190 ONIONS. 



old, it is of use to prove it , in order to avoid blanks, 

 which in drilled crops are never to be tolerated, as 

 well as to guard against sowing too thick, which 

 gives weakness to the plants, and much trouble of 

 thinning at a time when the ground ought not to 

 be touched. To try the vegetative powers of the 

 seed, put a few grains into a flowerpot, which place 

 on a shelf of the kitchen, and observe how many 

 of them spring up. 



In February, or as soon as the ground is dry, 

 prepare for sowing by levelling down the ridges, 

 not by digging, for it were wrong to bury that part 

 of the soil which is in the best condition, being dry 

 and mellowed by the frost; and as the roots seek 

 but little depth, they will not encounter the less 

 favourable soil which lies beneath, and will derive 

 no benefit from the best if it be put lowest by the 

 spade. When the ground is finely raked, make 

 the drills half an inch deep and one foot apart. It 

 is of great consequence to have an hour or two of 

 sunshine before sowing. To form the drills, it 

 answers well to lay down the handle of the rake, 

 where its length may be nearly equal to that of 

 the drill, and to walk along it, which will make an 

 equal impression of the proper depth, and save a 

 good deal of time and of poaching about in shifting 

 and setting the line. Having sown the seed, make 

 no further use of the rake than merely to obliterate 

 the drills. 



Drilling is greatly preferable to broadcast, as 

 the former admits of the hoe, which both saves 



