rows" are
+gathered in baskets, boxes, or wheelbarrows, and taken to the
+packing-shed. The asparagus is placed on a table and packed in racks of
+uniform size, passed to the person who ties, and then to be butted off.
+The bunches are then washed and set up in troughs ready for market.
+Water is added in season to swell the bunch tight and it is then packed
+in bushel boxes for market, going in by teams each night.
+
+Asparagus was free from pests until 1889, when the asparagus beetle made
+its unwelcome appearance. Methods of fighting the beetle were unknown to
+growers generally at that time, but necessity soon taught us. Chickens
+and hens are used with good results, also Paris green dry was applied
+with an air-gun when the dew was on the foliage. Cutworms sometimes do
+the asparagus crop severe damage, but chickens and hens are a sure
+remedy--in fact, hens are a decided benefit in an asparagus field,
+keeping down many weeds.
+
+After learning to control the asparagus beetle we were visited by the
+rust, which has proved a stubborn foe and absorbs the sap which ought to
+go to the growing plant. Appearing in July, 1897, the rust seriously
+damaged many beds in eastern Massachusetts. Many remedies have been
+suggested, but so far none of them have proved perfectly satisfactory.
+Growers have been advised to cut the infected tops as soon as the rust
+appears, but such a practice is all wrong, however good in theory. Do
+not cut the tops until the sap has left the stalks. This is the advice
+of a large number of asparagus growers and scientific men who are
+engaged in experimental work.
+
+CHARLES W. PRESCOTT.
+
+_Middlesex County, Mass._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS ON LONG ISLAND
+
+The cultivation of asparagus on Long Island does not differ materially,
+in most respects, from that practiced in other localities, other than in
+its extent. But there is probably more to be learned about its
+cultivation there than in any other section of the country, from the
+fact of its being grown under such changed conditions of soil. Here it
+can be shown that the character of soil is not, of itself, of great
+importance, and that on soil usually considered worthless--on land that
+can be bought, uncleared, at from five to ten dollars per
+acre--asparagus can be made as profitable a crop as on land considered
+cheap at one hundred dollars per acre.
+
+Nearly every farm, the northern boundary of which is the Long Island
+Sound, has from two to twenty acres of soil composed very largely of
+fine drift sand, in all respects like quick-sand in character. This,
+when mixed with light loam, as is frequently the case, is the most
+favorable land for asparagus, and in such it is largely grown, being
+unsuited to potatoes or cereals, and where grasses make but a feeble
+struggle for existence. Within five minutes' walk to the south the soil
+is from a lively to a quite heavy loam, in which corn, potatoes,
+cabbage, cauliflower, and, in fact, all other crops revel. In this soil
+the asparagus also finds a congenial home, but no better than in the
+sand, in which but little else can be grown; neither can it be grown
+here more profitably. The expense for fertilizers is a little more on
+the sandy soil, but the cost in labor on the heavy soil will quite
+equal the cost of extra fertilizer required on the light.
+
+Whether away from a saline atmosphere a light soil would be as favorable
+as a heavy one for the asparagus is a question that practical experiment
+only can settle. But it is an important one, as it is not generally
+supposed that it is possible to grow asparagus, at a profit, on such
+soils as are now being devoted to this crop on Long Island.
+
+That which has been called the barren wastes, the dwarf-pine and
+scrub-oak lands of Suffolk County, can be made most profitable farming
+lands may be a surprise to many, but that such is the case does not
+admit of a doubt. As evidence of this, let us state what is being done
+along these lines. Messrs. Hudson & Sons, leading canners of asparagus,
+have bought a farm of 525 acres of as poor land as it is possible to
+find on Long Island, which they are to devote exclusively to this crop.
+They have already more than fifty acres planted, and are getting the
+whole in readiness as rapidly as possible. This is no experiment, but
+simply doing on a large scale what has profitably been done on a small
+one.
+
+On similar soils a low estimate of net profit is $100 per acre, and
+there are many instances where double this profit is made. The price
+paid last season by the canners was $14 per 100 bunches for first
+quality, and $6 per 100 for culls, or "tips," as they are usually
+called. With good cultivation, which means a liberal supply of plant
+food--and there is no crop that requires more--and the surface kept
+clean, free from weeds, and frequently cultivated, so that the surface
+is at all times loose and fine to prevent evaporation, the average yield
+is 2,500 bunches per acre. If we estimate the tips at 25 per cent. of
+the crop, the gross receipts will amount to $200 per acre.
