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onion, the Spanidi filvcr-fkinned onicn, the Spanirti rcd- 

 ftumcd onion, and tiic Portugal great rouiidilh oval onion. 

 2d. /V,?a/<yum orthe Ciboule or WlIiIi onion. 3d. Scl.\tm- 

 prti/um, civcs or chives. , 4. J/ailcnicum, efchalot or iliallot. 

 5. Camulenfr, or Canada-tree onion. All the/r/? fpecies and 

 varieties have large bulbous roots, and the plants are biennial, 

 or being fown in the Spring arrive at perfedion in the root 

 the fame year, and next year (lioot up into ilalk, flower, and 

 ripen feed, when the tlalks quickly die and the individuals 

 are annihilated. But i[\t: feccnd and //j;/v/ fpecies never form 

 any bulbs at bottom; they are, however, hardy and perennial, 

 and may be continued many years by the roots according to 

 the direaions given below for them. And \\\e fourth and 

 Jfth fpecies are bulbous-rooted perennials, multiplying greatly 

 by off-fets, as is evident from their culture.. 



The mSiod of ^roimgnt'ton and culture in the onion kind. 

 Common onion. Among the feveral varieties of the common 

 onion, the Stralhurgh is probably thcbeft for general culture, 

 having a handfome bulb, molUy affiiming a roundidi oval 

 fhape. It is of Arm growth, and generally keeps well for 

 winter ufe. The SpaniHi onion'; are large and flat ; the firft 

 fort is, however, of tl>e mildeft flavour ; but all the varieties 

 for the moll part afford profitable crops, and none excel 

 them for culinary purpofes ; but they fcldom keep fo well 

 after Chrillmas as the Straiburgh or oval fort of onion. The 

 Portugal onion is a very large handfome bulb, of a roundirti 

 oval fliape, though it rarely attains the fi/.e here, as in that 

 climate, as is obvious from thofe annually imported from that 

 kino-dom. If, however, feeds faved in Portugal be fown 

 here, the bulbs will arrive at a much larger fize than from 

 fuch as are faved in this countr)', efpecially where preferved 

 two or three years fuccefTively, in which cafes they are often 

 fo far degenerated, that the bulbs become flat, and not 

 larger than the common onions. The mode of tranfplanting 

 them at an early period, which is adopted in that country, 

 may alfo have much effeft in rendering the bulbs fo large. 

 From this fort of onion being very mild, it is much efteemed 

 for fauces and other culinary- ufes. 



All thefe kinds are propagated by feed fown annually ; 

 which for the general crop fliould always be perfoiined from 

 about the twentieth of Februaiy until the latter end of 

 March, though in cold wet ftiff' foils it may be proper to 

 defer fowing entirely until towards the middle of the latter 

 of thefe months. But in cafes of omiflion in fowing at the 

 times above recommended, it may be performed with tolerable 

 Xuccefs in the beginning or any time before the fifteenth of 

 April, but the crops of the February or March fowing 

 always bulb more freely and acquire a much laiger growth 

 than thofe fown at later periods. 



The mod proper fituation for crops of this kind is an open 

 expofure, and where the foil is moderately light and rich in 

 vegetable matter. Thus fpots of the belt mellow ground in 

 the garden fliould always be chofen, with the addition, if 

 polTible, of, a good coat of well rotten dung, dug well in, 

 but not too deep, the furface being kept level, and while it 

 is frefli ftirred, well raked, and the feed fown, a point which 

 is of importance to be attended to. The fowing when the 

 furface is fo wet or moid as to clog to the feet or rake in 

 preparing it, fliould not however be performed. 



The proper quantity of feed is in general about an ounce 

 to every rod or pole of ground ; but where it is not required 

 to have them thick for cuttings, two ounces for three rods 

 may be fufficient. Great care fliould be taken to procure 

 frefli feed, as but very little of that which is kept more 

 than one year will vegetate. 



The feed may either be fown over the whole of the piece 



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or plot of ground, or it may firft be divided into beds o( 

 four or five feet in width, allowing foot-wide alleys between 

 them. In /owing, the feed fhould be put in with a regular 

 fpreading call, and the furface, when very light, immediately 

 trodden over evenly upon the feed ; afterwards, where fown 

 in beds, the alleys may be pared an inch or two deep and the 

 earth call over them, proceeding direftly to rake in the feed 

 regularly with an even hand, trimming off all the ftones, 

 roots, &c. See Sowing Seeds. 



The method of fowing them in beds is the mod eligible, 

 where it is defigned to draw or cull the young onions from 

 time to time for market or family ufe ; as, in fuch cafes, a 

 perfon can Hand in the alleys without treading upon the beds, 

 which not only renders the furface hard, fo as to injure the 

 crop, but highly dellruiflive, by trampling upon the plants 

 themfelves. It is likewife very convenient to (land in the 

 alleys, in order to weed, thin, or hoe the crop as occafion 

 may require. Altliough it is a common praftice in the ge- 

 neral culture of onions to fow them thick, in order to allow 

 for culling or drawing out the fuperabundant plants, by 

 degrees as they are wanted ; it would no doubt be a better 

 mode to fow a piece particularly for general culling, exclufivc 

 of the main crop ; becaufe by daily thinning out the fuper- 

 fluous plants there is no avoiding treading upon, dillurbing 

 and loofening the remaining ones, by which they become 

 Hinted in their growth, and by no means fo fine. Th^re is 

 alfo another veiy common but injudicious praftice, which 

 is that of mixing other crops fuch as leek, lettuce, radifli, 

 carrot, ^<tc. with thefe crops. It is productive of coiifufioii,. 

 as well as obfl;ruftion to the chief crop, without producing' 

 any great advantage ; nothing Ihould therefore be admitted, 

 except a ver)^ thin fprinkling of cofs lettuce in fome cafes. 

 In about fifteen or twenty days after the feed is fown the 

 plants generally appear, and in a month or fix weeks after 

 that, as in May and the beginning of June, they will be three 

 or four inches high ; when they (hould be well cleaned from 

 weeds, and the main crop thinned to three or four inches 

 diftance. The weeding and thinning fliould be begun in due 

 time, before the weeds branch and fpread much, which may 

 either be performed by the hand or fmall hoeing ; the latter 

 is the moll expeditious method, as by it one man may do as ' 

 much as three, and it is alfo the moft beneficial to the plants ; 

 as by fl;ining the ground about them with the hoe, it greatly 

 forwards their growth, as is mollly feen in a few days after 

 the operation. This m.ode, however, is more particularly 

 eligible for the larger principal crops, for \vhich a good 

 fharp one-hand hoe, about two inches, or not .more than two 

 and a half broad, is the bcft, taking the opportunity of dry 

 weather for performing the bufinefs and carefully cutting up 

 all \yeeds. Where the onions ftand too clofe they fhould be 

 cut out in a regular thinning order to about three inches dif- 

 tance; or in fuch crops as are not wanted for occafional 

 cutting, they may be hoed out at once to about four 

 or five inches, having regard to leave the ftrongeft plants, 

 as much as poflible, for the continuing crops. 



In the courfe of two or three weeks or fomcthing more, 

 it will generally be proper to run over them again in the fame 

 manner, in order to cut up all advancing weeds, and any fuper- 

 abundant plants that m,ay have efcaped in the firfl hoeing ; 

 after this they feldom require any further culture, than 

 that of pulling out fuch cafual draggling weeds as may 

 rife. 



But where the crops are fmall, cr where they are required 

 for thinning or culhng bydcgrees, for ufe in their young green 

 date and in fmall bulbs, the weeding and requifite thinning 

 where they arc in cluders, may generally be bell performed 



by 



