User:Dumelow/Bermuda onion

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From a 1902 seed catalogue
From a 1918 children's plant encyclopaedia

Bermuda onions are a variety of the plant associated with the island of Bermuda.

Description[edit]

The Bermuda onion is large and flat. It is white or yellow in colour and has a mild, sweet taste.[1] It is similar in taste and appearance to white Spanish and Portuguese onions. The Bermuda onion is a very fast growing variety; it does not form a thick outer skin and so perishes very quickly, often after only a few weeks in storage.[2]

History[edit]

The onion was first grown on Bermuda in 1616. It thrived in the islands climate and became a staple crop. The were exported to the US east coast from the middle of the 19th century with weekly shipments sometimes in exceewss of 30,000 boxes. The association of the island with the vegetable led it to become known as "The Onion Patch" and Bermudians were nicknamed "Onions". The success in growing the onion elsewhere and the ipact of the First World War led to a decline in the trade. It remains a proud symbol of local heritage with locations on the island named after it. It is still consumed locally in the spring often in soup and fish chowder. One day of the islands heritage month is devoted to the Bermuda onion. Mark Twain, a frquent visitor, said "The onion is the pride and joy of Bermuda. It is her jewel, her gem of gems. In her conversation, her pulpit, her literature, it is her most frequent and eloquent figure". [3]

First exported to the US in 1847. Became Bermudas main crop and ws also exported to the UK. Post WWI high US import taxes discouraged the trade and the speed with which shipments could be sent by rail from Texas left Bermuda, reliant on slow ships, at a disadvantage. The Bermuda Trade Development Board attempted to revive the trad ein the 1930s, emphasisi ng the unique taste of onions grown on the island but it was not a success.[4]

Grown in the US as a winter crop, requiring a mild climate as, although they can survive freezing, growth is hampered by cold weather. Harvested early, before the tops ripen. In early US growing the onions were often shupped in bags but this often damaged the produced and by the 1930s wooden crates were used. A 1937 book reports high yields of up to 35,000 pounds per acre possible, though usual uyeilds being 10-12,000 pounds[5]

A 1910 issue of the Farmers' Bulletin notes that T.C. Nye of Laredo, Texas, was perhaps the first to successfully grow the Bermuda onion in the US. By 1910 5-7,000 acres were under cultivation in southern Texas with plantations also in southern California and being grown on a small scale in southern Florida.[6]

The principal harvesting season in the US is April throguh June.[7]

The onion nickname is still in use on the island.[8]

Portuguese immigrants arrived to work in agrigculture during the later 19th century and helped grow the onion industry[9]

Exports of onions from Bermuda ceased in 1946.[10]

By 1920 The Bermuda onion was almost the sole onion grown in Texas, being sown in September, transplanted November to January and harvested from March through April.[11]

The onion is highly perishable and cannot be stored for long[12]

By the 1920s it was also grown on the canary islands. With a total production of 174,000 bushels in 1922.[13]

By the 1990s the true Bermuda onion was no longer available in the US, with the product sold as a Bermuda onion, actually a different variety. Most were by then imported from Mexico.[14]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Onion". Britannica. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  2. ^ Cashman, Ryan (15 February 2023). "Why Yellow Onions Are Better Than White If You're Buying In Bulk". Tasting Table. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  3. ^ Bermuda Tourism Authority (20 July 2022). "The Story Behind Bermuda's Onion Obsession". Go To Bermuda. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  4. ^ "Rise And Fall Of The Bermuda Onion". Bernews. 25 January 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  5. ^ Beattie, William Renwick (1937). Onion Culture. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 23–24.
  6. ^ Farmers' Bulletin. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1910. p. 30.
  7. ^ Stevens, Wayne Mackenzie (1925). The Marketing and Distribution of American-grown Bermuda Onions. U.S. Department of Agriculture. p. 2.
  8. ^ Orr, Tamra (2009). Bermuda. Marshall Cavendish. p. 21. ISBN 978-0-7614-3115-2.
  9. ^ Orr, Tamra (2009). Bermuda. Marshall Cavendish. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-7614-3115-2.
  10. ^ Morlock, Rachael (15 December 2021). Bermuda. Cavendish Square Publishing, LLC. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-5026-6301-6.
  11. ^ Means, United States Congress House Committee on Ways and (1920). Survey of the American Onion and Garlic Industry. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 9.
  12. ^ United States Dept of Agriculture (1926). Agriculture Yearbook. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 379.
  13. ^ Foreign Crops and Markets. Bureau of Markets and Crop Estimates. 1925. p. 794.
  14. ^ Inc, Active Interest Media (September 1995). Vegetarian Times. Active Interest Media, Inc. p. 39. {{cite book}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
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