+
+After a given acreage is ready for cutting, which is the third year
+after planting, the annual cost of cultivation is not very much, if any,
+more than that of a crop of potatoes. It is a question whether the
+actual cost of growing and marketing an acre of asparagus is not less
+than that of an acre of potatoes. Some growers assert it is three times
+as much work to take care of a given acreage of asparagus as of
+potatoes; admitting it, the relative cost is stated above.
+
+C. L. ALLEN.
+
+_Nassau County, N. Y._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN NEW JERSEY
+
+An important point in asparagus culture is to remove the top growth in
+the fall of the year. For this purpose I use a mowing-machine, then rake
+up the brush and burn it on the bed. After this I top-dress heavy with
+manure, leaving it lie on the land until spring.
+
+Just as soon as the ground is fit to work at all I put on a disk-harrow,
+and cut it about four times each way until it is thoroughly pulverized.
+Then with a smoothing-harrow I level it, and repeat the smoothing-harrow
+operation about once a week to keep down all weeds coming through. Then
+we let it go as long as we can, possibly two weeks, and at the
+appearance of weeds we take an ordinary sweet-potato ridger having a
+plow on either side and run it astride the row, covering everything in
+the row. Doing this on Saturday afternoon holds the asparagus back over
+the following day. Then we take the middle out with a one-horse
+cultivator. This is done probably three times during the cutting season,
+which is eight weeks. With the help of one of these weeders, which we
+use at least once a week, we keep the bed quite clean of all weeds, and
+this I consider very essential. The cultivation should continue after
+cutting until the top growth becomes so large as to protect the ground,
+and then there will be but little trouble late in the season about
+weeds. It doesn't pay to grow them anywhere, and especially not in
+asparagus beds.
+
+In planting, the ground should be well prepared and furrowed out eight
+inches in depth, four and one-half feet apart, and the plants two and
+one-half feet in the row, with a little fine manure in bottom of row;
+put about two inches of soil on the plants to cover. Then as the sprouts
+come up, keep on filling the furrows by cultivation.
+
+I have been using some commercial manures the past two years, applying
+at the rate of one ton to the acre about the rows in the spring; then
+nearly a ton of salt to the acre applied at any time. It helps keep
+weeds down and gives the asparagus a good flavor. Above all, do not
+forget to apply the fertilizer, and Plenty, with a big "P," of
+it--either stable manure or commercial fertilizers. Probably there will
+be less weeds by using the latter, but there needs to be a great deal of
+the former in the beginning for several years, to give the bed a good
+body of rich earth, from which the plants feed. It appears to me this
+is the secret of success.
+
+Much depends upon how asparagus is put up for the market, making it look
+attractive, in nice, clean, new crates and neatly prepared bunches, and
+the stalks must be large, tender, and of good flavor. Grass from a
+strong bed grown in twenty-four hours is much more tender and better in
+every way than grass grown in forty-eight hours from a poor bed. We are
+compelled to cut every twenty-four hours, or the asparagus would waste,
+and the gathering is accomplished in about three and one-half hours each
+day, early in the morning.
+
+JOEL BORTON.
+
+_Salem County, N. J._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN THE SOUTH
+
+There is no crop grown by the Southern trucker that has paid better than
+asparagus year after year. With many of the other truck crops sent North
+the growers have to contend with a host of planters who rush in at times
+to plant certain crops like early potatoes, peas, and beans, and whose
+inferior crops often glut the market and make the season unprofitable
+all around. These men drop out after a season that their particular
+venture did not pay, and the regular truckers, being well aware that
+they would do so, always redouble their efforts the year after a bad
+season with any particular crop, knowing from experience that then it
+would be certain to be profitable.
+
+But the asparagus crop is one into which the temporary growers can not
+jump in and out of, for the crop requires special preparation of the
+soil and patient waiting and culture pending the time for reaping a
+harvest, and the men who are always ready to jump into the annual crops
+always wish to realize at once, and do not generally have the capital to
+put into a crop that requires several years before realizing. Hence the
+asparagus crop has been left to the regular market gardeners, and has
+been uniformly profitable when well managed.
+
+As regards soil for asparagus in the South, it should be deep, light,
+warm, and well drained, either naturally or artificially. The level
+sandy soils that abound in all the South Atlantic Coast region, having a
+compact subsoil of reddish clay under it at a moderate depth, makes the
+ideal soil for the early asparagus.
