AND GENERAL HORTICULTURE. 



283 



ONC 



Oncospe'rma. From onkos, a tumor, and 

 sperma, a seed ; in reference to the form of 

 the seeds. Nat. Ord. PalmacecE,. 



A genus of a few species of spiny plant-stove 

 Palms, natives of tropical Asia. There are 

 several species in cultivation,the best known of 

 which, "O.Jilamentosum, the Nibung or Nibong 

 of the Malays, is a very elegant Palm, found 

 growing in masses in swampy places upon the 

 coasts of Malacca. Sumatra, Borneo, and the 

 islands of the Indian Archipelago. It attains 

 a height of forty or fifty feet, and has leaves 

 ten or twelve feet in length, with very numer- 

 ous, narrow, drooping leaflets about two feet 

 long. In Borneo, the delicate white heart of 

 the unexpanded leaves, called the Cabbage, 

 is highly esteemed as a vegetable. The 

 unsplit trunks are used for house-building, for 

 posts, etc., and the hardest part of the split 

 trunks for rafters, flooring, etc." — A Smith, 

 in " Treasury of Botanj-." When growing they 

 require plenty of heat and a copious supply of 

 water, and are propagated by seeds or by 

 suckers. Sj-ns. Areca and Nephrosperma. 



Onlou. Allium cepa. The Onion has been 

 kno\\Ti and cultivated as an article of food 

 from the very earliest period. Its native 

 country is unknown, but it is believed to have 

 originated in the East. In the sacred writings 

 we flnd it mentioned as one of the things for 

 which the Israelites longed when in the wilder- 

 ness, and complained to Moses because they 

 were deprived of their Leeks, Onions, and 

 Garlic, of which, said the murmurers : " We 

 remem1)er we did eat in Egypt freely." To 

 show how much it was esteemed by the 

 ancient Egj-ptians we need only mention that 

 Herodotus says in his time (450 B.C.) there 

 was an inscription on the Great Pyramid, 

 stating that a sum amounting to 1,600 talents 

 had been paid for Onions, Radishes, and 

 Garlic, which had been consumed by the 

 workmen during the progress of its erection. 

 Even at the present day, the people of western 

 Asia, as well as the inhaVjitants of cold coun- 

 tries, are all large consumers of Onions, which, 

 for culinary purposes, are more universally 

 cultivated than almost any other vegetable. 

 The garden varieties that have been intro- 

 duced are very numerous, and their origin 

 about as difficult to trace as the species. The 

 justly celebrated Bermuda Onion of our 

 markets is grown from seed annually imported 

 from the south of Europe. Onions are also 

 most extensively grown in tlie United States, 

 one seed firm alone selling twenty tons of the 

 seed annually. The varieties grown are the red, 

 white, and yellow-skinned, among which are 

 numerous varieties, the favorite kinds being 

 known as Yellow Danvers, White Globe, Red 

 Globe, Wethersfleld Red, White Portugal, etc. 

 Beginners growing the Onion for market had 

 better C(nisult works specialh- devoted to 

 Onion culture, or works specially on Market 

 Gardening, but for private use we will briefly 

 detail the methods. For the earliest crop the 

 "sets" or small bulbs, which are produced 

 from seed thickly sown the previous year, 

 should be planted as early in spring as the 

 ground is dry enough to work, in beds four or 

 five feet wide, and in rows nine inches apart 

 with two or three inches between the sets or 

 bulblets, pressing these down about an inch or 

 so into the soil. Grown in this way, the Onions 

 are usually used in the green state. For the 



ONO 



main crop the seed proper, is thinly sown in 

 drills two or three inches deep, the rows at 

 the same distance apart as for the sets. To 

 insure quick and safe germination after sowing 

 the seed, the drills should be trod along evenly 

 Avith the foot, and then raked level. This plan 

 of treading in seeds with the feet we invari- 

 ably practice, particularly if the soil be dry. 

 If not done, our hot, dry atmosphere pene- 

 trates the loose soil, partially drying up the 

 seed, which always impedes germination, and 

 often destroys the crop completely. The 

 omission of practicing the firming of the 

 soil over seeds, either by the feet, roller, or in 

 any other manner that will accomplish the 

 purpose, is the loss of many millions annually, 

 not only to the garden, but to the farm. The 

 importance of this subject is our excuse for 

 the digression. In ten to twelve days after 

 sowing, the Onion seed will have started 

 sufficiently to show the rows. The ground 

 should then be lightly hoed, so as to destroy 

 the weeds which germinate, many of them 

 simultaneously with the Onion seed. In the 

 seed rows, where the hoe cannot be used, the 

 soil should be stirred with the fingers, other- 

 wise weeds would quickly grow up and choke 

 the crop. When about three or four inches 

 high the Onions should be thinned out to two 

 or three inches apart. Kept entirely clear 

 from weeds, the crop is ripened off in June, 

 July, or August, according to the latitude in 

 which it is grown. It is a curious fact, how- 

 ever, that Onions do not ripen their bulbs 

 later than August; consequentlj-, though 

 they will grow well enough if sown late in the 

 season, yet, if wanted to ripen so as to keep 

 during winter, they must be sown in the first 

 sowing of seeds in the spring. Two kinds of 

 Onions are grown exclusively from bulbs, one 

 of these is the Potato Onion, or "Multiplier," 

 which increases by the bulb splitting up and 

 dividing itself into six or eight smaller bulbs, 

 which in turn form the sets to plant for the 

 next crop. The other variety is what is called 

 the Top Onion, which forms little bulbs on the 

 top of the stem in the place of flowers. 

 These bulbs are in clusters, and about the 

 size of hazel nuts. The bulbs are broken apart, 

 and planted in spring at the same distances 

 as the " sets." 

 Onion. Barbadoes. Ornithogalum scilloidcs. 

 Crow. Allium vineale. 

 Gipsey. Allium ursitjum. 

 Himalayan. Allium leptophyllum. 

 Hog. Osmimda regalis. 

 Pearl. Allium Ampeloprasum. 

 Potato. Allium cepa, var. aggregatum. 

 Sea. Urginea (Scilla) maritima. 

 Tree, or Canada. Allium proliferum. 

 Welsh. Allium Jistulosum. 

 Wild American. Allium cemuum. 

 Onion Lily. See Ornithogalum caudaium. 

 Onobrychis. Sainfoin. Esparsotte. From onos, 

 the ass, and brycho, to bray ; said to be the fav- 

 orite food of the ass. Nat. Ord. Leguminosm. 

 A somewhat extenslA^e genus of hardy her- 

 baceous perennials, or small shrubs, natives 

 of Europe, western Asia, and north Africa. 

 O. saliva, Sainfoin, the only species of special 

 interest, grows about two feet high, with 

 branched, rather spreading stems, and large 

 spikes of crimson flowers variegated with 

 purple and white. It has a long tap root, ex- 



