26 The Bulletin. 



injury the following season. The only practical treatment we have 



found is rotation of crops and moving of our lettuce frames to new 



irround. 



^ OKRA. 



1 



f 



Okra will do well on any soil on which cotton gives good results, * 



Like cotton, it is partial to wanii, rich loams. For commercial purposes 

 it is usually grown on warm, sandy loams, though good okra can be 

 grown on any well-prepared soil. It should not be planted, however, 

 on poor land, as the pods are likely to be small and stringy. 



As this is a deep-rooted plant, the preparation should be deep and 

 thorough. A good preparation for cotton will be found suitable for 

 okra. The rows may be layed off 31/2 to '41/2 feet apart, depending on 

 the variety, and the seed planted rather thickly in the drill. When 

 the plants are 4 or 5 inches high they are usually thinned to 1 to 2 

 feet apart. It is advisable to keep the soil well stirred, particularly 

 when the plants are small, as a rapid and continuous growth should be 

 secured, for plants stunted by weeds or lack of moisture will produce 

 pods of inferior size and quality. If no seeds are permitted to ripen 

 on the stalks, they will continue to produce pods for a long period of 

 time. 



This crop draws rather heavily upon the nitrogenous matter in th« 

 soil; hence stable manure and leguminous crops should be brought into 

 use. It would be advantageous to use quick-acting commercial fertil- 

 izers, IjvOOO to 1,200 pounds of one analyzing about 8 per cent phosphoric 

 acid, 4 per opnt nitrogen, and 4 per cent potash, jdepending upon the 

 condition and previous treatment of the soil. All fertilizers should be 

 incorporated with the soil. 



The pods are gathered while they are still soft and before the seeds 

 are half-grown. If they are all taken off at the right stage of ma- 

 turity and none allowed to ripen on the stalks, not even culls, the plants 

 will bear for a longer period of time. 



Varieties: 



White Velvet. — The pods of this variety are long, smooth, and light 



greenish in color. It is an early and prolific bearer. Good quality. 



Long Green. — Fruit long, slender, pale green. Tender, and good 



quality. 



^ *^ ONIONS. 



The onion is one of the staple truck crops that is found in the market 

 throughout the entire year. As onions are produced in all parts of 

 the country, the market usually has a constant supply from some section 

 or other. The profitable culture of onions will depend, therefore, 

 largely on the suitable soil and climatic conditions necessary for the 

 production of a large crop per acre. It is seldom that there are fancy 

 prices for onions as there often are for tender vegetables, so the profit 

 must be made up in the production of heavy crops. 