+
+In preparing such a soil for the crop, it is well to be thorough in the
+matter, for the crop is to remain there indefinitely, and if success is
+to be expected the previous preparation should be of the most thorough
+character. Hence, as the soils best adapted to the growth of the plant
+are commonly deficient in vegetable matter, which desirable
+characteristic can only be found in abundance on the lands too low and
+moist for the asparagus crop, some preparatory culture should be used
+that will tend to increase the amount of organic decay in the soil.
+
+For this purpose there is nothing better than the Southern field or cow
+pea. The land should be prepared by giving it a heavy dressing of acid
+phosphate and potash; and putting it in peas sown broadcast at the rate
+of a bushel or more per acre. With a heavy dressing of the mineral
+fertilizers the pea crop will be heavy, and should be allowed to fully
+ripen and decay on the land, to be plowed under, and the process
+repeated the following year. In the mean time the seed should be sown
+for the growth of the roots for setting the land.
+
+Two crops of cow-peas allowed to die on the land and turned under will
+give a store of vegetable matter that would be hard to get in any other
+manner. While heavy manuring with stable manures is very desirable where
+the material can be had at a reasonable cost, the larger part, and, in
+fact, nearly all of the Southern asparagus, must be grown by the aid of
+chemical fertilizers, and the storing up of humus in the land from the
+decaying peas is an important factor in the placing of the soil in a
+condition to render the chemical fertilizers of more use, since the
+moisture-retaining nature of the organic matter plays an important part
+in the solution of matters in the soil. Aside from this, there will be a
+large increase in the nitrogen contents of the soil through the
+nitrification of this organic matter.
+
+The second crop of peas should be plowed under in late fall when
+perfectly ripe and dead, so that the land can be gotten into condition
+for planting in early spring. The land should be thoroughly plowed, and
+if the clay subsoil comes near the surface it should be loosened with
+the subsoil plow. Furrows are then run out four and a half to five feet
+apart, going twice in the furrow, and then cleaning out with shovels
+till there is a trench a foot deep. In the bottom of this trench place a
+good coat of black earth from the forest, or, if well-rotted manure can
+be had, use that of course. Set the plants twenty inches apart in the
+furrow, and by means of hand-rakes pull in enough earth to barely cover
+the crowns.
+
+As growth begins, the soil is to be gradually worked in around the
+advancing shoots till the soil is level. Now give a dressing of 1,000
+pounds per acre, alongside the rows, of a mixture of 900 pounds of acid
+phosphate, 500 pounds of fish scrap, 200 pounds of nitrate of soda, and
+400 pounds of muriate of potash, and keep the plants cultivated
+shallowly and flat with an ordinary cultivator till the tops are mature.
+An application of salt may be useful if applied in the fall in making
+some matters in the soil available, but salt in itself is of no use
+whatever to the plants. We would never apply salt in the spring, as it
+has a tendency to lessen nitrification and to retard the earliness of
+the shoots.
+
+The annual dressing of the fertilizer named should now be increased to a
+ton per acre, and it should be applied not later than February 1st in
+each year. After the tops have been cut in the fall it is a good plan to
+plow furrows from each side over the rows and to plow out the middles,
+for the shoots will always start earlier in an elevated ridge, which
+warms up earlier in the spring.
+
+The second year after planting cutting may begin, and the shoots must be
+cut as fast as they show, care being taken to cut down near the crown of
+the roots, but not to injure the other shoots that may be starting.
+After cutting is over--and the length of time the bed should be cut is
+of little importance in the South, for the price at the point where it
+is shipped will always tell you when to stop--the soil should be again
+worked down flat, and if the growth has not been as satisfactory as
+could be wished, a dressing of 100 pounds per acre of nitrate of soda at
+this time will usually pay very well. Asparagus should always be bunched
+in a machine made for that purpose. The bunches are packed in crates
+just deep enough to hold the bunches set upright on a bed of moss, and a
+cover of the same damp moss should be placed on top.
+
+Where there is a demand for green asparagus the planting should be done
+more shallowly in a simple furrow, and the entire culture should be flat
+and shallow. The shoots are cut at the surface of the ground after they
+have attained the proper length. One thing is to be observed in either
+method, and this is that during the cutting season everything long
+enough must be cut daily, and that the little shoots be not allowed to
+run up and branch out. Cull the shoots after they are all out and bunch
+accordingly. Green shoots should be bunched by themselves and not mixed
+with the blanched ones. None but new, light crates should be used, for a
+clean and neat package will always favor its contents in the selling.
+
+W. F. MASSEY.
