Read Ebook: 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 by Hexamer F M Fred Maier

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est 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:

Condensed from an official report by J. H. Chittenden of the United States Department of Agriculture.

FUNGUS DISEASES

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

When an asparagus field is badly infested with the rust the general appearance is that of an unusually early maturing of the plants . 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 0 per acre, and there are many instances where double this profit is made. The price paid last season by the canners was per 100 bunches for first quality, and 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 0 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.

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.

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.

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