THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



high percentage of potash. Barnyard 

 manure will increase the yieki. if properly 

 rotted before applied, but the bet-t results 

 are obtained from planting land on which 

 manure has been spread and a clean 

 cultivated crop grown the previous year. 

 Commercial fertilizers may be used with 

 profit by placing in the furrow containing 

 the seed bed. thereby giving the plants 

 immediate benefit of the food. If a fer- 

 tilizer carrying considerable potash is 

 liberally deposited in the rows, and 

 covered at once to prevent leaching, the 

 moisture from proper irrigation enables 

 the plant roots to take up and utilize all 

 the food elements. This should be done 

 early in the plant growing season in order 

 that a thrifty growth may be attained, 

 and the vines be more able to baffle the 

 ravages of insects and resist drouth. 



Market potatoes must be well packed in 

 centals or gunny sacks, foe the purpose, 

 well sewed and so tight that they will not 

 shake and bruise. Such sacks have sold 

 for $40.00 per ton during the present sea- 

 son, in the Pacific Coast markets, and the 

 supply has not been equal to the demand. 

 There is no indication of any decrease in 

 the demand, but the rapidly increasing 

 population and ever expanding markets of 

 the Orient and Alaska make the outlook 

 very bright for potato growers.' The 

 market for desiccated potatoes is steadily 

 growing and new factories will be erected 

 to supply the far away users of potatoes. 

 The unsalable tubers are good for stock 

 food, when mixed with grain ration, and 

 there is no questson about a future field of 



profits. 



JOEL, SHOMAKER. 



AN ONION PATCH. 



In a recent letter from Mr. Xye. of 

 Laredo, Texas, we are given some interest- 

 ing information concerning his onion crop. 

 Mr. Xye has long promised us an article 

 about his ' ; garden ' but has been waiting 

 in the hope of inducing a photographer to 

 take some views with which to illustrate 

 it. He has found so much difficulty in this 

 latter attempt that he has been forced to 

 give it up and so writes a very interesting 

 letter, so interesting, in fact that we quote 

 it that our readers may enjoy it too: 



'I will give you an account of an Onion 



Patch that [ have grown this year, and 

 right here a thought strikes me that if 100 

 men, old Hayseeds, were to read this state- 

 ment 99 out of the 100 would not believe a 

 word of it and still it is true every word of 

 it and while it may look a little extrava- 

 gant, I expect with the help of some fertil- 

 izer to do better next season. 



To begin with I plant Bermuda onions 

 and the seeds are grown in the Island of 

 Tenneriffe, one of the Canary group. The 

 seed house that imports them is generally 

 able to send them out to their customers 

 so as to arrive 1st. of October. Last fall 

 they failed to arrive until Cctober 15th. 

 They generally cost about three dollars 

 per pound. I planted 25 Ibs. of seed on 

 four and one tenth acres and I raised or 

 I sold, rather. 64,000 Ibs. fort883.00. besides 

 I got 25 bushels of onion setts, which should 

 be worth say five dollars per bushel. 125 

 dollars, making in all $1,008.00. Xow I 

 would not sell these setts for any reat onable 

 price for I have them here and can plant 

 them whenever I please in September and 

 as they mature earlier than those do from 

 the seed planted October 1st. And March 

 and April onions are what count for price. 

 Now comes the cost. Seed 25 Ibs. $72.50, 

 planting and thinning $100.00, cultivating 

 $35.00, with three Planet Jr. Double 

 Wheel Hoes, watering 100 hours 44,000 

 gallons per hour, $100.00, sacks and labor 

 gathering crop and shipping $100.00. total 

 cost production. $407.50. If this crop had 

 matured in April instead of May they 

 would have brought from a quarter to a 

 half a cent more, but I am well satisfied 

 with the result and expect to try and do 

 still better another season and with the 

 setts that I have on hand for a good early 

 start, there is no good reason why I should 

 not improve on this crop. Of course I ex- 

 pect to plant a lot more seed in October. 

 I will need more setts next year. We are 

 now in the midst of our grape shipments, 

 onions and Muscat grapes two extremes, 

 I sent out over the state this morniug Co 

 crates of twenty pounds net grapes to the 

 crate, but I hardly ever realize anything 

 on those that go out of the state. So a 

 burned child dreads the fire. Whether it 

 is the fault of the grapes not arriving in 

 any shape.or dishonest car men I am unable 

 to sav.but last vearl sent a box to Colorado 