+
+_North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA
+
+The growing of asparagus for market in California is proving to be one
+of the most successful of its minor industries. There is a large area in
+the State which is exactly suited to the production of this vegetable.
+This is the region of sedimentary deposits, washed by waters that are
+to some extent brackish, or naturally saline. Commercial asparagus
+farming is limited to the reclaimed lands around the bay of San
+Francisco, the marshy deltas of the San Joaquin and Sacramento rivers,
+and the so-called peat lands of Orange and San Luis Obispo counties.
+Small beds, however, for local consumption are to be found in California
+as generally and frequently as they are in other States.
+
+There is a fascination about asparagus culture that is founded on
+legitimate financial returns. It is practically "a sure thing" when once
+established, and the conditions of climate and soil are such that the
+work attendant on production is a minimum in proportion to the return.
+No diseases of the plant have yet shown themselves in California, and it
+is seldom that the weather is unsteady enough to be a factor in limiting
+production. The deterring feature is the fact that it is not till the
+third year that a return can be expected on the investment. But as other
+crops, such as potatoes and beans, can be grown between the rows in the
+interim, the time of waiting is not so entirely an unproductive one as
+might at first be supposed.
+
+The methods of preparing, planting, and working are practically the same
+in all sections of California. The proposed beds are plowed as deeply as
+possible and thoroughly fertilized. All of the soils appropriate for
+commercial asparagus farming are so light that deep cultivation is a
+comparatively easy matter. Furrows for planting are then run and made
+double depth. Some growers think it worth while to distribute
+fertilizer along these furrows and then turn for a third time, so as to
+enrich the ground immediately below the roots to be set out. These
+furrows are run from four to six feet apart, the latter being considered
+the better usage. In them one-year-old plants are then set by hand at
+distances varying from eighteen inches to three feet. The former
+distance is preferred by the Italian growers on Bay Farm Island in San
+Francisco Bay, but the Southern growers and those along the Sacramento
+River lean to the greater distance. The only difference seems to be
+whether there will be sufficient nutriment in the soil to force the
+plant into giving as large and tender shoots as where each plant is
+allowed a larger area. The plants are set with the crowns about four
+inches below the surface and the roots are carefully spread out before
+covering. Planting is done any time from November to April, but the
+middle of February is perhaps the most common time.
+
+The culture for the first year consists in keeping the soil loose and
+free from weeds. Ordinarily other crops are grown between the rows, and
+their cultivation serves to keep the ground in proper condition. The
+asparagus is allowed to come up, feather, and seed without interference,
+no cutting being done the first year. Care, however, is taken to cut off
+the tops close to the ground in the fall before the seed begins to
+drop--the volunteer asparagus being the worst enemy in culture with
+which the grower has to deal. About the beginning of the rainy season a
+heavy coating of manure is placed over the beds and left to be leeched
+in by the rains.
+
+[Illustration: FIG. 48--VIEW OF ASPARAGUS FIELD ON BOULDIN ISLAND,
+CALIFORNIA]
+
+The second year some growers cut more or less for market, but the bed
+is then longer in coming to its full strength and will not give so large
+a product the following years. There is a variation in the spring
+working, according to the nature of the land. Where the soil has a
+tendency to be cold, the first plowing is away from the rows, so as to
+let the sun more quickly down to the starting plants. Where the soil is
+light, or the season forward, this plowing is omitted. The latter
+plowings are toward the rows, the effort being by ridging to give a long
+blanched surface to the shoots. For the canneries where nothing but the
+white product is put up, the shoots are cut the instant they show their
+tips above the surface. The local market shows a preference for the
+greener shoot, and so before cutting it is allowed to stretch itself up
+into the light. The third year regular cutting begins, and from that
+time forward the beds increase in the quantity and quality of the
+product for the next fifteen years.
+
+The methods of marketing are somewhat different from those practiced in
+the East. Little or none of the asparagus is bunched. It is packed loose
+in boxes holding from forty to fifty pounds, and the loose product is
+retailed to the consumer by the pound. The first boxes begin to go out
+by the beginning of February, though small quantities can be seen in
+market as early as January 15th. The canning contracts run, as a rule,
+from March 1st to June 15th. After that the weather is so dry that the
+yield stops unless the beds are irrigated. In most sections, however,
+irrigation is not necessary up to this time.
