PlantingOnions

Onions

There are two ways to grow onions; from seeds or from sets. It is easy to grow onions from seed. They are generally started off in seed trays in late winter and then planted out in March or April. Onion sets are actually small onions that have been lifted early and then sold on. We plant them in the ground again in spring. There are some varieties that can be planted in autumn and they overwinter - these are generally called japanese onions.

Onion sets are planted by pushing the baby onion into the soil. They should be just deep enough so that the whispy neck is showing above ground. Sometimes the birds come along and tug at this bit so you need to look over the rows a few days after planting to see if any need pushing back in. Once the sets have started to root the birds won't be able to pull them out easily. They are positioned approximately 15cms apart in the row with 30cms between the rows.

Onions are easy to grow and will be ready to harvest when the tops start to die back - usually in July or August. Some books talk of bending over the tops of the onions to hasten the harvesting process. From experience we have found that this damages the top of the onion and can let rot enter the onion. At harvesting it is best to choose a sunny day to lift the onions. They can be left out in the sun to dry off and harden up the skins. This gives the best conditions for storing the onions.

Shallots

These are planted in just the same way as onion sets with the same spacings between rows. The growing process is that little bulb becomes lots of little bulbs all joined together at the roots. They are harvested in the same way as onions and are then broken apart at the base for use.

Garlic

Garlic is planted in the same way as onions and shallots. The difference is that the seed garlic is bought as a whole head and this has to be split into individual cloves for planting. It is recommended that you do not use a garlic head from the supermarket as they may not be disease free. Buying from a seed catalogue means they will be certified disease free.

Because we are not ready yet to plant these sets we are going to get ahead of the game by planting them in modules and putting them into a cold greenhouse (a cold frame would be as good). They will start to grow there and then they can be transplanted as we manage to dig some beds.