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THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK 



rain, when they will pull up most easily. It is no use planting this crop 

 unless this matter of weeding is religiously attended to. 



The so-called new onion culture is really a very old practice, and was in 

 vogue in Great Britain half a century or more ago. It consists of sowing 

 seeds in flats or in a cold frame late in February or early in March, and 

 transplanting the seedlings in well-prepared ground about April 15. Very 

 large bulbs are secured in this way, fine for exhibition, but they will not 

 keep well; in fact, very few are sound after Christmas, and this mode of 

 culture is not to be recommended where onions are wanted through the 

 whole winter. For this method of culture, Ailsa Craig and Prize Taker 

 are excellent. For sowing outdoors, Danvers Yellow is the onion par 

 excellence. Prize Taker, Australian Brown, and Red Weathersfield are 

 all good. Shallots are a species of onion which, if planted at the same 

 time as the onion sets, will produce a very heavy crop, each tuber pro- 

 ducing ten or twelve new sets, which mature earlier than the onion, keep 

 better, and are excellent for salads as well as cooking. It is surprising 

 that more of these are not grown. 



Asparagus is one of the most highly prized of vegetables, and comes in 

 season very early. It does not take a very large bed to supply a small 

 family, and if the ground is deeply trenched, well manured and cared for, 

 it is good for twenty years. Reading Giant, Columbian White, and Giant 

 Argenteuil are splendid varieties. A bed 12 by 35, containing 150 plants, 

 is sufficient for a small family. The plants should be in rows, three and 

 a half feet apart, and eighteen inches between the plants. In planting, 

 care must be taken to set the roots deeply, and cover only lightly at first, 

 covering in gradually as the plants grow. For the asparagus beetle, 

 spraying with arsenate of lead or paris green is effective, one application 

 generally being sufficient. 



Egg plants must have rich soil and cannot be planted out with safety 

 before June; each plant is benefited by having a shovel or two of manure 

 below it. Reliable sorts are New York Improved and Black Beauty. 

 Peppers should not be planted in as rich soil as egg plants. Large Bell 

 or Bull Nose, Golden Dawn and Squash are popular varieties; Ruby King 

 is fine for pickles. Chinese Giant is a huge variety of mild flavor, but 

 too large. The little Cayenne is excellent also for pickles, and very 

 ornamental. 



Spinach of the round-leaved type is of course indispensable, and for 

 summer use nothing beats the New Zealand variety. This must not be 

 planted before May 10, however. With this latter vegetable, and a small 

 row of Swiss chard, it is possible for a large family to secure a constant 

 cut of greens for at least four months in the year. 



I have not mentioned salad plants; of these, lettuce is the most valuable, 

 and by starting seed in the home or cold-frame, and making successive 

 sowings outdoors from the end of March until the middle of August, 

 heads may be cut from the early part of May until the end of November. 

 For the earliest sowing. White Seeded Tennis Ball and Big Boston are 



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