BULB CROP PROJECTS 229 



Onions have been cultivated since the earliest history of Egypt, 

 India, and China. It is believed that the common onion does 

 not now grow except under cultivation. Five hundred years ago 

 the onion was common in Europe. The early colonists brought 

 it to America. 



The portion of the onion plant which is usually known as the 

 onion is a bulb. Bulbs are underground structures consisting 

 of short, usually conical stems, with many fleshy overlapping 

 leaf-bases. Bulbs are food-storage organs. The food is stored 

 in the thickened bases of the leaves, and these constitute the 

 portion which we eat. The roots are fibrous, growing from the 

 basal stem. The upper parts of the leaves are thick, fleshy, and 

 hollow. The older leaves are on the outside. From the little 

 conical stem at the base of the bulb is sent up a long, leafless stem, 

 often hollow, which bears the flowers in a compact group at the top^ 

 In the common onion, this stem, or scape as it is called, is two or 

 three feet high, smooth, and enlarged near the middle. Bulblets 

 (small bulbs) are sometimes produced along with the flowers at 

 the top of the scape. These forms are known as " top or tree " 

 onions. These bulblets may be used for propagation. Some forms 

 have compound bulbs which will separate into numerous bulbs, thus 

 furnishing another method of propagation. These are known as 

 "multipliers." Other forms are propagated by true seeds and by 

 " sets," which are small bulbs grown from seed and checked in 

 their development. The seeds are black, flattish on one side, 

 convex on the other. In addition to the manner of propagation, 

 onions differ greatly in shape, color, and size of bulbs, quality, and 

 time of maturing. There also are marked differences between the 

 so-called foreign types, such as Bermuda, Spanish, and Italian 

 onions, and the American types. 



1. How long have onions been cultivated? 



2. What is a bulb ? A bulblet ? 



