Crop Rotation Group
Allium (Onion family)
|
|
Soil
Fertile, well-drained soil enriched with compost.
|
Position
Full sun.
|
Frost tolerant
Yes.
|
Feeding
Mulch with compost before planting your onions. Do not feed plants that are nearing maturity if you want very sweet onions.
|
Companions
-
|
Spacing
Single Plants: 11" (30cm) each way (minimum)
Rows: 11" (30cm) with 11" (30cm) row gap (minimum)
|
Sow and Plant
Start seeds in pots under cover in late winter before planting out in spring. Sow 6-7 seeds per station to grow 4-5 plants.
Our Garden Planning Tool can produce a personalized calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area.
|
Notes
Onions respond to changing day length. Grow short-day varieties in southern latitudes. Long-day varieties work best in northern areas. Try growing different varieties from seed to explore differences in bulb color, size and shape.
|
Harvesting
Harvest young onions as scallions. When bulbs form and the tops of the plants fall over, pull them and cure in a warm place for about 10 days before storing.
|
Troubleshooting
Weed early and often to keep onions growing strong. Seedlings are less likely to bolt (produce flowers) compared to bulb onions grown from sets.
|