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fer to plow in a liberal quantity, and then use ashes, super- 

 phosphate of lime or guano, in the rows, applying it just 

 before covering onions. If the onions are much sprouted, 

 the sprout may be cut off quite home to the onion, which 

 will insure a straighter and healthier growth. Care should be 

 taken to plant right end up, for, odd as it sounds, in the 

 spring it sometimes requires a little care to determine which 

 is the right end. As soon as the onion is well rooted, the 

 earth should be drawn up to it ; and this should be done 

 three times during the season, until the earth is heaped around 

 them eight or ten inches above the surface of the ground. 

 The first hoeing should be given them very soon after the 

 sprout starts, to fully cover the onion, as when exposed it is 

 very apt to decay. With this support, on land that is not too 

 moist, I find that no further precaution is necessary to keep 

 the seed tops from the ground, though it is the practice 

 of many growers to support with light strips of wood, or a 

 line drawn along about two feet from the ground. After the 

 last hoeing, (and very clean culture should be given then), 

 they should be gone among as little as possible. 



The seed tops may be safely cut (leaving about six inches 

 of the stem on) when the seed vessels begin to crack ; or 

 what is a better guide yet (for after the seed vessels begin to 

 crack much seed is apt to be lost, especially by heavy storms,) 

 after the turning yellow, near the ground, of the seed stalk ; 

 when this occurs, the top may be removed immediately, even 

 though it should appear quite green above. 



Seed tops will be often found in which the seed in the 

 shortest-stemmed receptacles is ripened, and the receptacles 

 themselves are cracked, while a fresh growth of seed vessels 

 in a green state almost conceal them ; in such cases I would 

 advise the cutting of the top. The tops when cut should be 



