310 



just before planting would have an injurious effect, but where the 

 manure is well rotted and uniformly applied there is nothing to be 

 feared. 



Animal Manures. There is perhaps no fertilizer so well adapted 

 to the production of onions as plenty of clean, well-composted stable 

 manure, and the quantity and frequency of application will depend 

 upon the nature of the land under cultivation. All stable manure 

 used on onion land should be well composted before use and then 

 spread upon the land several months before planting to onions. In 

 the Northern States the manure may be applied during the autumn 

 and well disked into the soil. The land can then be allowed to lie 

 in the rough state and exposed to the action of frost during the winter, 

 or it can be smoothed and seeded to rye, in which case it will be 

 necessary to replow during the early springtime. Large quantities 

 of fresh manure applied to onion land just before planting will have 

 a tendency to produce an overgrowth of tops at the expense of the 

 bulbs. This is especially true on irrigated lands and soils that are 

 naturally moist. 



Commercial Fertilizers. Where there is an abundance of humus 

 matter in the soil the onion crop will be greatly benefited by moderate 

 applications of high-grade commercial fertilizers. Many growers 

 follow the practice of applying only a part of the fertilizer at planting 

 time, reserving the balance to be put on as a top-dressing at some 

 time during the period of cultivation. This plan is especially desir- 

 able where onions are grown during the winter, as the application of 

 highly nitrogenous fertilizers in the autumn is liable to promote a 

 soft growth that will be injured by cold. If the fertilizer is not put 

 on until cold weather is over, the crop may be forced without danger 

 of injury. For this purpose only those fertilizers of a very available 

 form will answer. 



Planting and Thinning. Experienced growers are frequently 

 able by using extreme care in regulating the drills to distribute onion 

 seed in rows where the crop is to mature so that little thinning will 

 be necessary. Thinning is generally left until the time of the first 

 hand weeding, when all thick bunches along the rows are thinned to 

 a uniform stand of eight or ten plants to the foot. It is always well, 

 however, to allow for considerable loss of plants, and unless the plants 

 are so thick as to actually crowd, thinning will not be necessary. 



Transplanting. The transplanting process, often spoken of as 

 the "new onion culture," is merely a modification of the regular 

 seeding method. The objects gained by transplanting are an earlier 

 crop, a uniform stand, and bulbs of more regular size. Where a 

 small area is to be grown, the transplanting process is the ideal 

 method, but for large acreages and where labor is difficult to obtain, 

 this would not be practical. After transplanting, the seedlings will 

 require rain or watering in order that they may start, and for this 

 reason the transplanting process is practically limited to areas where 

 some form of irrigation is available. In growing onions by the trans- 

 planting method the seed is sown in greenhouses, hotbeds, cold 

 frames, or specially prepared beds at the rate of S 1 /^ or 4 pounds for 



