D M. FERRY & GO'S DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 



45 



^'^ my r^ fW. This is an annual from the West Indies, cultivated for its young seed pods which are used in soups, 

 \ 1 w^ w^lr^L or stewed and served like asparag:us. It is higlily esteemed in the south for making gumbo soup. 

 V-r ■ % ■>* / m -pjjg pods when young and tender maj' be sliced in sections and strung on a thread and hung up in 

 the shade to cure like dried apples: in this condition they can be used for soup at any time. 



CULTURE— Plant in hills about four feet apart, putting six to eight seeds in a hill, and after the plants are well started, 

 cut out all but two. The dwarf sorts can be planted much closer in hills two to three feet ajjart or in diiils two feet apart, 

 thinning the plants to about one foot apart in the row. Gather the pods when quite green, and about an iuch and a half long. 



WHITE VELVET. This variety is a great improvement on the old "VThite or the Green. The plant is of medium height, 

 l)e.?rin^ a lar^e crop of white, smooth, tender pods which retain their tenderness until nearly full size. Pkt. 5c; Oz. 10c; 

 2 Oz. 15c: % Lb. 20c: Lb. 60c. 



PERKINS' MA.M.MOTH LONG POD. The plant of this variety is very dwarf but enormously productive. The pods are 

 lonsr. slender, deep jrreeu and i-emain tender much longer than most sorts. Pkt. 5c: Oz. lOc; 2 Oz. 15c; Hl^>. 25c; Lb. 75c. 



"dwarf white. Thn longest podded varietv: two feet high and verj' productive. Mature pods a foot long, very 

 thick and tlesliv. Pkt. 5c: Oz. 10c: 2 Oz. 15c: H Lb. 20c; Lb. 50c. 



ONIONS 



The Onion not only contains considerable nutriment and has valuable medicinal properties, but is most useful in counter- 

 actiug the bad effects of sedentary life. The disagreeable odor it imparts to the breath may be avoided in a great measure 

 by thorough cooking, or by eating a few leaves of parslej'. 



Thorough preparation of the ground, careful sowing and the best of after culture will avail nothing unless seed of the 

 best quality is used. Given the same care and conditions, the product from two lots of onion seed of the same variet}- but 

 of different quality may be so vmequal in the quantity of merchantable onions, that it would be more profitable to use the 

 goo<i seed though it cos!: tsventj- times as much as the other. 



Our thorough equipment and long experience in growing onion seed of the very best quality, enables us to say without 

 hesitation that our stock is fulh* equal to any. and superior in quality to most that is offered. 



Although onions are often rained from sets and from division, by far the best and cheapest mode of production is from 

 seed. The facility with ichich seed is sown, an,d the superior bulbs xchich it produces, recommend its general use. 



HOW TO RAISE ONIONS 



TUp Cnil A crop of onions can te grown on any soil which agre of the marker you reach the side of the field where you 

 ■ "L OUIL ^-jii produce a full crop of corn, but on a stiff began; measure fifteen feet two inches from the last row, 

 clay, very light sand or gravel, or on some muck or swamp stretch the line again and nmrk around in the same way. Tliis 

 lands, neither a large nor a very profitable crop can be grown, is better than to stretch a line along one side, as it is impossi- 

 We prefer a rich loam with a slight mixture of clay. This is ble to prevent the rows gradually becoming crooked, and by 

 mucli better if it has been cultivated with hoed crops, kept this plan we straighten them after every third passage of the 

 clean from weeds and well manured for two years previous, marker. 



because if a sufficient quantity of manure to raise an ordinary cniA/IM/^ TUC CPPH This should be done as <v>nn as 

 soil to a proper degree of fertility IS applied at once, it is likely SOWING THE SlED Seg^S can be gottln^?Sd?^ 

 to make the onions soft. The same result will follow if we ^^ ^^ ^,^^g ^^^t l^,. ^ hand^seed drill. This should b^ ' 



sou- on rank, mucky ground or on that which is too ^^et. carefully adjusted to sow the desired quantity of seed about 



