ONIONS ON MUCK SOIL 



Elmer O. Fippin, Ithaca, New York 



Truck crops which are used for their vegetative parts require that 

 their growth take place under the most favorable conditions if they 

 are to have good quality and give satisfactory^ yield. The onion crop 

 is no exception to this rule, and in order that we may understand the 

 requirements of the crop as to soil and fertilizers, it is important to 

 consider the characteristics of the plant. The onion is an enlarged 

 stem. Its root system is small in extent, fibrous in character, and 

 usually shallow in distribution. It is particularly sensitive to 

 unfavorable soil conditions, which develop a strong and undesirable 

 quality. Plants in general use for the production of their stems 

 and leaves require nitrogen and potash in much larger quantities 

 than phosphoric acid, while those which produce seed make a hea\'y 

 draft upon the phosphorus. Chemical analyses indicate that five 

 hundred bushels of onions contain approximately sixty pounds of 

 nitrogen, thirty pounds of phosphorus, and seventy-five pounds of 

 potash. 



Muck soil is a special or abnormal soil as compared with the 

 average upland soil. It is formed from the accumulated remains 

 of plants which have undergone decay to a greater or less extent. 

 The primary condition for the growth and accumulation of this 

 material is defective drainage. Such land is naturally saturated 

 with water and the presence of this water has reduced decay processes. 

 Depending upon the extent to which decay has taken place, these 

 deposits may be divided into several classes, which differ decidedly 

 in their agricidtural value. 



The first stage of removal from the fresh material, where the 

 substance is coarse, fibrous, and usually of a light brown color, is 

 knowTi as the peat stage. It has such a poor relation to moisture 

 that it is generally unproductive, especially for delicate crops. 

 When the decay has reached a more advanced stage, so that the 

 materials take on a black or very dark brown color, and assumes a 

 fine pulverized material, it is known as muck. This is coincident 

 with the increase of the soluble or humus substances, a brown liquid 

 which may often be seen leaching from swampy lands. It is the 

 muck stage of such lands which is agriculturally valuable, because 

 this material has a much more satisfactory relation to moisture. 



