LADY BUG...ONIONS HAVE BEEN A FAVORITE SINCE THE DAWN OF CIVILIZATION

From the dawn of civilization in Central Asia to the dining tables of today, onions have been relished as a raw or cooked vegetable and as a seasoning in the recipes of nearly all the world's culinary cultures.

Onions were known to the pharaohs of Egypt, sorely missed by children of Israel during their wanderings in the wilderness, relished by the Greeks and grown extensively in Italy during the Roman rule.

In the Middle Ages, onions spread all through Europe, sailed to the West Indies via the Spanish and from there were dispersed across the Americas.

Onions are one of the many members of the genus Allium, which also includes leeks, shallots and garlic, as well as many ornamental in the flower garden.

Many kinds of onions can be grown in the home garden. There are pungent or sweet, large or small, globular or flattened. Some are used while young as green or bunching onions, some left in the ground until the tops wither to be pulled and stored for winter use.

Relatively easy to grow, onions are almost disease free under normal conditions and are not attractive to most garden pests.

In recent years sweet onions have gained in popularity. Now, South Texas, Vidalia, Georgia and Walla Walla, Washington, all claim their onions are the best.

Joe L. Locati, a Walla Walla historian, reports the Walla Walla Sweet Onion story goes back to the turn of the 20th century with a Frenchman named Pete Pieri, stationed with French troops in Corsica. He was about to be discharged and planned to migrate to a small community in the West where he heard there was fertile soil and ample room and opportunity for gardening.

Pieri secured the onion seed of an Italian strain prevalent in Corsica and then embarked for his new country, Walla Walla, Washington. Once settled in his new home, Pieri planted the onion seeds. His Italian neighbors discovered the plant was winter hardy and would mature to a bulb of superior size much earlier than the onions they grew. Also the eating quality was superb.

This onion has outstanding characteristics with a combination sweetness that cannot be obtained any place in the state other than Walla Walla.

Local onions were a curiosity to Toombs County farmers when Moses Coleman ordered and planted the first onion seed in the county in 1931. Shallots grew in some gardens, and the green tops were stewed and eaten, but other onions were bought in the stores, Coleman recalled. They were yellow onions.

The onions Coleman planted were waxy white and shone as though polished. The people thought they were pretty--too pretty to eat, but that was more than 60 years ago. An article in New York's Wall Street Journal about the onions attracted attention from all over the world.

Of course, everything is bigger and better in Texas. Texas SpringSweet Onions, a name representing all varieties shipped from South Texas from March to June, may vary from flat to round in shape and from small to colossal in size, according to the Department of Agriculture.

They are characteristically juicy, sweet and mild onions with paper thin skins. Described as being "larger than a grapefruit", the 1015 SuperSweet Onion did not just happen. It got its start in Dr. Leonard Pike's laboratory. He was a researcher and horticulturist with Texas A&M University and spent 14 years on this onion project.

Whether the onions are from Walla Walla, Vidalia or South Texas, these sweet onions are different. Allan C. Kimball wrote in a newspaper report, "When you bite into one, your eyes will not water, its taste and smell do not linger on your breath, it won't curdle your stomach. It is the darling of onion lovers."

The following recipe, courtesy of Mr. Food, is for one of these sweet onions, but will not work on regular onions.

VIDALIA ONION CASSEROLE

4 medium onions, sliced

1 8 oz. bag of potato chips, crushed

1 10 1/2 oz. can cream of mushroom soup

1 soup can of milk

Place a layer of onions in a greased 7x12-inch casserole, then a layer of crushed potato chips, another layer of onions and top with remaining chips.

Combine soup and milk until smooth. Pour over top.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Serves 8.

Note: To remove onion smell from hands, place them in cold water in a stainless steel bowl for a few minutes.

It works!

COMPANION PLANTING

Companion planting, the practice of interplanting two or more crops has several meanings. These range from space saving to insect control and to improved performance of certain crops.

Lee Taylor, extension horticulture specialist at Michigan State University, says it is great for small gardens. Gardeners plant a quick maturing crop, such as radishes, green onions or leaf lettuce in with a long term crop, such as carrots.

In going through our years accumulation of garden books, in preparation for the Ladybug's garden sale, June 25, there are three great books on companion planting, "Carrots Love Tomatoes," "Roses Love Garlic" and "Sleeping With a Sunflower", all by Louise Riotte.