188 THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. [MARCH. 



fall to pieces under the rake ; but the earlier you can get it in this 

 state, and the seed sown, the larger and better onions will you 

 have. 



There are various methods of sowing the seed ; but first I will 

 give you the one practised by the most judicious and careful gar- 

 deners. 



As you proceed in digging the ground, rake it well after you ; 

 that being done, lay it out into three and a half, or four feet wide 

 beds, with alleys between of about a foot wide ; then with the back 

 of a rake, push off the light loose earth from the top of each bed, 

 into the allies, one half to the one side, the other to the opposite : 

 this done, and being provided with good seed, sow it thereon, at the 

 rate of one pound for every sixteen rods, and with a shovel cast the 

 earth out of the alleys over the beds, covering the seeds evenly about 

 half an inch deep ; then rake the beds lightly, drawing oft* all the 

 lumps into the alleys. 



When the plants are up, let them be kept very clean, and free 

 from weeds of any kind, by a good careful hand-weeding, which is 

 to be repeated from time to time, as they require it ; and where 

 they grow too close, thin them to about two inches, plant from 

 plant, all over the beds ; by these means, you will have excellent 

 onions for the table the first year. 



Others dig the ground, leveling the surface evenly after them, as 

 they proceed in digging without raking it, and lay it out in beds as 

 before ; then sow the seed thereon, and rake it in ; and if the earth 

 is light and dry, they frequently tread it in with the feet before 

 raking. Or the beds may be prepared as in the first instance, and 

 the seeds sown very thinly in drills, either of which methods will 

 do very well. 



But when they are raised upon an extensive scale, the ground 

 may be cultivated by the plough, and when harrowed very fine, the 

 seed may be sown in drills at any convenient distance, and the inter- 

 vals between them kept clean by hoeing ; the remainder must be 

 carefully hand -wed. 



Sowing seed, to produce small seed onions, will answer better in 

 Afiril, which see Mf sown in this month, they would generally grow 

 to too large a size for that purpose. 



Of the several varieties of onion, the Strasburg is the best for a 

 general crop ; it is a handsome bulb, generally assuming a roundish 

 oval shape, is of firm growth, and keeps well for winter service. 



The white Spanish and silver skinned onions, are of a milder 

 taste, but all the varieties generally turn out very profitable crops ; 

 the latter kinds rarely keep so well after January as the Strasburg. 



The Portugal and Madeira onions are extremely fine ; but they 

 rarely attain with us as large a size as in these countries. 



The red Spanish onion is highly esteemed for pickling, on ac- 

 count of its deep blood-red colour, and much cultivated for that 

 purpose : it may also be used for any other purposes, as well as the 

 former kinds. 



