D. M. Ferry &, Co’S Descriptive Catalogue 
31 
ONION. 
Fr. Oignon. —Ger. Zweibeln. 
The Onion not only contains considerable nutriment 
and has valuable medicinal properties, but is most use¬ 
ful in counteracting 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 parsley. 
There is no vegetable where the quality of the seed 
exerts a greater influence upon the crop than in onions. 
On our trial grounds we have found a difference of over 
4 oo per cent, in the marketable product of two rows of 
onions, planted the same day, side by side, thinned to 
the same number of plants to the rod, hoed and treated 
in every way precisely alike, the difference being en¬ 
tirely owing to the seed, which were samples of stock 
offered us by two growers. Here, then, if nowhere else, 
the greatest care should be taken to secure the best pos¬ 
sible seed. Seed grown in the north will be pretty sure 
to produce better onions when sown in the Southern 
States, than southern grown seed. 
We make a specialty of onion seed, and grow and dis¬ 
pose of many tons annually. The demand for our seed 
has increased so rapidly that we are yearly increasing 
our facilities for growings so that we think we annu¬ 
ally produce on our seed farms near Detroit, the largest 
crop grown by any one firm in America. Our stock is 
all grown from choice , selected bulbs , under our own 
supervision , therefore those who order seed of us will 
be sure of getting ncw y choice seed of the best quality, 
ONIONS-HOW TO RAISE THEM. 
This is a question we are asked many times every 
year, and which we will try to answer from our expe¬ 
rience in raising many thousands of bushels. 
Soil.—A good crop of onions can be raised on any 
soil which will produce a full crop of corn, unless it be 
a stiff clay, very light sand or gravel, or certain varie¬ 
ties of muck or swamp lands. We prefer a rich, sandy 
loam, with a light mixture of clay. This is much bet¬ 
ter if it has been cultivated with hoed crops, kept clean 
•f weeds, and well manured for two years previous, be¬ 
cause if a sufficient quantity of manure to raise an ordi¬ 
nary soil to a proper degree of fertility is applied at 
once, it is likely to make the onions soft. 
manure.—There is no crop where the quality of 
the manure used is of greater importance than in this. 
If it is too rank it is quite sure to make soft onions,with 
many sculiions. It should be well fermented and shov¬ 
eled over at least twice during the previous summer to 
kill weed seeds. Of the commercial manures, we pre¬ 
fer fine ground bone to any other, but large crops are 
raised by the use of superphosphates. If these manures 
are used, one-half should be applied when the crop is 
sown, and the rest just before they begin to form bot¬ 
toms. 
Preparation. —In time to complete the work 
before the ground freezes up, remove all refuse of pre¬ 
vious crops, 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 moderate depth, taking a narrow furrow, in 
order more thoroughly to mix the manure with the soil. 
Carefully avoid tramping on the ground during the win¬ 
ter, and as early in the spring as it can be worked, cul¬ 
tivate or thoroughly drag it \vith a heavy harrow, and 
then in the opposite direction with a light one, after 
which the entire surface should be raked with steel hand 
rakes. It is impossible to cultivate the crop economi¬ 
cally unless the rows are perfectly straight ; to secure 
this, stretch a line along one side, fourteen feet from 
the edge, and make a distinct mark along it; then, hav¬ 
ing 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 draw¬ 
ing it with the outside tooth in, and the head at right 
angles to the perfectly straight mark made by the line. 
Continue to work around this line until on the third 
passage of the marker you reach the side of the field 
where you began; measure fifteen feet two inches from 
the last row, stretch the line again, and mark around in 
the same way. This is much belter than to stretch a line 
along one side, as it is impossible to prevent the rows 
gradually becoming crooked, and by this plan we 
straighten them after every third passage of the marker. 
Sowing the Seed. —This should be done as 
soon as the ground can be got ready, and can best be 
done by a hand seed drill. This should be carefully 
adjusted (testing it by running it over a barn floor), to 
sow the desired quantity of seed and about one-half inch 
deep. The quantity needed will vary with the soil, the 
seed used, and the kind of onions desired. Thin seed¬ 
ing gives much larger onions than thick. Four or five 
pounds 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. 
Cultivation. —As soon as the onions are up so 
they can be seen the length of the row. give them the 
first hoeing just skimming the ground between the 
rows. We use a hoe made expressly for that purpose. 
The blade is eight inches long and one and a half 
broad, with a long, crooked shank set in a handle five 
feet long. The shape of the hoe allows the earth to 
pass over the blade without moving it out of its place. 
A few days after give them the second hoeing, this 
time close up to the plants, after which weeding must 
be continued. This operation requires to be carefully 
and thoroughly done; the weeder must get down to his 
work on his knees astride of the row, stirring the earth 
around the plants, in order to destroy any weeds that 
have just started and cannot be seen. In ten days or 
two weeks they will require another hoeing and weed¬ 
ing similar to the last; and two weeks later give them 
still another hoeing, and if necessary, another weeding. 
If the work has been thoroughly done , and at the pro¬ 
per time , the crop will not need anything more until 
ready to gather. 
Extra Early Red. 
Gathering;.— As soon as the tops die and fall, 
the crop should be gathered by pulling four rows and 
laying them in a single one the tops all one way, and 
then returning on the next four forming a similar row, 
but with the tops in the opposite direction ; laying the 
tops in this way greatly facilitates the “ topping.” If 
the weather is fine they will need no attention while 
curing, but if it is not, they will need to be stirred by 
simply moving them slightly along the row. When the 
