562 KITCHEN GARDEN. 



All the varieties of onion, raised from seed, grow 

 freely in any common good garden soil, in an open 

 situation. They are sown from the middle of January 

 to the end of March, for the main summer crops of 

 keeping onions, and in August for smaller crops to 

 stand the winter for green young onions, in the spring. 



To obtain large Onions, Mr. Knight says, " Sow the 

 seeds thick of the Spanish or Portugal, at the usual 

 time, on poor land, generally under the shade of a 

 fruit-tree ; and in such situations, the bulbs, in the 

 autumn, will seldom exceed the size of a pea. Take 

 them up and keep them till the following spring, and 

 plant them out ; they will arrive at five inches in 

 diameter, and considerably more, and be as sound and 

 good as those imported from Portugal. Plants obtained 

 from seed sown in August, and put out in March, grow 

 also to a very large size, from a pound to twenty-five 

 ounces." Hort. Trans, vol. i. p. 158. 



In adopting either of these methods, it is necessary 

 the ground should be good, in an open situation, and 

 the bulbs planted at a foot distance from each other, 

 hoeing between them frequently, to stir the surface and 

 destroy the weeds. Should the soil be light, it ought 

 to be made firm before planting. 



The Potatoe Onion, is so called from its producing 

 its crop generally under the surface, like the Potatoe ; 

 hence it is called the Under-ground Onion, and is 

 never obtained from seed. It cannot be ascertained, 

 perhaps, at this time, when it was introduced into this 

 country, or from whence it came. It appears to have 

 been cultivated in Mr. Driver's nursery, near London, 

 in 1796 ; and it has probably been known in some of 

 our gardens much longer.- There are several ways of 

 cultivating it : the two following have been practised 

 with very good success. 



The first is to dung and dig the ground well, and 



