36 



ONION-RA ISING. 



the heat of summer, it is to many the most wearying work 

 of the farm. Boys being more nimble-fingered than men, 

 besides working for lower wages, there is a great saving in 

 employing them, provided they can be relied on to pull up 

 the roots of the weeds. When several are at work, it will 

 be wise to have a man with them. 



To protect the knees from sharp stones, " pads " are used, 

 which consist of squares of about eight inches, of several 

 thicknesses of woollen, usually covered with leather, strapped 

 to the knees. In ordinary seasons, onions require three or 

 four hand-and-knee weedings, and from four to six slidings 

 with the hoe. A man's judgment must be his guide. As 

 onions shade the ground but slightly, weeds grow rapidly in 

 onion-beds ; and, if they are once allowed to get the start, 

 the labor of cultivation is immensely increased. Some cul- 

 tivators practise scratching the soil away from the onions 

 when weeding, with an old knife curved at a right angle 

 near the_ point, or by a piece of iron hoop curved, the end 

 being nailed to a small piece of wood conveniently held in 

 the hand. Noyes's (see engraving) or Lang's hand-weeder 



will be found .jevery 

 handy little imple- 

 ments for removing 

 weeds, particularly 

 when the surface of 

 the ground is somewhat hard. The strap in Lang's (see 

 engraving) enables 

 the person weeding 

 to retain it while 

 not in use, and yet 

 have full command • 

 of his fingers. When the onions have begun to "bottom 



