Onions in the South. 155 



the prospective onion grower is willing to give his crop 

 careful attention he had better let it alone. Also, it is 

 best for a beginner to start on a small scale, certainly 

 not over an acre, unless you are associated with some one 

 experienced in handling this crop, for no matter how 

 complete directions may be given for growing onions there 

 are often peculiar local soil conditions that must be stud- 

 ied and experimented with and just as valuable experience 

 in growing and handling the crop can be obtained on a 

 small scale as on a larger one and at a great deal less ex- 

 pense. 



Onions in Texas Undek Irrigation. 



The writer has been closely associated with the Ber- 

 muda onion industry of Texas and its start in 1892 or 

 1893 was a small one. Mr. T. 0. Nye, of Laredo, Texas, 

 the pioneer of the industry, in the attempt to find an on- 

 ion that would grow and produce satisfactorily in Texas 

 had never heard of the Bermuda onion until he got hold 

 of one of our catalogues. He had tried all of the other 

 varieties without success but sent to us for two ounces of 

 the Bermuda seed. He was successful and the following 

 year sent for a pound, and so on until his neighbors began 

 to take notice and follow in his footsteps and in less than 

 a dozen years an industry shipping some 3,000 carloads 

 was established. 



That portion of Texas is for all practical purposes arid, 

 and all crops are grown with irrigation, the water being 

 pumped mostly from' the Rio Grande River, although 

 some fifty miles north of Laredo artesian water is found 

 in abundance. 



The general practice in that section is to thoroughly 



