Asparagus, its culture for home use and for market Part 6

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 princ.i.p.al advantage to be derived from its use is that of killing weeds without injuring asparagus, although it may be applied in sufficient quant.i.ties 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 acc.u.mulated supplies of plant food, either from previous manurings or from natural strength. Asparagus, unlike nearly all other crops, will stand almost unlimited quant.i.ties of salt without injury. It also thrives near the seash.o.r.e, and it was therefore generally believed that liberal quant.i.ties 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 quant.i.ty 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 lat.i.tude 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 s.h.i.+p, 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 'gra.s.s,' into which the suns.h.i.+ne 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 24--CUTTING AND PICKING UP ASPARAGUS IN A TEN-ACRE FIELD OF C. W. PRESCOTT, MIDDLEs.e.x COUNTY, Ma.s.s.]

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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 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, pus.h.i.+ng 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 pus.h.i.+ng 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-cla.s.s 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 26--VARIOUS ASPARAGUS KNIVES]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 27--END AND SIDE VIEW OF PRIME WHITE ASPARAGUS BUNCHES]

_Sorting._--Careful growers a.s.sort 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 a.s.sure 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 b.u.t.t end of the bunch cut square.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 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 bra.s.s 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, Ma.s.s., are seen in Fig. 30, and the process of bunching in Fig. 31.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 30--RACK AND KNIVES USED IN NEW ENGLAND]

[Ill.u.s.tration: 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 compet.i.tion 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 b.u.t.ts 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 b.u.t.ts should be dipped in clean water and stood on end on a cold cellar bottom, or upon gra.s.s 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 32--BOX OF GIANT ASPARAGUS READY FOR s.h.i.+PMENT]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 33--SOUTHERN ASPARAGUS CRATE, CONTAINING 24 BUNCHES OF GREEN ASPARAGUS]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 34--END PIECE OF SOUTHERN CRATE]