THE 116 
GARDEN YARD 
in his book published by the Orange Judd 
Company, N. Y. 
In the main season crop, earliness is not so 
necessary, and less fertilizer will do, so long as 
it is the right kind. Seed is sown as early as 
possible, as the onion likes a cool season. In 
the garden, it is sown thickly because the onion 
often fails to sprout, but in the field, it is sown 
more carefully, waste of seed and the thinning 
in the big field being expensive. 
On some land the onion runs to tops, partic- 
ularly where there is too much moisture, or the 
ground is too new, or coarse manures have been 
used. If the tops are still rank and green in 
late August or early September, it is a good 
thing to break them by rolling a barrel over the 
rows, that the growth may go to the bulbs. 
The trouble with onions does not end with 
growing them. They are a difficult crop to 
handle and store, unless the fallis warm. After 
they are pulled they must dry a day or two, 
either in the field or under cover—cover is 
more expensive but the bulbs have a better, 
brighter color. The bulbs must be free from 
dirt and the tops cut off about a half-inch above 
the bulb, neither more nor less, else the bulb 
will suffer in marketable value. It must be a 
clean cut without ragged ends, and the outer 
