3$2 ALL 
when in head; and the clofer they are drawn to the fence 
in autumn, the better the feeds will ripen ; for it fopic- 
times happens in cold fummers or autumns', that thofe, 
which grow in the openjgarden do not perfect their feeds 
in this country, efpecialrV if there tliould be (harp Trolls 
early in autumn, which will entirely fpoil the feed. When 
it is ripe (which may be known by the heads changing 
brown) you Ihould cut off their heads with about a foot 
'or more of the ftalk to each, and tie them in bundles, 
three or four heads in each, and hang them up in a dry 
place, where they may remain until Chriftmas or after, 
■when you may threfh out the feeds for ufe. The hulk is 
very tough, which renders it very difficult tc. get out the 
feeds; therefore fome perfons who have but a (mail quan¬ 
tity rub it hard again ft a rough tile, which will break 
the hulks, and get out the feeds better than moft other 
methods I have known ufe cl. 
The onion is propagated by feeds, which Ihould be fovvn 
at the latter end of February or the beginning of March, 
on good, rich, light, ground, which ihould be well dug 
and levelled, and cleared from the roots of all bad weeds; 
then the feeds Ihould be fown in a dry time, vi hen the fur- 
face of the ground is not moift; and, where they are in¬ 
tended for a winter crop, they muft not be fown too thick. 
In cold wet land it is better to defer lowing till the middle 
of March ; and in very moift rich foils it may be done any 
time before the middle of April. But the early-fown 
crops bulb or apple belt, and grow to the largeft lize. 
The common allowance of feed is fix pounds to an acre of 
land; or an ounce to a rod or pole. But the generality of 
■gardeners fow more, becaufe many of them allow for a 
crop to draw out, which they call cullings; tliefe are 
thinned out when young, and tied in bunches for the mar¬ 
ket; but thofe who have regard to their principal crop 
never pradtife this, but fow no more feed than is fuftici- 
•ent, for, when the plants come up too clofe, they draw each 
other weak; and, when this happens, their roots never 
grow fo large as thofe which are thin fowed : befides there 
is a great trouble in hoeing them; and, when they are 
thinned for the market, the ground is trodden over, and 
the onions which are to Ptand have their leaves bruifed, 
whereby they are greatly injured; fo that, where young 
onions are wanted, it is a much better way to fow fome 
feparate beds for this purpofe, than to injure the future 
crop. It is a common pradtice to mix other crops 'with 
the onion; but this is an obftrudtion to the main crop, 
■without any great advantage; it is better therefore not to 
fow any thing with it, unlefs perhaps a little cos lettuce. 
In about fix or feven weeks after lowing, the onions will 
be up forward enough to hoe; at which time (choofing 
dry weather) you fhould, with a fmall hoe about two 
inches and a half broad, cut up lightly all the weeds; 
and alfo cutout the onions where they grow too clofe in 
bunches, leaving them at this firft hoeing at lead two inches 
apart. This, if well performed, and in a dry feafon, will 
preferve the ground clear of weeds at leafta month or five 
weeks; when you muft hoe them over a fecond time', cut¬ 
ting up all the weeds as before, and alfo cut out the onions 
to a larger diftance, leaving them this time three or four 
inches afunder. This alfo, if well performed, will pre¬ 
ferve the ground clean a month or fix weeks longer, when 
you muft hoe them over the third and laft time. Now you 
muft carefully cut up all weeds, and tingle out the onions 
to near fix inches fquare; by which means they will grow 
much larger than if left too clofe. This time of hoeing, 
if the weather proves dry, and it is well performed, will 
keep the ground clear until the onions are fit to pull up; 
but, if the weather fhould prove moift, and any of the 
weeds fhould take root again, you fhould, about a fort¬ 
night or three weeks after, go over the ground and draw 
out all the large weeds with your hands; for, the onions 
having now begun to bulb, they •fhould not be difturbed 
with a hoe. Toward tire middle of Auguft your onions 
will have arrived at their full growth, which may be 
known by their blades falling to the ground and ft rink- 
I U M. 
ing; you fhould therefore, before their necks or blades 
are withered oft', draw them out of the ground, cropping 
oft the extreme part of tine blade, and lay them abroad 
upon a dry fpot of ground, obferving to turn them every 
other day at leaft, to prevent their linking frefh root; 
which they will fuddenly do, efpecially in moift weather. 
