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fair size and quality, if a suitable season is chanced upon, yet taking 

 all conditions into consideration, we advised that it would seldom pay 

 tlie cultivator for the time and labour expended. 



1st. In consequence of the very numerous insect enemies there 

 is to contend with ; 



2nd. On account of the variable character of the climate, and 

 the heavy rains experienced at times : 



3rd. On account of the difficult artificial conditions which have 

 to be maintained to counteract the first two reasons ; 



4th. On account of the prevailing temperature being much 

 higher than that of countries where the onion is indige- 

 nous or well acclimatized. 



The native country of the onion according to De Candolle, the 

 eminent French author, is very uncertain** but he gives evidence 

 that it has been cultivated in Southern Asia and the Eastern region 

 of the Mediteranean, from a very early period. He also mentions it 

 being found in a wild state in Beluchistan, Afghanistan, and the 

 mountainous regions of the Khorrasan. It has also been found 

 in Western Siberia. The climate of these countries and that ol the 

 present centre of modern civilization, show that it flourishes where 

 the humidity is much less and the temperature much lower than in 

 the West Indies. 



Besides this, there is little doubt that the centuries of cultiva- 

 tion in Europe has produced a form of onion which is specially suited 

 to the climate of that part of the world, and less suited perhaps than 

 the original wild variety (whatever that might have been like), to our 

 West Indian climate. Hence we have the white Spanish — the Portu- 

 gal — the Tripoli — white Italian — the Strasbourgh, &c., &c., &c. — 

 showing, the various forms that arise in different countries, while 

 English and American varieties are also numerous. 



There is, we fear, little hope of possessing ourselves of the 

 seed of the wild variety and still less hope that we may be able to 

 acclimatize sufficiently to fit it for economic culture in our climate. 

 It is therefore compulsory on us, in attempting to grow the onion 

 to use seed which has been raised in a cooler climate than that in 

 which we live. As I have before mentioned, long years ago it was 

 a well ascertained fact that under favourable circumstances onions 



* Origin oj ctiUivated plants. 



