100 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ August 30, 1883. 
aroma of this vegetable wafted to them upon the breath of their 
dearest friend ; but our good ancestors were untroubled with squeam¬ 
ish sensibilities of the kind. They consumed unhesitatingly at any 
meal when it liked them, not only Onions and Leeks ; they also patron¬ 
ised the still stronger Garlic, though it was never much favoured by 
English dames, 'the modern Italian ladies, however, are said to be 
fond of those mixed dishes in which Garlic and its allies figure as 
flavouring ; and some think, although it is impossible to decide the 
point, that from Italy we received the Onion early in the Christian 
era. No distinct reference to it can be discovered until the reign of 
Edward III. Chaucer in one line joins Garlic, Onions, and Lettuce, 
doubtless so eaten as a salad. 
The common Onion of our gardens (Allium Cepa) has been too 
long under cultivation for us to ascertain its native country. Dr. 
Kitto suggests it is a Persian plant, that land, and other countries 
lying adjacent, being prolific in species of Allium. From authentic 
records we know that the Onion was a familiar vegetable to the 
ancient Egyptians at the time the pyramids were built, and probably 
before that. The migrating Israelites indulged in lamentations over 
the savoury plants of Egypt, the Onion among them, which they 
deemed so far superior to their insipid food in the wilderness (Num¬ 
bers xi., 5.). Herodotus, father of history according to some people, 
father of lies according to others, speaks of the large consumption of 
Onions by the Egyptian labourers, and his statement, which does not 
stand alone, has been thought irreconcileable with the statement of 
some authors, that they worshipped the Onion. Pliny, however, only 
attributes to the people of Egypt a custom of swearing by the Garlic 
plant and the Onion, or it may have been that a reverence for these 
ivas confined to a certain class, such as the priests. Modern Egyptians 
afford proof of their attachment to this bulb, and many tourists have 
noticed the superior flavour of the Onions grown upon the soil of 
Egypt; and under higher temperatures generally the bulb is milder 
and more succulent than in Britain. 
It is very curious to note the differences of opinion that are shown 
by old authors as to the dietetic or medical qualities of the Onion. 
Home of the Greeks said the plant was good for the complexion, and 
increased the strength of the body and mind. By some the Onion 
svas accused of being hurtful to the digestion as well as injurious to 
the eyesight. Gerard, the diligent herbalist and gardener of Eliza¬ 
beth’s reign, makes more than one attack upon the Onion, while his 
•condemnation of the bulb when eaten raw (in which state he says it 
is innutritious and tends to cause drowsiness) implies that persons 
did occasionally eat Onions uncooked. Then, as to the tear-produc¬ 
ing effect of smelling them, although several had said that this 
“ clarified ” the organ of vision, Gerard questioned the supposed fact. 
'The Spanish Onion is supposed to have been first seen in England 
about the time of Gerard, but it is doubtful whether it then came 
from Spain. In oldish books on gardening four varieties are men¬ 
tioned—the Spanish, Portuguese, Strasburgh, and Welsh. We have 
been unable to ascertain positively at what date English folks began 
to eat the young plants as “SpringOnions Abercrombie and other 
gardeners of Georgian dajs have no allusion to the gathering of the 
plants when green. 
That, the English public of three hundred years ago were not of 
the opinion of Gerard appears from the steady sale of Onions along 
the streets of London, and probably in smaller towns also, which is 
indicated by the mention of this vegetable as a part of the stock of 
•the early costermongers. Indeed there were those who dealt in Onions 
alone, and a seventeenth century print shows us one of these : able 
to buy a horse and cart, he is represented as bawling, “ Buy my white 
St. Thomas’s Onions !” Why St. Thomas was supposed to have to 
do with any sort of Onions is a question. They could not have been 
left in the ground until his December anniversary, nor hardly sown 
at that time. Another author gives the cry as “Ropes of hard St. 
Thomas’s Onions,” a test of quality certainly, as softness would prove 
incipient decay. Onions were made up into ropes by the growers or 
dealers when there were those living who had seen William Shaks- 
pere, and this usage has continued to the present time. Fields of 
■Onions were in existence near London City while the great civil war 
was raging between King Charles and his Parliament : these were in 
districts now covered with houses on the north and east of London, 
such as St. Luxe’s, Whitechapel, and Shoreditch ; and in the latter 
direction, but farther out, quantities of Onions are still grown, as in 
the neighbourhood of Barking in Essex, for instance. 
Bradley, who wrote of the Onion in the reign of George I., declares 
that it was considered to be the most important vegetable for kitchen 
use, although consumed in less quantities than others. He mKht 
have backed his assertion by a reference to the witty and erratic Dean 
of Dublin, who has said— 
“ This is every cook’s opinion, 
No savoury dish without an Onion.” 
The market gardeners of a century ago or longer had a plan of grow¬ 
ing Onions and Leeks together. The former were pulled during July 
and August, and the space left allowed the latter to attain to a greater 
size. Another method they had was to plant broad rows of Onions 
and Leeks 5 or 6 feet wide ; the “alley,” or space between, was 
about 18 inches across. Cucumbers were planted out in these spaces, 
and allowed to spread amongst the Leeks as the Onions were taken 
up. A notion prevailed in some quarters that it was always desirable 
to sow Onions during the increase of the moon. “ Let the condition 
be precisely the same,” writes Sir Francis Bacon, “ as to soil and 
moisture, yet the difference in growth, when they are planted before 
the full moon and after it, would astonish anyone unaware of the 
reason.” A similar idea appears to have held possession of many 
gardeners with respect to various seeds and roots ; and as we cannot 
think there could be any foundation in fact for such a theory, we must 
attribute it to a superstition powerful enough to persuade men con¬ 
trary to their own senses. 