In about a fortnight’s time your onions will be dry enough 
to hoitfe, which muft be performed in perfectly dry wea¬ 
ther; in doing of this, you muft carefully rub off all the 
earth from the roots, and be hire to mix no faulty ones 
amongft them, which will in a fhort time decay, and fpoil 
all thofe that lie near them ; nor fhould you lay them too 
thick: in the houfe, which would occafion their fvveating, 
and thereby rot them; nor fhould they be put in a lower 
room, or ground floor, but in a loft or garret; and, the 
clofer they are kept from the air, the better they will 
keep. You fhould, at leaft once a month, look over them 
to fee if any of them are decayed; thefe muft be imme¬ 
diately taken away, otherwife they will infedt all that lie 
near them. But, notwithftanding all the care you canpof- 
fibly take in the drying and houftng your onions, many of 
them will grow in the loft, efpecially in mild winters, 
which are generally moift; therefore thofe who would 
preferve them late in the feafon, fhould feledt a parcel of 
the firmed and moft likely to keep, from the others, and 
with a hot iron (lightly finge their beards, or roots, which 
will dffedhtally prevent their fprouting; but in doing this 
there muft be grejt caution ufed not to fcorch the pulp of 
the onions, for that will caufe them to perifli foon after. 
The beft onions for keeping are the Strafburgh kind, 
which is an oval-fhaped bulb; but this feldom grows 
large as the Spanifh, which is flatter; the white fort is 
efteemed the fweeteft; but thefe varieties are not lading; 
for, if you fave the feeds of the white onions only, you 
will have a mixture of the red ones amongft them: nor 
will the Strafburgh onion keep long to its kind, but will 
by degrees grow flatter, as do the large Portugal and Tri¬ 
poli onions, when planted in our climate, which in a year 
or two will be fo far degenerated, as not to be known they 
were from that race. It is of great importance to have 
frefh feed, for, if it is above a year old, not one plant in 
fifty will grow. This is an objection agaipft foreign feed, 
which cannot be depended upon : it is neceftary, however, 
to import it fometimes, for it degenerates in our climate. 
The goodnefs of the feed may eafily be tried, by forcing 
it in the hot-houfe, or in warm water. In order to fave 
feeds at home, you muft in the fpring make choice of fome 
of the firmed, largeft, and beft-ftaped, onions, (in quan¬ 
tity proportionable to the feed you intend to fave ;) and, 
having prepared fome good ground, (which fhould be well 
dug, and laid out in beds about three feet wide,) in the 
beginning or middle of March you muft plant your onions 
In the following manner: Having (trained a line about 
four inches within the fide of the bed, you muft, with a 
fpade, throw out an opening about fix inches deep, the 
length of the bed, into which you fhould put the onions, 
at about nine inches diftance from each other; with a 
rake draw the earth into the opening again to cover the 
bulbs; then proceed to remove the line again about afoot 
farther back, where you muft make an opening as before, 
and fo again till the whole is finifhed; fo that you will 
have four rows in each bed, between.which you muft al¬ 
low a fpace of two feet for an alley, to go among them to 
clear them from weeds, &c. In a month’s .time their 
leaves will appear above ground, and many of the roots 
will produce three or four ftalks each ; you muft there¬ 
fore keep them diligently cleared from weeds, and about 
the beginning of June, when the heads of the flowers 
begin to appear, you muft provide a parcel of (lakes about 
four feet long, which Ihould be driven into the ground, 
in the rows of onions, at about fix or eight feet apart; 
to which you (hould faften fome packthread, rope-yarn, 
or fmall cord, which fhould be run on each fide the fterns 
of the onions, a little below their heads, to fupport them 
from breaking down with the wind and rain; tor, when 
