140 



Nature-Study Agriculture 



heavily fertilizing and thoroughly cultivating the soil 

 for several years before the attempt is made to raise 

 onions. A ton of manure should be applied to a plot 

 thirty feet square each year that onions are raised on it. 



A regular supply of moisture is very necessary for 

 affectslhem on i ns > as they are shallow-rooted plants. If their 

 growth is checked by drought at any time before they 

 are nearly full-grown, they do not recover as readily as 

 some crops do when rain comes. (Exps. 3 and 4.) 



Onions, except when raised for use as "green" or 

 " bunch " onions, should not be pulled before the leaves 

 have begun to ripen off. When pulled, the bulbs should 

 be spread in a cool, dry, and well- ventilated place. 



A single acre will yield as many as five hundred or 

 even eight hundred bushels of onions. But as onions 

 require much more care than do most other crops, the 

 return for the labor expended is not so high as one 

 might expect it to be. 



Smut and mildew of onions are two serious fungous 

 diseases which may be held in check by spraying with 

 Bordeaux mixture. 



How 



drought 



Gathering 

 the crop 



Yield 



Fungous 

 diseases 



Experiments and Observations 



1. Thoroughly mix a little lime with a handful of dry clay. 

 Wet the clay and roll it into a ball. Make a similar ball of clay 

 without lime. Let each dry and see which crumbles more easily. 



2. Build a hotbed in March and raise such vegetables as to- 

 matoes and cabbages. 



3. Secure seedsmen's catalogues and find descriptions of the 

 different varieties of vegetables that have been mentioned. Dis- 

 cuss these descriptions in class. What garden tools do the cata- 

 logues advertise? 



