Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1902-10-04
Wisfellaueuas geading.
HOW TO GROW ONIONS.
A Georgia Expert Gives the Inexpe-
| rienced Some Pointers.

HOW TO GROW ONIONS.
A Georgia Expert Gives the Inexpe-
rienced Some Pointers.
The following timely article on onion
culture is from the pen Of Mr.. c. w.
Morvill, an expert, who resides at Ma
con, Ga.
The onion is a vegetable that should
be grown in the south, not only for
home consumption, but to ship to
northern markets. From the phenom-
inal success of a few who are making a
speciality of this crop, it seems that 9TH
ers could engage in its cultivation to
great advantage, when 1t would finally
become quite a commercial crop. On
ions are yearly shipped from the north
to southern states, to furnish our peo-
pie with this succulent vegetable.
What we need in the south Is more
crops that somebody else wants; we at
least ought to be able to supply our
own market We have the soil, the cli-
mate and the labor, we should grow
such crops that help in the aggregate
to increase the products Of our south
ern farms.
There are three methods Of growing
onions which we will describe. First
with sets, second by sowing the seed
in the fall and transplanting early In
the spring, and third by sowing the seed
in open ground in the spring as soon
as the weather will permit. Onions
from sets are grown mostly for bunch
ing, and sold green to supply our spring
market; they are not suitable for ripe
dry onions, as they will not keep, al
though we have kept the Pearl variety
through the summer for home use. Sets
can be grown in the south as we'll as at
the north, and are much preferred, the
seed should be sown on very thin soil
too poor to produce weeds, and soWn
very thick in the row, so as to produce
very small bulbs; they ought not to be
much larger than pea. Seed sown
in March, or April, the sets will be
ready to pull in July when they can be
dried and laid by to plant In the fall,
for your spring crop Of bunch or green
onions. It would be we'll to apply
dressing Of the chemical fertilizers to
the soil devoted to growing sets, apply
ing at the rate of 400 pounds per acre,
and this should be applied some time
before sowing the seed; this gives the
fertilizers a chance to become assimi-
lated with the soil.
Another good method that Is prac-
ticed by some, is to sow the seed IN
shallow boxes in the hot house, then
transfer them to cold frames later,
then transplant to open ground in the
spring as soon as the weather will per-
NIT There is some work attached to
this method, and the work should be
well done, but no more than planting
the sets and is less costly If you have
to buy your sets. BY following this
method you can produce onions that
will grow to large size, and ripen suita-
bly, to supply home markets, or ship TO
more distant sections.
Another method is to sow the seed In
February or early in March In open
ground where you expect to mature the
crop. but this method requires high cul-
ture and we'll prepared soil, and in fact
either method requires this, but the
latter method must not want for any
condition that is required to force an
early growth and grow the crop 10
maturity. A clay loam of mucky soil
Is suitable for onions: in preparing the
soil it should be plowed deep and hned,
so as to leave no Jumps. finishing with
a heavy roller to firm the soil, as on
ions form bulbs on the surface, only the
roots penetrate the soil. This rule ap-
plies whether you follow either method.
Onions are planted in rows from II to
IA inches and about four inches in the
row in garden culture. whether you
n,ant sets or SOW the seed and thin to
a stand. On an extensive scale it might
he we'll to widen the rows to admit or
horse culture, but with the improved
implements for hand work, this crop
with high fertilizing will pay for close
planting and hand culture. Some grow
.rs Law off their land slightly ridged,
but we prefer to plant on level. but
are careful to firm the soil well before
planting.
The onion is crop that can be grown
on the same land year after year With
out rotating, but requiring rich land;
YOU can hardly get it too rich as the
crop draws from the soil or requires
producing a yield of $4,000 pounds per
acre, 81 pounds ammonia, u pounds
potash and 81 pounds Of phosphoric
acid. It is the belief with some that
onions cannot be grown without stable
manure, this is a mistake for stable
manure furnishes too much weed seeds
unless we'll rotted. We prefer to use