+
+A notable exception to this is Bouldin Island, in the San Joaquin
+River. This is reclaimed land, and lies some six or eight feet below the
+surface of the water. The soil is river silt on a peat stratum thirty
+feet deep. The top is so fine and friable that it does not, in spite of
+the surrounding river, hold enough moisture to keep the vegetation alive
+during the hot spring months. A north wind in May would lift up the
+whole surface of the island and carry it away in dust. It is an easy
+matter, however, to let in water through the dikes, and this is done in
+sufficient quantities to keep the soil in place.
+
+The question of profit in asparagus growing is one that can only be
+treated in a relative way. The industry is as yet so new, and instances
+of phenomenal returns from small holdings are so many, that it is hard
+to arrive at what might be called a commercial ratio of gain. It is safe
+to say, however, that with ordinary care there has never been an actual
+loss with asparagus culture in California. A low estimate of profit is
+probably $50 per acre. The cost of preparation and planting where diking
+has not been necessary has seldom been more than $100 per acre. The
+gross returns taken from recent years' reports vary from $100 to $200
+per acre, so that it can readily be seen that the return to the
+asparagus farmer is very fair. Most of the farms in California are in
+rented land. The Bay Farm Island people pay a ground rent of $50 per
+acre. On Bouldin Island the rental is on a basis of 40 per cent. of the
+net proceeds. In Fig. 48 is presented a view of a fully established
+asparagus field on Bouldin Island.
+
+WARREN CHENEY.
+
+_Alameda County, Cal._
+
+
+ASPARAGUS IN FRANCE
+
+Asparagus is grown much more abundantly and to a much larger size in
+France than in England. The country is half covered with it in some
+places near Paris; farmers grow it abundantly, cottagers grow it, and
+everybody eats it. Near Paris it is chiefly grown for market in the
+valley of Montmorency and at Argenteuil, and it is cultivated
+extensively for market in many other places. About Argenteuil several
+thousand persons are employed in the culture of asparagus.
+
+It is grown to a large extent among the grape-vines as well as alone.
+The vine under field culture is cut down to near the old stool every
+year, and allowed to make a few growths which are tied erect to a stake.
+One plant is put in each open spot, and given every chance of forming a
+large specimen, and this it generally does. The growing of asparagus
+among the vines is a very usual mode, and a vast space is thus covered
+with it about here.
+
+It is also grown in other and special ways. Perhaps the simplest and
+most worthy of adoption is to grow it in shallow trenches. These are
+usually about four feet apart. The soil generally is a rather stiff
+sandy loam with calcareous matter in some parts, but the soil has not
+all to do with the peculiar excellence of the vegetable. It is the
+careful attention to the wants of the plant which produce such good
+results. Here, for instance, is a young plantation planted in March; and
+from the little ridges of soil between the trenches have just been dug a
+crop of small early potatoes. In England the asparagus would be left to
+the free action of the breeze, but the French cultivators never leave a
+young plant of asparagus to the wind's mercy while they can find a stake
+of oak about a yard long.
+
+When staking these young plants they do not insert the support close to
+the bottom, as we are too apt to do in other instances, but a little
+distance off, so as to avoid the possibility of injuring the root; each
+stake leans over its plant at an angle of forty-five degrees, and when
+the shoots are big enough to touch it, or to be caught by the wind, they
+are tied to the stake. The ground in which this system is pursued being
+entirely devoted to asparagus, the stools are placed very much closer
+together than they are among the vines--say, at a distance of about a
+yard apart. The little trenches are about a foot wide and eight inches
+deep.
+
+The best asparagus in France is grown at Argenteuil and by one system
+mainly. The plants--one-year seedlings (never older)--are planted in
+shallow trenches seven or eight inches deep, the plants a little more
+than one yard apart and the lines four feet apart. No manure is given at
+planting; no trenching or any preparation of the ground, beyond digging
+the shallow trench, takes place. In subsequent years a little manure is
+given over the roots in autumn; the soil, thrown out of the trenches and
+forming a ridge between them, is planted with a light crop in spring. In
+all subsequent years the earth is placed over the crowns in spring and
+removed in autumn.
+
+Under this system good results are obtained in various soils, the only
+difference being that on cold clay soils the planting is not quite so
+deep. Every winter the growers notice the state of the young roots, and
+any spot in which one has perished they mark with a stick, to replace
+the plant the following March. Early every spring they pile up a little
+heap of fine earth over each crown. When the plantation arrives at its
+third year they increase the size of the mound, or, in other words, a
+heap of finely pulverized earth is placed over the stool, from which
+some, but not much, asparagus is cut the same year, taking care to leave
+the weak plants and those which have replaced others untouched for
+another year.
