When the onions are about four inches high it will prob- Food for 



ably be necessary to weed them once by hand. This will not Plants 



prove to be a tedious job if the weeder and wheel hoe have I4 9 

 been used with good judgment. 



Nitrate should be applied as follows: One hundred 

 pounds scattered broadcast over the field 

 within a week after the seed is sown and Fertilizing. 

 before the plants break through the ground, and two more 

 applications broadcast consisting of 100 pounds each at inter- 

 vals of two or three weeks, depending somewhat upon the 

 appearance of the plants as to growth and color. 



Generally speaking the Nitrate should 



all be applied during May and June, though When to Ap P^ 

 if a drought occurs in July, and the onions INltrate - 

 show signs of turning yellow at the tips, an extra dressing 

 of 50 pounds per acre may be applied to advantage. In a 

 wet season avoid putting it on late, as it might aggravate 

 the tendency to produce a considerable number of scullions. 

 It should only be applied when the plants are dry. 



The onion is an alkali-loving plant, 

 and, like asparagus, seems to have a pe- 

 culiar fondness for salt. The results of ex- mon 

 periments on widely different soils show that it nearly always 

 responds profitably to an application of about 200 pounds 

 of salt per acre. This guides us to the choice of kainit for 

 this crop, as that product contains about 35 per cent, of 

 chloride of soda, or common salt, which also aids in con- 

 serving the moisture in the soil. Good judgment must be 

 used, however, as the kainit might have a harmful effect In 

 a wet season on a low and naturally damp soil. 



About 400 pounds of kainit per acre should be used, as 

 a rule. It should be drilled into the entire surface of the 

 ground early in the spring to a depth of at least three inches, 

 for the kainit becomes fixed in the soil very quickly and 

 should be rather deep, so as not to attract the feeding roots 

 too near the surface. In case wood ashes or muriate of pot- 

 ash are used the time of making the application should be the 

 same. Most vegetables will give greatly increased returns 

 from the use of chemicals if lime is employed in conjunction 

 with them. 



An application of 75 bushels per acre of ground quick- 

 lime has also proved preventive of onion smut. 