It has been stated that upwards of a thousand persons are em¬ 
ployed through a considerable portion of the year in selling Onions 
about the metropolis, and they are certainly consumed more by the 
poor than by the middling class. From its containing sulphur the 
Onion may serve to check the spread of some diseases.—J. R. S. C. 
FALKIRK HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY’S SHOW. 
The fifty-second annual Exhibition of the above Society was held in the 
Town Hall, Ealkirk, on Friday and Saturday last under very favourable 
auspices as regards weather. The Show itself was one of the best held of 
late years, the large Hall being well filled with exhibits mostly of a superior 
character, while not a few were of very special merit. In the class for four 
foliage plants Mr. T. Boyd, Callendar House Gardens, was first with healthy 
well-grown specimens, conspicuous among which was a very fine plant of 
Yucca aloifolia variegata. In the class for two stove plants Mr. James 
McMurricb, Westbank, Falkirk, was placed second with a good Eucharis 
well bloomed and a magnificent Pancratium. Mr. Boyd was first with a 
well-bloomed Clerodendron Balfourianum and a handsome Begonia metal- 
lica in capital form ; but many were of opinion that the Judges might have 
placed Mr. McMurrich first without their judgment being called in question. 
For two greenhouse plants there was only one entry, but seldom have we 
seen a better plant of Statice profusa, while the other—an Oleander—was a 
fine healthy plant of large size. Two pictures handsomely framed were 
offered for this, and were worthily awarded to Mr. Wm. Murray, Parkhall, 
Polmont. Roses were fairly well shown ; but cut flowers generally, with 
the exception of Pelargonium trusses and bouquets, were rather poor. Mr. 
McMurrich took the lead with all of these. Two very nice plans, very 
neatly filled, of model flower gardens gained first and second prize to 
Mr. Peter Newton, Callendar House, and Mr. W. Sorley, Powfoulis, Grange¬ 
mouth, though the Judges had some difficulty in awarding the prizes, the 
two being very nearly equal. 
Vegetables we have seen better at Falkirk, but Mr. Boyd’s first-prize 
collection was up to par. Vegetables were very creditably shown by the 
cottagers ; indeed, those in the classes for Leeks, Shallots, Onions, Parsley, 
Cabbages, Beet were decidedly superior to those in the gardeners’ division. 
Mr. Boyd took first for Tomatoes with six very handsome Hathaway’s 
Excelsior weighing 3 lbs., one weighing 15 ozs. 
In the fruit classes Mr. Boyd showed splendidly. His collection of eight 
kinds would have been difficult to surpass anywhere. The two bunches of 
Black Alicante Grapes were perfect models in every respect, while his Royal 
George Peaches and Elruge Nectarines were of good size and splendidly 
coloured. The same may be said of the dishes of Brown Turkey Figs and 
Black Heart Cherries, both of which were in the best condition possible. In 
the collection and also in the single competition he showed Best of All Melon 
in a style that gained universal admiration, and also a fine Queen Pine. 
The hardy fruit was very backward, everything shown being very green. 
It is not possible for us to name a tithe of even what is worthy of notice in 
a provincial show, but among amateurs Messrs. Watson and Chisholm 
deserve mention for the fine Fuchsias they showed, and the collection of 
Potatoes, six varieties, six of each, with which Mr. McMurrich gained first 
prize. We understand that the Society’s funds are in a flourishing condition, 
and that the drawings at the Show in question were fully up to the average 
of recent years. In closing this notice we ought to mention the excellent way 
the Show was managed by the Secretary, Mr. Haing of Glebe Street. 
PIT FOR MELONS. 
I am much obliged to you for your advice through your correspondence 
columns. Your further assistance will be of great service to me. I 
suggested that slabs be placed a few inches above the flue so as to form a 
chamber ; but do not slabs retain too much heat for the earth to rest on ? 
An idea of mine is that earth should be heated downwards, not upwards. 
1 have had Melons on slabs, the slabs about 8 feet from the ground, the 
space below being filled with horse dung ; it heated the stones, but the 
earth next them was dust-dry which I could not moisten, the consequence 
was that generally the Melons failed before the crop was ripe. The con¬ 
clusion that I have come to now is to have a lean-to house erected 
instead of a pit, and to have it as high as will allow me to train the 
Melons to a fixed roof. The height of the front wall, as I formerly proposed, 
is 4 feet, and I wish to have a doorway at the end 3 feet wide. 
Queries—Should there be any glass in front 1 What height should the 
back wall be ? What width should the bed be to grow the Melons in P 
How will it be ventilated ? I intend to make it 20 feet long. I want to 
utilise it for boxes of cuttings in winter and spring.—J. T. S., Thurso. 
[However good the idea is, as suggested by Nature, of heating the 
earth downwards, it cannot be successfully carried out in affording 