+
+The process of gathering is interesting to the stranger. Asparagus
+knives of various forms are described in both French and English books,
+but one is confidently told by the growers that they are only fitted for
+amateurs who do not care to soil their fingers. The cultivators here
+never use a knife, the work being done with the hands. Gatherings are
+made every second day about the end of April, but in May when the growth
+is more active the stools are gathered from every day.
+
+The French mode of cultivating asparagus differs from the English
+principally in giving each plant abundant room to develop into a large
+healthy specimen, in paying thoughtful attention to the plants at all
+times, and in planting in trenches instead of a raised bed. They do not,
+as is done in England, go to great expense in forming a mass of the
+richest soil far beneath the roots, but rather give it at the surface,
+and only when the roots have begun to grow strongly.--W. ROBINSON, in
+"Parks and Gardens of Paris."
+
+
+
+
+INDEX
+
+
+                                                 PAGE
+American varieties,                                18
+  Barr's Mammoth,                                  18
+  Columbian Mammoth White,                         19
+  Conover's Colossal,                              19
+  Donald's Elmira,                                 19
+  Eclipse,                                         19
+  Hub,                                             20
+  Mammoth,                                         20
+  Moore's Cross-bred,                              20
+  Palmetto,                                        20
+  Purple top or green top,                         21
+
+Asparagus culture in different localities,        145
+  in New England,                                 145
+  on Long Island,                                 150
+  in New Jersey,                                  152
+  in the South,                                   154
+  in California,                                  158
+  in France,                                      164
+
+Asparagus species,                                  6
+  plumosus nanus,                                   6
+  medeoloides,                                      6
+  Sprengeri,                                        6
+  falcatus,                                         8
+  laricinus,                                        8
+  racemosus,                                       10
+  sarmentosus,                                     10
+  Broussoneti,                                     13
+  officinalis,                                     13
+  acutifolius,                                     16
+  aphyllus,                                        16
+
+
+Botany,                                             4
+
+Bunchers,                                          91
+
+Bunching,                                          89
+
+
+Canning,                                          112
+  Eastern methods,                                112
+  Pacific coast methods,                          118
+
+Crates,                                            96
+
+Cultivation,                                       61
+  the first year,                                  61
+  the second year,                                 64
+  the third and future years,                      66
+
+Cultural varieties,                                17
+
+Cutting,                                           83
+  Manner of,                                       84
+
+
+Drying,                                           122
+
+
+Edible species,                                    13
+
+European varieties,                                21
+  German Giant,                                    22
+  Argenteuil,                                      22
+  Yellow Burgundy,                                 22
+
+
+Fall treatment,                                    68
+
+Fertilizers and fertilizing,                       72
+
+Forcing,                                          100
+  in greenhouse,                                  101
+  in hotbeds and frames,                          103
+  in field,                                       104
+  in Cornell asparagus house,                     110
+
+Fungus diseases,                                  137
+  Asparagus rust,                                 137
+  Asparagus leopard spot,                         144
+
+
+Growing asparagus without transplanting,           32
+
+
+Harvesting and marketing,                          83
+
+Historical sketch,                                  1
+
+
+Insects,                                          126
+  Common asparagus beetle,                        126
+  Twelve-spotted asparagus beetle,                133
+  Spotted ladybird,                               130
+  Asparagus miner,                                135
+
+
+Knives,                                            88
+
+
+Male and female plants,                            40
+
+Marketing,                                         96
+
+
+Ornamental species,                                 6
+
+
+Planting,                                          49
+  Distance to plant,                               50
+  Depth of,                                        53
+  Manner of,                                       54
+  Placing the roots,                               59
+
+Plants, Raising of,                                30
+
+Pot-grown asparagus plants,                        36
+
+Preparation of the ground,                         45
+
+Preserving asparagus,                             112
+
+
+Raising of plants,                                 30
+
+Renovating old asparagus beds,                     70
+
+Rubber bands,                                      93
+
+
+Salt as a fertilizer,                              81
+
+Seed-growing,                                      26
+
+Selection of plants,                               38
+
+Soil and its preparation,                          43
+
+Sorting,                                           89
+
+Sorting and bunching,                              89
+
+Sterilizing,                                      116
+
+Subsoiling,                                        47
+
+
+Transplanting, Growing asparagus without,          32
+
+Tying material,                                    92
+
+
+Variety tests,                                     22
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Asparagus, its culture for home use
+and for market:, by F. M. Hexamer
+
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