onion harvesting questions

[cityfarmer]

I have been reading about when to harvest onions. As can be seen in the picture the tops have fallen over but they what might be more difficult to see in the picture is the tops are still green. I harvested one a few weeks ago and it was bigger than a golf ball but smaller than a baseball. They are Candy Hybrid onions that ordered from Jung's as plants. They were planted outside April 18th. They are supposed to get to the size of softballs but I am not that concerned about size. The one that I picked I let stay outside for 2-3 days in the sun but it got soft. Are they ready to harvest? Usually by now my onions have all rotted away. Good news is that none of them are starting to flower and they smell like onions. My problem is, we are supposed to get rain due to "monsoons" pretty much everyday for the next week. Is there another way to cure them? Even without rain, they would still get wet from the sprinkler system if I leave them in the ground. So I guess my two questions are:
Are they ready to harvest?
If so, how do I cure with humidity and rain since I might not be home when the rain starts to bring them back inside?

Thank you for all your help and patience in answering yet more onion harvesting questions!

 

[Sunsaver]

Hi, CF! From the looks of your photo, all the tops are down and those onions are ready to harvest. Just rinse the dirt off gently with a garden hose. Spread them out on some newspaper on your dinning room table, in a guest room, or on the porch. It's never good to leave veggies out in the sun or on the ground where bugs can eat them. Commercial growers just do that because it makes it easier to wash and process large quantities of produce that have hardened or "cured".
Sorry you didn't get real big onions. Onions are heavy nitrogen feeders and need plenty of nitrogen fertilizer to attain anything bigger than golf ball size. Southern growers should plant short day varieties in the fall. Northern growers should plant long day varieties, as soon as the ground can be worked in the spring.
Your garden photos look great, CF! Keep them coming.

 

[digitS']

Ditto to everything Sunsaver has said.

My experience with Candy was that they are a nice onion, mature a little earlier than others, and benefit from a very good name choice. Candy did not grow to softball size nor to the size of some of the other onions in my garden. That earlier maturity may have something to do with that.

It looks like you have a good crop and I wouldn't hesitate to pull them and move them somewhere dry and out of very much sun. You did good!

Steve

 

[scottaleger]

Don't worry this is nice,

 

[cityfarmer]

Thanks for all your help! I will probably harvest them Friday morning!

 

[journey11]

It is better to harvest them after a few days of a dry spell if you can. They are ready now and won't grow any bigger, but you've still got a lot of green in those tops. I think you could get away with waiting until that rain passes (Unless it hasn't been raining already? Then just cure them inside. Avoid humidity/dampness, it will cause some to rot.) I like my tops to be good and dry before I cut them off. Cutting them off green leaves more opening for rot to get into the bulb, especially under humid conditions. Small onions don't keep as long, but you could chop them up and freeze or dehydrate them. I'm using up all my small ones in my canning recipes.

 

[cityfarmer]

I got the onions harvested this morning. There are 69 of them. How long does it take them to cure?

 

[sparkles2307]

It is better to harvest them after a few days of a dry spell if you can. They are ready now and won't grow any bigger, but you've still got a lot of green in those tops. I think you could get away with waiting until that rain passes (Unless it hasn't been raining already? Then just cure them inside. Avoid humidity/dampness, it will cause some to rot.) I like my tops to be good and dry before I cut them off. Cutting them off green leaves more opening for rot to get into the bulb, especially under humid conditions. Small onions don't keep as long, but you could chop them up and freeze or dehydrate them. I'm using up all my small ones in my canning recipes.

OK #1, do I store onions in like, a burlap sack, a tupperware tote, braid and hang?

#2, I thought adding onions to canned things caused concerns for spoilage?

 

[vfem]

You can can onions... I make several things with onions in it that I can. Just remember, low acid.

Curing is simple. Leave out in full sun for 1 afternoon just to start the curing process. This also helps get those dirty layers of outside skin super dry so you can just wipe off the dirt and top later of paper skin without wetting the onion at all. Second step is to braid or cut off the tops. If cutting, leave at least 1" on the top to protect the inside from moisture issues during the cure process. Step three leave in a warm place with good airflow but no direct sunlight. A porch with an over hang, a corner in a shed or extra room in the house. Make sure air can flow freely around your onions while curing. If cutting I use old window screens and stack them with a single layer of onions on each one, then store on a north facing porch with over hang.

Curing can take 3 weeks, give or take depending on humidity levels where you live.

 

[journey11]

Sparkles, it's best to give them plenty of air flow. Burlap would work, or braiding. I save up mesh citrus bags to put mine in and hang them under the stairwell in my basement. Doesn't have to be cold, just needs good air circulation.

I'm not aware of any problems canning with them. Salsa has onions in it. You can put onions in with beans, pickles, or just by themselves, etc. I put them in my chili. Anytime it is a low acid food or there were lots of onions in it, you'd have to pressure can it.

Mine took a couple of weeks too. It's so humid here! I just kept checking on them to see if the tops were good and dry. The roots will dry too.