Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1873-03-29
Agricultural Mattsrs.

! swer to an inquiry by a correspondent re-
gardiug the cultivation, care aud market
| ing of asparagus, the New York Tribune
replied as follows:
Asparagus can be grown on any cha
racter of soil, from n blowing sand to n
pure clay, when the ground is properly
| prepared before setting the roots, but other
things being equal, deep sandy loan, free
| from stones, will produce the largest spears
and the larges. yield. This is a well estab-
ishcd fact. The method of undertaking
a bed with body of stones is antiquated,
and the important stepis to thoroughly un-
derdrain the spot selected. The cheapest
and most etieclual way to do this is by cut
ting. open drains 81 feet deep and 2j feet
! apart, and using two inch sole tire, care
! fully jOintcd, so that when those drained
are filled in no dirt can find its way into
the pipes. The next best material is mar
row hcmlock boards, nailed together in the
| shape Of the letter a. These, laid on
| smooth bottom, with enough of fall to carry
| the water, will last a long time. In raising
asparagus, either for home consumption or
market, carlness is an important conside-
ration. To insure this select piece of
| ground that will get the full benefit of the
morning aud midday sun. From such a
spot, protected from the north winds, you
can begin to cut asparagus ten or twelve
! days earlier in spring. Before setting the
| plants, loosen and mellow the soil to a
| depth of Is TO 20 inches. being sure 10 keep
the surface soil on top.
! I'm loOseRing the soil in this way, tgrn
under plenty OF wel-rotted yard manure
! No fear need be entertained of getting the
! bed too rich the more manure is used the
more productive the bed will turn out
! When the surface is made level and smooth
| by raking off the rubbish, stones, &C., then
| open tTesches niue inches deep, ten or
| twelve vide, and three feet apart. For
garden culture set the asparagus roots
! eighteen inches apart in these trenches.
! Every root should be drawn out to its full
! length, and at nearly right angles with the
| crown. When placed III this way, cover
! these roots with five or six inches of the
best surface soil, pressing this soil firmly
around the roots with the feet.-When fin
ished, the line of the row should be raised
| two or three inches above the level of the
adjoining surface, 50 that when the freshly
disturbed soil will settle around the roots
there will be no depression along the line
| where water will stand, for newly. planted
asparagus roots are often injured from this
cause, especially when set out in the fall.
1t makes but little differ. nee whether bed
is made in spring or autumn a great deal
more depends upon the preparation of the
soil than the time OF planting.-One thing,
however, should be borne in mind, aud
that is, it will be time and money thrown
away to plant out roots more than two
years old. Strong one-y year old roots are
Che best ; next best are two-year old roots,
and older roots are only good for forcing
Under glass.
Both the quality and size Of the spears
will be improved by giving the beds top
dressing OF common salt every other spring
or once Il year if the salt can be bought al
a moderate price. Cutting is one of the
nice Jobs. A careless hand will often de-
strOy third to IL half of the entire crop
and market gardeners are always particu
lar to select the proper person for this work
The best shaped knife is one with blade
eight inches long aud one and half inch
( wide, rounded ut the point. The knife is
run down almost perpendicular alongside
the spear, cutting it two inches below the
surface with the point Of the knife, being
careful not to lnjure any young spears no,
above the surface. When cut the aspara
gus may be thrown on a cellar door, where
it may be left for Il couple of days without
injury before punching, il when punched il
is put into pure cold water for two or three
| HOURS pcloIc shlppilS 10 uiarkel. II Tit
spears are punched rs soon as cut, the
punches may be kept covered in cold water
for two or three days, and when taken ou
the asparagus will look fresh and plump.
J -------------~ -
HINTS ABOUT WORK. The American
Ayricuitralist for March contains souat
practical and reasonable hints TO agricultu
rists, in which it says:
Make up your mind what you intend t
do. Sit down aud count the cost. Do no
undertake more than you can perform