The Canadian Horticulturist. 



8i 



$ J\}t }Kitcl?er) harder). $ 



THE NEW ONION CULTURE. 



HIS is the title of the new book just published by Mr. T. 



Greiner, of LaSalle, N. Y., in which he attempts to show 



how it is possible to raise 2000 bushels of onions off one 



acre of ground ! 



An early start is the first point of importance which he 



lays down, and for this the seeds need to be sown, for the 

 latitude of southern Ontario, from the ist to the 15th of March, in a cold frame, 

 or, if preferred, with a gentle heat. The accompanying illustration. Fig. 18, 

 shows a small cold frame with a single sash, 3x6 ft., and being one foot high 

 at the rear and about eight inches at the front. Five thousand plants may be 

 expected from one ounce of seed, and, since about 130,000 plants are needed 

 for an acre, it is evident that about one and one-half or two pounds of seed 

 would suffice for this extent of ground. This is no small saving of expense by 

 itself, for in sowing onions in the open ground in the ' old way, from six to 

 eight pounds of seed would be required. It is easy to calculate t"he amount of 

 glass that would be required when it is explained that each such bed is capable 

 of growing about 9,000 plants. 



The variety recommended by Mr. 

 Greiner, as " the best for this new 

 mode of culture is the Prize-taker, 

 which much resembles the large 

 imported Spanish onion of our gro- 

 ceries, both in appearance and fla- 

 vor ; and, when well grown, will 

 easily average a pound each. It is 

 much preferred by the grocers to 

 the ordinary variety, bringing in the 

 Buffalo market $1.00 per bushel, 

 when the other varieties are only 

 worth 80 cents. There are some 



other kinds which might answer for this method, as for instance, the Spanish 

 King, the White Victoria, and possibly, also the White Globe. 



Over-watering the seed bed in a cold frame must be avoided, and as the 

 season advances the sash may be removed entirely. In about six weeks from 

 the time of sowing the seed, tne plants will be quite large enough for trans- 

 planting into the open ground, and will appear as shown in Fig. 19. In this 



Fig. 18— cold frame. 



