Onions

I use onions in most of my meals, may as well grow them

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I love growing onions, they always look so spectacular reaching up to the sun. They are easy to grow and don’t require a huge amount of space or upkeep.

Onions

Quick tips

Sowing

There are two different ways to grow onions. Which you pick mainly depends on the amount of work you want to put in:

From onion set

This is the easiest route.

Using your finger or a dibber, create a hole a couple of inches deep and push the set into the hole, pointy side up. Cover back up the hole and water generously.

One thing to note about planting from set is that onions are biennial and they grow a bulb in the first year, flowers in the second. As you’re planting a bulb, it will try to flower the year that you plant it. To combat this, snip off the flower head as they appear.

From seed

This route requires more care and attention but can provide better results and is more efficient.

Using a module tray, multisow 4-5 seeds into each module. Water well and pop it on your windowsill or in your greenhouse. As you’re starting these off and waiting for a good root structure, you can start these going a few weeks before you’re due to clear an area of your garden/allotment. They will go in already growing so you will get more productivity from your plot.

Care

Once the stems are big enough, mulch generously around the base. This keeps moisture in (meaning you’ll need to water less) and it keeps the sun off the base of the stem which improves the flavour.

While growing close together, onion stems can get a little tangled. You can help them get the most light by gently separating the stems by running your hands up from the base.

Harvest

If you’re growing from sets and waiting for full onion bulbs, you know they are ready when the stems start to fall over and lay on the ground. When this happens, simply pull them up and lay them in a warm spot for a few days to dry. You will know when they are ready because the bulb will look like an onion you would buy from the supermarket. It’ll look brown and crispy. Cut off the roots and stem with scissors and store.

If you’re growing from multisown seeds, you will have green onions to harvest between 30 and 60 days after planting out. The trick is to thin the group by taking the largest onion which then gives the remaining onions more space to grow. You will eventually be left with one remaining bulb which had room to become a nice sized onion. Harvest by twisting from the base. Don’t pull straight up or dig as it will damage the roots of the rest of the group.

Article written on Apr 22, 2020
Updated Apr 22, 2020

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