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Show PREPARE BED FOR ASPARAGUS Perennial Will Grow and Be Productive Pro-ductive for 15 or 20 Year With Proper Attention. It requires a good deal of an artist to properly prepare a bed for asparagus. aspara-gus. Asparagus is a perennial which will grow and be productive for 16 or 20 years, and greatest care, therefore, should be given to the selection of the soil and preparation of the ground previous to planting. The asparagus does best in a deep, rich, moist soil with plenty of humus in it. It should be on a warm exposure, preferably to the south or west. If the land is coarse, it should be prepared one or two years in advance of planting time. This can be done by growing some root crops that require deep cultiva-' tion. The plants are put out in rows at least four feet apart The old method meth-od of growing asparagus was in beds, but better results are obtained when they are planted in long rows, as It is easier to Irrigate the crop and keep the soil in good condition. The plants should stand three feet in the row. The plants are set in furrows from six to ten inches deep and the crowns covered with loose earth or compost to a depth of two or three inches. As the plants grow the trenches are gradually filled in with the cultivator or by hand hoes and then irrigation Is applied every week or ten days to stimulate the growth the first year. The tops are usually mowed down in the fall, although some growers allow a reservoir to hold and store moisture. If the ground is plowed ten inches deep and put in good condition it will absorb and hold more rain or irrigation irriga-tion at one time than land plowed half that depth would hold, and the deep plowing will retain it much longer. Deep plowing is usually good plowing, for it grinds up and pulverizes the soil. Ground should be plowed in the , fall then let stand until spring so as to catch the winter snows. |
