ONIONS FROM SEED 243 



fest advantage in its long growing season. Field-sowing can be done 

 as early as February, and on retentive soils moisture can be held 

 by summer cultivation, or on coarser soils by irrigation and culti- 

 vation, until the bulbs reach as large a size as is desirable for 

 marketing. 



For seed-sowing the land should be as deeply and thoroughly 

 prepared as has already been prescribed for sugar beets. The work 

 should begin with fall plowing to open the surface for absorption 

 of rainfall, to be followed later by a deep cross-plowing to fully 

 turn in the crop of weeds and grass which will come with moisture. 

 After that a shallow plowing or cultivation may be given to kill 

 later growth of weeds and to contribute to surface pulverization. 

 The seed should be sown when the advance of the season warms 

 the soil. The precise date depends upon two considerations : first, 

 the local rainfall, and second, the local weed growth. Where spring 

 rains are usually light, earlier sowing is best ; where spring rains 

 are usually generous and where weed growth is great, it is often 

 wise to defer sowing and use the cultivator for weed-killing, so that 

 the ground may be as clean as possible before the seed is sown. 

 Weeding onions is one of the most expensive and tiresome of all 

 field practices, and it is good policy, where moisture is ample, to 

 sow much later in the spring for the advantage of securing cleaner 

 land, as well as to prevent the growth of "thick-necks" or scallions, 

 which, though edible, are not good keepers and do not sell well. 

 Each locality has its own policy in sowing onions, which can be 

 learned by conference with experienced growers. 



When the sowing time comes be sure the land is fined well. 

 Use nothing but the freshest seed from responsible dealers ; mark 

 out a straight line for beginning and sow the seed with a seeder 

 with a guide so that the straightness of the first row may be followed 

 in the others. If the rows begin to vary from this, strike another 

 straight line and proceed again from this. Distance between the 

 rows depends upon the method of cultivation to be adopted ; some 

 are grown with two feet distance and horse cultivation is used, but 

 most growers choose a distance of twelve to sixteen inches and use 

 hand cultivation. The hand hoes, or cultivators with wheels, work 

 very easily and rapidly in light soils. Care must be taken to work 

 them deeply enough to produce a good soil mulch. 



Depth of covering depends upon season, moisture and character 

 of soil, as explained in Chapter XI. With onions the depth would 



