The Kitchen Gakden. 93 



wasted on the onion bed. Soot and aslies are also good for 

 top-dressings. 



To preserve the winter crop, pull in a dry day, put them 

 under a shed or similar shelter to dry, and store in a loft where 

 they can have plenty of air. 



Onions may be sparingly eaten as a salad, but in the raw 

 state are rather difficult of digestion. They are most whole- 

 some boiled. Boil twenty minutes in water, with a little salt ; 

 then pour off the water entirely, and put in equal parts of hot 

 water and milk, or skimmed milk alone, and boil twenty min- 

 utes more. They may be fried or roasted, but are more diffi- 

 cult of digestion in those modes of cooking. 



2. The Top oe Teee Onion — Allium Proliferum. 

 This is a very hardy species, producing little bulbs at the top 

 of its seed-stem. It is easily cultivated, comes early to maturity, 

 and never fails to produce a crop. Plant the little bulbs very 

 early in the spring, cultivating the plants in the same way as 

 the other species. They will be ready for use in May or June. 

 If large bulbs are required, the seed-stem must be broken off. 

 Those not thus treated will produce seed for the next year. 

 The top bulbs are considered excellent for pickling. 



3. Potato Onion — Allium Tuberosum. 



This is supposed to be the kind of onion that was worshiped 



by the Egyptians. It is said never to produce either flowers 



or seed. It is propagated by offsets from the bulbs which 



should be planted in March, in drills eighteen inches apart. 



Set them three inches below the surface, and six inches apart. 



Keep the ground well stirred, but do not earth up the plants. 



They may be lifted by the top as they ripen, which will be 



shown by the drooping and withering of the leaves. In this 



climate they generally ripen in August. They are milder in 



flavor than those raised from the seed, but the bulbs are not so 



large. 



4. The Shallot — Allium Ascalonicum. 



This plant — Veschalote of the French— was introduced into 