MANI IDIMfi There is no crop in which a liberal use of ma- one-half inch deep. The quantity needed will varj- with the 

 iTlAllluniliU nure is more essential than in this. If it is soil, the .seed used, and the kind of onions desired. 'Thin seed- 

 too rank, it is quite sure to make soft onions, with man^- scall- 

 ions. It should be of the best quality, well fermented and 

 shoveled over at least twice during the previous summer to 

 kill weed seeds. Of the commercial manures, any of the high 

 grade, complete fertilizers are good for ordinary soils, but 

 very rich soils are often benefited by fine groimd bone, and 

 muckv ones bv a liberal dressing of wood ashes. 



ing gives much larger onions than thick seeding. Four or five 

 pounds per acre is the usual quantity needed to grow large 

 onions. We use a drill with a roller attached, but if the drill 

 has none, the ground should be well rolled with a hand roller 

 immediately after the seed is planted. 



fill TIVATIflM Give the onions the first hoeing, just skim- 

 LfULI If Ml lUii ming the ground between the rows, as 



PREPARATION f?"rr;%^'L.ntfe%he^;S^^^ soon as they can be seen the length of the row. Hoe again 



time to complete the work before the 

 ground freezes up, and .spread the composted manure evenly 

 at the rate of about fifty cart loads to the acre. This should 

 first be cultivated in. and then the ground ploughed a moder- 

 ate depth taking a narrow furrow, in order to thoroughly mix 

 the manure with the soil. Carefullj- avoid tramping on the 

 ground during the winter. Cultivate or thoroughly drag the 

 soil with a heavy harrow as early in the spring as it can be 

 \vorked, and then in the opposite direction with a light one, 

 after which the entire surface should be made fine and smooth 

 with hand rakes or some such implement as a smoothing har- 

 row. It is impossible to cultivate the crop economically un- 

 less the rows are perfectly straight; to gecure this, stretch a 

 line along one side, fourteen feet from the edge, and make a 

 distinct mark along it: then, having made a wooden marker, 

 something like a giant rake with five teeth about a foot long 

 and standing fourteen inches apart, make four more marks by 

 carefully drawing it with the outside tooth in. and the head 

 at right angles to the perfectly straight mark made bv the 

 line. Continue to work around this line until on the third pass- 



Omon, Extra Earlv Red. 



a few days, this time close up to the plants, after which weed- 

 ing must be l>egun. This operation requires to be carefully 

 and thoroughly done. The weeder must work on his knees 

 astride of the row, stirring the earth around the plants, in order 

 to destroj' any weeds that have just started. At this weeding 

 or the next, according to the size of the plants, the rows should 

 be thinned, leaving from eight to twelve plants to the foot. 

 In ten days or two weeks they will require another hoeing and 

 weeding similar to the last, and two weeks later give them 

 still another hoeing, and if neces-saiy. another weeding. If the 

 work has been thoro\ighly done at the proper time, the crop 

 will not require further care until read}* to gather. 



ri4T||pn||iiri as soon as the tops die and fall, the bulbs 

 U/A I IILHIliU should be gathered into windrows. If the 

 weather is fine they will need no attention while curing, but 

 if it is not. they will neetl to l^e stirred by simply moving them 

 slightly along "the row. Cut off the tops when perfectly dry, 

 about half an inch froin the bulb, and then after a few days of 

 bright weather the onions will be fit to store for the winter. 

 It will not do to store onions in large piles or masses, particularly in warm 

 weather, if they are the least moist, but if i>erfectly dry when gathered and 

 thev are spread not to exceed two feet in depth, they can be kept in fine condi- 

 tion till spring. Anv arrangement will do that will keep them dry and at a 

 uniform temperature of about 32« fr.. or they may be kept frozen, care being 

 taken nor to disturb them. They should be thawed gradually. Repeated 

 freezing and thawing will spoil the'm. 



EXTRA CAREY RED 



The first to ripen, and one of the 

 Handsomest of the Red Sorts. 



A medium sized, flat variety: an abundant producer, and very uniform in 

 shape and size; moderatelv strong tlavored, and comes into use nearly two 

 weeks earlier than tlie Large Red Wetliersfield. Very desirable for early 

 market use. Pkt. 5c: Oz. 1.5c: 2 Oz. 25c; ** Lb. 40c: Lb. $1.25 



