300 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



JVXE 



CULTIVATION OP ONIONS. I 



When grown a.« .i (k-kl-cTop, the land should , 

 be level, eoniparatively free from stones, or ' 

 other obstriutions, deep and mellow. The , 

 onion will grow best on such a soil when well | 

 drained, either naturally or by artificial means. ! 

 Fall plougliing, throwing the land into twelve- ] 

 feet ridges, is advisable. In the spring an ap- 

 jilication of twenty to thirty two-horse loads 

 of well-rotted yard or hog-pen manure, are 

 spread bmudeast and ploughed under. The 

 ground is then ploughed, harrowed and some- 

 times levelled with a wooden roller before 

 sowing the seed. An application of two or 

 three hundred pounds of ground bones to the 

 acre will benefit the crop. 



The seed is sown in drills, one foot apart, 

 either for field or garden, by a machine, using 

 four pounds of fresh seed to an acre. To in- 

 sure the seed being well covered, a light roller 

 is drawn by hand over the ground, in the di- 

 rections of the rows. 



The early rimning of the hand-hoes between 

 the rows, is the only way to do in gi-owing on- 

 ions for profit. If the weeds gain headway, 

 the cultivation will cost ten times what it other- 

 wise would. As soon as the rows are desig- 

 nated by the young plants, keep the scuffle 

 and onion-lioes active until the tops are larfje 

 enough to give shade. Weeds appearing m 

 the lines of the rows must be removed, before 

 they attain any size, by hand — the boy carry- 

 ing a knife with a curved point, made for the 

 purpose. The seed sown early in April, the 

 crop will be ready to harvest in the latter part 

 of August or the beginning of September. 

 The onions are pulled out by hand, throwing 

 three or four rows together and leaving them 

 in this way for a few weeks, until they are 

 dry enough to be stored — when the}- are gath- 

 ered, carted and placed on a barn tloor or loft 

 until marketed. If kept over winter, they 

 should be protected by a covering of straw or 

 salt hay, before cold weather sets in. Onions 

 keep better with the tops left on, therefore 

 they are not trimmed till a few days before 

 sending them to market. — QHi7in\i Money in 

 the Garden. 



the privy, that are too often nearly lost on ac- 

 count of their ofTensiveness or want of proper 

 knowledge. If the term, fertilizer, at the 

 head of this article is suggestive of adulter- 

 ation, all fears of this kind will vanish after a 

 fair trial. 



Early in Sjiring make a curb of proper 

 size under cover, and place in the bottom a 

 layer of dry nmck six inches deep, or in its 

 absence soil will do and may be advantage- 

 ously taken from the marginal elevations of 

 ploughed fields. Upon this place a layer of 

 the said contents two inches deep, and thus 

 build up the i)ile in alternate layers, using 

 two or three times the quantity of nuick, cov- 

 ering the whole with it to the dcptli of ten 

 inches. Now save all the licpiids from the 

 sleeping ajiartmcnts through the Suuuucr and 

 pour upon the top, adding more muck as may 

 be necessary. In one year this will be fit for 

 use, well decomposed, free from ofl'ensive 

 odor and may be handled as well as so much 

 earth. I have used this compost in top dress- 

 ing grass lands with marked results. Last 

 Spring a ])iece thus treated was far ahead of 

 the rest and had to be cut ten days in ad- 

 vance. A small (quantity in corn hills will 

 push the young plants forward, give them a 

 rich, dark green color and a stamina they will 

 not forget during the season. — 17. Fanner. 



A VALUABLE FERTILIZER UTILIZED. 



Every farmer has the means at hand of 

 manufacturing, at small cost, one of the most 

 valuable fertilizers in use from the contents of 



Prepaiung Corn Ground. — A correspon- 

 dent of the Ohio Farmer says, always, if pos- 

 sil)le, jilough the ground just befoi'e planting. 

 If sod, never until the grass is well started. 

 Then the grass will furnish food for worms, 

 and also commence heating or rotting at just 

 the right time to make the young corn grow 

 rapidly. How to plough: — If your land lies 

 high and dry, and you wish to plant in hills, 

 and rows both ways, commence in the centre 

 of the field and back furrow until finished ; 

 thus you avoid tramping upon any of the 

 ploughed ground. If low ground, plough in 

 beds, north and south, wide enough for five 

 or seven rows of corn, one row on the ridge, 

 two or three on each side dropping the corn 

 at the edge of every fourth furrow in di-ills, 

 with plenty of seed, then harrow the ground 

 thoroughly ; as soon as the corn is up harrow 

 again. Then in a few days cultivate and thin 

 out to suit. I plough sward land from five to 

 six inches deep ; old land seven to eight inches. 



