Onions

[digitS']

The only onion family member that I have seeded in the fall (late August, actually) has been Walla Walla sweet onions. Didn't work so great for me - probably because of sub-zero winter weather. Two out of 3 years, nearly all the seedlings bolt to seed as soon as they can rather than growing into large plants :/. For me, it is best to plant onion & leek seed indoors, in the late winter.

I don't feel that any of the onions require full sun. They do fairly well without it.

The idea with fish emulsion for me is that it can be used as a liquid, foliar fertilizer in June and early July. I haven't really tried to put so much on that it benefited the soil.

Steve

 

[ducks4you]

For me, it is best to plant onion & leek seed indoors, in the late winter.

Steve

Really? This is exciting, because I'm setting up my new shelving unit with grow lights, etc., for indoor starts this weekend. When would you start them for next year's garden?

 

[boggybranch]

You know, many things defy logical thinking...take short-day and long-day onions....your brain tells you long-day for the long growing days in the south and short-day for the shorter growing season in the north.......but, nooooooooooo. (Where's that bottle of Tylenol?)

 

[digitS']

I have to always remind myself that the "days" thing is when do they form bulbs.

The north has long days and those darn onions had better wait a little past the longest day on June 21st to make bulbs or we'd be onion-deprived! All of our hamburger onions would never be single slices but have to be little bits and mixed with the ketchup . . . who does that anyway? Oh, I guess it's okay.

Sowing onion seed? I do that the very last thing before firing up the greenhouse in early March. It is a bit of a dilemma to decide whether the quick-germinating seed should go in the still unheated greenhouse or go on top the fridge where it's warm and there may be lots of other containers with sprouting seeds.

Onion sets are the first things to go into the ground each year but the onion seedlings are just too vulnerable to weeds to go out so soon. I want to be able to cultivate a couple of times before setting the little things out - hoping that there won't be anything to compete with plants little larger than dog hairs . The seedlings go out about the time of the last frost and are about 6 or 7 weeks old.

I suppose if I didn't buy some sweet onion starts, I might feel the need to sow earlier . . . maybe the seedlings would grow okay in a greenhouse without heat in February . I know they cannot be allowed to take up room in my one, good south window here in the house.

Steve

 

[HiDelight]

ok I mentioned in another thread I am going to devote 3 4X8 beds to onions
freshen them all with some compost and aged poo
should I put anything else in? the beds are nice and were freshened last year..have pretty much rested for a couple of years just grew some beans and greens in them

no leeks this year.. I am have a lot of garlic beds and now these three onion beds ..I have to leave room for other things I love ..especially tomatoes! next year for the leeks

I plan to plant them as soon as they come and the beds are ready

I am really going to enjoy growing these onions this year!

thanks for all the good advice ..please keep chatting about this wonderful vegetable! I want to know everything!

if I put them in next month (with the peas) should I tent them? or will they be fine? I never tent the garlic

 

[digitS']

Onions can take some cold but I suppose that if your starts get too much after setting out, it may make them bolt to seed rather than make bulbs. If you can get away with planting peas in February, HiD, I imagine that you could put the onions in that month as well. Wow ! We may still have subzero weather in that month!

Back when I thought of onion bulbs as roots or something other than the modified leaves that they are, I thought that they would benefit from lots of potassium. You know, like beets or potatoes. I put a good dose of wood ashes on half my onion growing area.

Here in the arid interior of the Wild West, there is plenty of potassium in the soil. And, the soil has a high pH, generally. I think I pushed the pH too high for good onion growth with all the wood ashes. It was a good test since I went right across the area where the onions were planted - - probably cut production by about half :/!

I don't know what that might mean in your "rain-soaked" corner of the West. The soil probably has a fairly low pH and may be deficient in K. However, I think fertilizing with aged manure should go a long way to correcting all that.

Steve

 

[Beekissed]

Some links about successful onion culture:

http://www.mastergardeners.org/picks/onions.html



And this one is great!

http://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/publication/HG_2004-03.pdf



http://www.vegetable-garden-guide.com/how-to-grow-onions.html

Below are important points to remember so that you know how to grow onions of maximum yield.
Keep weeds down as to much growth will affect the quality of the crop. Preferably weed by hand as onions hate having their roots disturbed.

Feed occasionally with a liquid fertiliser and water the onion plants if the weather is dry... but not otherwise. Apply a mulch to keep weeds down and conserve moisture; don't cover the swelling bulbs though, as they need to be exposed to the sun.

Cut off any flower stems that appear - you want all the plants energy going into swelling the bulb and not setting seed. Stop watering once the onions have swollen and begin to ripen.

I read somewhere that onions will be sweeter if they are not watered past a certain time in their growth. I have had great success with Candy~big, fine textured, sweet and stores well in the proper place. My cellar is too damp for onions, so they get stored in my attic.

 

[HiDelight]

I have very acidic soil and have to lime to get to a 6-7

awesome for berries!!!

also yes I can plant peas and spinach by President's day and usually before
I plant chives and parsley as well next month (well I transplant the billion I have in Feb so they can have a fresh start)


thanks so much for the links Beekissed very good info! I think I may know all this from having researched to grow them in the past ..but I retain things like a colander lately ...reading it I know the beds I have are perfect ..I will amend ..I already limed them and see what I can produce when the sets come

very exciting

 

[old fashioned]

Okay after reading all posts, I'm kinda cornfused...I usually do companion planting to keep down on pest/disease naturally, grow more in available space, etc...in all my books and practice I've never grown peas/beans with onions. Though I do plant in and around tomatoes, cabbage family and strawberries.
I've always grown from sets since seeds take too long (though I'm considering another try) and have heard or read that any type of seed (bean, tomato, onion bulb) should be planted 3 x the size of the seed/bulb deep. One year I did plant my onions just under the surface and got wide but shallow onions-not round like a ball, but more like a disk (2 or 3 slices vs 5 or 6)-may have been the variety
I've tried Walla Walla from little plants but no success, not sure if it's the weather or me. I'm in South Puget Sound area and usually try to wait until March-espcially with the past couple of winters around here. Last year in my area got snow every month from Nov thru May-didn't always last very long but showed up just the same and we won't discuss Dec 2008.
I get my sets locally and I think are yellow storage type-not sure of the actual variety, last season I got the best harvest yet, but still need to plant more next time.
I tried leeks a few years ago, they grew great and I ended up giving them away since nobody in the family liked them. go figure!

I'd like to know more about growing Walla Walla's or if it's even possible here.

 

[digitS']

Okay after reading all posts, I'm kinda cornfused... I'd like to know more about growing Walla Walla's or if it's even possible here.

Well, they certainly should be possible - they are Washington State's official state vegetable . . . . ?

Clark County Extension says that Walla Walla seed is best planted in August or September. I imagine that it would be true for the south Puget Sound with its similar climate.

I cannot "get away" with overwintering the seedlings because they bolt to seed in the spring. However, my gardening climate is much different from yours. (And, that's one reason why "PNW gardening" books and "academic" information from WSU Puyallup are so useless to me !)

Steve