242 The Canadian Horticulturist, 



HOW TO GROW ONIONS. 



Onions delight in a rich sandy loam, not too light but porous and friable and 

 free from stones. The preparation of an onion field should begin in the fall. 

 Put on a good dressing of stable manure and plow it under, and leave it until 

 next spring. How much stable dung to be used cannot be defined here. It 

 depends on the nature and quality of the land. It is well enough to say let the 

 application be liberal, yet there is a limit, where an excess of it may do no harm, 

 neither will the crop be benefited thereby. The following spring, as soon as the 

 ground can be worked, plow again, but shallow. Broadcast some special ferti- 

 lizer (Mapes is mostly used here) about 1 500 hundred pounds to the acre. Mix 

 it well with the surface by harrowing thoroughly and finish with a smoothing 

 harrow to make it as even as a board. If the land be stony, the stones must be 

 raked off by hand. If it is intended to follow onion growing as a special crop, it 

 will be well to buy a regular table seed drill, one that will sow two rows at a time 

 The one I have reference to sows the rows twelve inches apart. The seed cups 

 are placed between two wheels, which are six inches from the centre of the cups, 

 the wheels thus serving as markers. After sowing roll down the seed. As soon 

 as the seeds are sufficiently up to show the rows go through them, either with a 

 shuffle hoe or wheel hoe. I prefer the former. When plants are large enough 

 to handle, thin out to one or two inches. It is not necessary for me to say to 

 keep down weeds, which is best done by going through them with the hoe after 

 every rain. 



If sown early enough the onions should be ready to pull in the fore part of 

 August. Should they not ripen fast enough, hasten them by breaking down 

 with the back of a wooden rake. When you are satisfied that the onions have 

 stopped growing, do not delay to pull them, which is best done durmg a dry 

 spell. Lay them in long rows and leave in the field until perfectly dry. Give 

 them an occasional stirring, and house as soon as dry enough. — Farm and Home. 



About Shipping Peaches. — In picking peaches always look at the blossom 

 end ; when the green shade turns white, pick it. P'or long shipments I use the 

 quart berry box, never over sixteen in a crate, and it is best to wrap with a paper, 

 and be sure they are in the crate tight, that they do not shake about. Put up so 

 the expressman can throw them end on end, which he must do. He can't help 

 it. For a near market I use the four-basket crate, four quarts to a basket.. The 

 baskets fit closely in, and are one tier only, with a tight cover nailed down. 

 Never put up soft fruit of any kind in a crate that has any aroma from the wood 

 — say pine or cypress. There are a few points we must keep in sight : Don't 

 pick green fruit, and don't ship any specimens that are soft, and don't expect to 

 sell the poor fruit for good prices because it is in the bottom of the box. Hettir 

 keep it at home. And don't exjject me, as many do, to write you or tell you to 

 ship your peaches to the same man I am sending mine to. — James Moit, in 

 Florida A^ricuUurist. 



