The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-07
Bcrmuda Onions From One seeds.


As far back as ten years ago thought
l knew about all that was necessary to
know regarding the culture of onions in
the south, but as frequently happens, it
only needs one single little fact added to
ones store of accumulated knowledge of
any particular subject to cause quite a
revision of ones conclusions. And in this
Instance I find that two years additional
experience has thrown a little more light
On the subject Of onion growing-not
enough to warrant "a new system of on
ion culture" but enough to warrant the
telling of the new acquisition to those,
who find interest in the practical subject
Of growing onions. The onion is a great
vegetable, it cannot be denied, The sta
tIstics of commerce prove it, and all in
spite of the thousands and ten of thous-
ands. who affect to despise the useful and
wholesome esculent, but who eat it all
the same.
For the past ten years have confined
my paintings almost exclusively to the
Italian varieties, many of which are as
easily grown from the seeds, that is in
the south, as turnips or carrots or beets
The idea still holds amongst the majority
of southern gardeners that onions cannot
properly be grown from the seeds, and so
there is still a large demand for sets. p"
If the facts were known there would
hardly be a bushel of them called for in
any one county in this state. With the
proper varieties onions can be grown from
the seeds as satisfactory as any other crop
-turnips even. The great advantage in
growing ones own plants consists in the
fact that not single plant will "shoot
to seed" Sometimes when grown from
sets half or three-fourths of the crop Will
do that very thing, and thus make fail
ure almost as absolute as blight would
cause.
While in latitude as high as Macon the
fall sown crop (October-November) is now
and then killed or badly injured by Janu-
airy freezes, it is always possible to raise
the plants in frames in November and De-
cember and set them out in late January,
and on for the next two months follow
ing dollars worth of fresh seed will
make more onions than $40 worth of sets,
even if the latter did not "shoot to seed"
In the past two years long side of my
other varieties of onions l have planted
the Red and White Bermuda, and in both
instances these carried off the prize for
earliness and uniformity of growth. ma
turing a very fine, fiat onion by the 25th
of May, while other kinds planted the
same time showed no disposition to bulb
al that date. By raising the plants in
frames Tor even in the open ground with a
little protection now aud them and setting
them out in January or February, 500
bushels can easily be made on any good
soil that will make 300 pounds of cotton.
These onions can be grown to advantage
in 1S-inch rows and plant set every four
inches in the row. Preparing an acre
with the plow thoroughly, the pillow can
be dispensed with altogether in the cult
walton. scuffie hoe or a garden hand
pow properly used can produce that 800
bushels easily. Let every gardener next
season try an acre Tor a quarter with
these Bermuda onions, and l will be
overwhelmed with thanks for the sug-
gestion. Essace.