THE ONION. 



217 



from me, I hope they will have the courage of their opinions, 

 and show what special benefit does result. Before leaving this 

 aspect of Onion cultivation, I will quote a few words found in the 

 preface to M. Yilmorin's book, from the pen of a vigorous and 

 uncompromising opponent of mere size in products, Mr. W. 

 Robinson. Referring specially to this point, he says : " All who 

 have to do with gardeners and seedsmen should fight against the 

 deterioration of our best vegetables through the mania for size. 

 Although the flavour of vegetables may be more subtle than that 

 of fruit, it is none the less their essential quality. A change in 

 size, by adding to the watery tissue and fibrous framework of the 

 plant, may entirely destroy the quality we enjoy in it." It is 

 pleaded that these large Onions are milder for eating than are 

 smaller bulbs, but that simply means they relatively contain 

 more of water and less of flesh. 



Onions, hardy as they are, have their enemies, and often, espe- 

 cially on light soils, these pests give much trouble. The chief one 

 is entomological, and is found in the well-known Onion maggot, 

 Anthomyia ceparum, the product of a small fly, which in the spring 

 and early summer deposits its eggs in the sheath of the stems or 

 leaves. These are shortly changed into tiny maggots or grubs, 

 which at once begin to prey on the stems of the plants, boring their 

 way up and down until the plants turn yellow, the leaves fall 

 down, and then die. In some localities this maggot is terribly 

 destructive, in others it is almost unknown ; but generally it 

 gives most trouble on light soils. The most efficacious remedy 

 seems to be found either in sowing seed in pans or boxes early in 

 the month of April, transplanting when strong and well-hardened 

 at the end of May into rows on very firm but well-prepared soil. 

 It very commonly happens that such plants escape the attacks 

 of the maggot, chiefly, no doubt, because not accessible to the 

 fly when depositing its eggs. This practice is a very old one, 

 for it was recommended many years ago, but, except in relation to 

 the production of prize or exhibition bulbs, is seldom adopted. 

 That the larva, or chrysalis, hibernates in the soil during the 

 winter there can be no doubt, as it is the rule to remove all Onion- 

 plant refuse from the soil on which a crop has been raised in 

 the preparation for successive crops. When the perfect insect is 

 developed in the spring, it is obvious, because of its winged nature, 

 that it can reach any part of the garden ; hence the mere sowing of 



