io5 



Note— Crop per acre. 744 bushels at 90 cents. $669.60 



Cost per acre, 140.20 



$529.40 



I hereby certify that the land upon which grew the crop 

 of onions entered for premium, by John H. George, meas- 

 ured eighty rods. 



Jos. S. Howe, Surveyor. 

 Methuen, Sept. 11, 1888. 



STATEMENT OF CHARLES \V. MANN, OF METHUEN, ON 

 ONION CROP. 



To the Committee on Root Crops : 



The piece of onions that I enter, was grown on a west- 

 erly slope of rather heavy loam, and has been in cultiva- 

 tion live or six years, once stony but now quite free from 

 large stones, though small ones are still plenty. I find it 

 difficult to give the expense and crop from a half acre 

 and so shall give the account of one bed as taken from 

 my crop book, and though this will not show as heavy a 

 yield as a picked half acre, or two quarters, the premium 

 is offered for the ' ; best experiment" so I may stand some 

 chance of winning even if the yield be not the largest. 



The bed measures 102,000 feet or about 2 1-8 acres. 

 Eighty spreader loads of a compost of stable manure 

 muck, night soil and grease waste or mudgeon was applied 

 and plowed under last October, after removing a crop of 

 onions, and onion, beet, cabbage and parsnip seed. The 

 crop in 188G was seed and cabbage, being only fairly 

 manured in 1886 and 1887, perhaps seven cords per acre 

 or its equivalent in other fertilizers. 



April 25, began harrowing with Climax wheel harrow, 

 applied 1200 pounds Tucker's Bay State Phosphate to 

 the upper part of the field and had the piece smoothed 

 down with the Meeker harrow ready for sowing April 30, 

 using Danvers Yellow Globe seed of my own growing, 

 crop of 1887. The crop started well, though rather 

 slowly and a little thinner than some years, but later in 



