Onions in garden

b54red · January 18, 2014

I just got through setting out between 80 and 100 onion seedlings into the garden today. They are all Bermudas which are the only onion I have found that grows good here and also is a decent keeper. Vidalia types do great here but they don't keep well at all. I love good red onions but after trying about a half dozen different ones with little or no luck I have just decided to stick with the Bermudas from now on.

I start my seed in DE in a medium size flower pot in October. Once they come up I try to give them a little mild fertilizer every week or so until they get larger and then I give them a full strength dose once they get 8 to 10 inches tall. With over a 100 plants growing in the single pot you have to keep them watered and fertilized well in order to get decent sized seedlings to set out. Around two weeks before I am going to set them out I clip the tops back so they are between 4 and 5 inches tall then fertilize them well. I let the DE dry out pretty good the last few days so they will separate easily. The shorter clipped plants are much easier to handle when setting them out and much easier to set in an upright position. As I am planting them I drag a bag of pine bark fines behind me and mulch them well as soon as I get them planted. I then water them well and give them a dose of Miracle Grow or some other liquid fertilizer within a few days of planting.

Bill

yopper · January 21, 2014

24 below zero last night & 20 inches of snow on the garden .... onion plants still in texas!!! YOPPER

Longlake · January 21, 2014

Thanks for posting this info, Bill! I'm trying onions from seed for the first time this year, and plan to use DE because it worked so well on the tomatoes last year. It looks like you start your onions about 3 months prior to plant-out? If so, I should probably get mine going soon. Do you think a 3" deep tray will work for them? Or do the roots need more depth than that? Any other helpful hints?

Oh, and while I'm at it, a huge THANKS for all the info you've posted on bleach spray for tomatoes. It's become my go-to for clearing up gray mold and septoria...works like a charm!

loulac · January 22, 2014

I'm impressed by all the care you give to your onion seedlings, I wonder if you have ever tried buying very small bulbs and bury them in line in your garden. You can find different varieties -white, red, purple. They will start growing as soon as the temperature is warm enough and they will require only some weeding. Good luck !

b54red · January 22, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Longlake

Thanks for posting this info, Bill! I'm trying onions from seed for the first time this year, and plan to use DE because it worked so well on the tomatoes last year. It looks like you start your onions about 3 months prior to plant-out? If so, I should probably get mine going soon. Do you think a 3" deep tray will work for them? Or do the roots need more depth than that? Any other helpful hints?

Oh, and while I'm at it, a huge THANKS for all the info you've posted on bleach spray for tomatoes. It's become my go-to for clearing up gray mold and septoria...works like a charm!

It usually takes them about 3 months to be ready. You need to put them in a much deeper container or the roots will be too bound up. I usually use a 8 inch deep or larger pot. I put something in the bottom so the DE will not slip out of the drain hole and then fill it up and thoroughly soak the DE before seeding and then cover with a thin layer of DE and wet that. The biggest problem with the deeper pot comes when you try to bottom water. It can take a long time so once the onion seedlings are well established I carefully water from the top.

Bill

Longlake · January 22, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by b54red

It usually takes them about 3 months to be ready. You need to put them in a much deeper container or the roots will be too bound up. I usually use a 8 inch deep or larger pot. I put something in the bottom so the DE will not slip out of the drain hole and then fill it up and thoroughly soak the DE before seeding and then cover with a thin layer of DE and wet that. The biggest problem with the deeper pot comes when you try to bottom water. It can take a long time so once the onion seedlings are well established I carefully water from the top.

Bill

Thanks for the additional info...I'll grab some of my deeper pots and put landscape fabric in the bottom so the DE doesn't just fall through.

shelleybean · January 10, 2015

I'm growing a Bermuda onion this year, Crystal Wax. I care more about sweet flavor that storage ability.

AZGardener · April 20, 2015

Hey guys! My question piggy backs on this onion post so I thought I would ask vs starting a new thread... How do you know when the onions are ready to harvest? I have about 40 red and 40 yellow onions, that I started from transplant in early Feb. Some of the stalks are big and perkier then others so its hard to tell if those are ready and maybe the others aren't? Or just pick one and see? 3 mos from Feb 15th ish would put me in mid May. Thanks in advance!

Father'sDaughter · April 20, 2015

Typically with onions you want to wait until the tops flop over and dry up if you want to store them for any length of time.

AZGardener · April 20, 2015

Interesting... With our heat I suppose they will be ready by June?? Its in the 90's here already... Gah!

Stvrob · April 20, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZGardener

Interesting... With our heat I suppose they will be ready by June?? Its in the 90's here already... Gah!

Keep them moist, they are probably starting to bulb now? Don't drop the ball here in the last inning.

I read somewhere that the perfect sweet onion will have 13 leaves by the time its ready for harvest.

Edit: here is where I read about 13 leaves:
http://myemail.constantcontact.com/T...id=o9DKJ2s5Ioo

troad · April 21, 2015

The tops of the onions will start to fall over as they near the end of growing.
If the perkier onions have a solid talk in the center of the bulb they are probably trying to go to seed.
If you can keep them well watered and as little stressed as possible as they are bulbing you will get fewer plants growing seed stalks and more storage bulbs.

beeman · April 21, 2015

For all the DE users around. Can I suggest you have a look at the video towards the bottom of this page for an automatic watering idea?
I am in the process of using it and it's working well.
http://www.bigelowbrook.com/Products...p/Default.aspx

AZGardener · April 25, 2015

Well I only have 2-3 leaves, still. This is 2 months after planting. So apparently I'm not watering enough? I will give them some fish emulsion today, as its supposed to rain tonight. Hopefully.

Stvrob · April 25, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZGardener

Well I only have 2-3 leaves, still. This is 2 months after planting. So apparently I'm not watering enough? I will give them some fish emulsion today, as its supposed to rain tonight. Hopefully.

Mine usually have 2 to 3 leaves when I transplant them. Are they short day onions? What variety are they?

January 18, 2014	#1
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	Onions in garden I just got through setting out between 80 and 100 onion seedlings into the garden today. They are all Bermudas which are the only onion I have found that grows good here and also is a decent keeper. Vidalia types do great here but they don't keep well at all. I love good red onions but after trying about a half dozen different ones with little or no luck I have just decided to stick with the Bermudas from now on. I start my seed in DE in a medium size flower pot in October. Once they come up I try to give them a little mild fertilizer every week or so until they get larger and then I give them a full strength dose once they get 8 to 10 inches tall. With over a 100 plants growing in the single pot you have to keep them watered and fertilized well in order to get decent sized seedlings to set out. Around two weeks before I am going to set them out I clip the tops back so they are between 4 and 5 inches tall then fertilize them well. I let the DE dry out pretty good the last few days so they will separate easily. The shorter clipped plants are much easier to handle when setting them out and much easier to set in an upright position. As I am planting them I drag a bag of pine bark fines behind me and mulch them well as soon as I get them planted. I then water them well and give them a dose of Miracle Grow or some other liquid fertilizer within a few days of planting. Bill

January 21, 2014	#3
Longlake Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: MN Posts: 142	Thanks for posting this info, Bill! I'm trying onions from seed for the first time this year, and plan to use DE because it worked so well on the tomatoes last year. It looks like you start your onions about 3 months prior to plant-out? If so, I should probably get mine going soon. Do you think a 3" deep tray will work for them? Or do the roots need more depth than that? Any other helpful hints? Oh, and while I'm at it, a huge THANKS for all the info you've posted on bleach spray for tomatoes. It's become my go-to for clearing up gray mold and septoria...works like a charm! __________________ My garden is like a teenager - One minute I'm basking in it's glow and the next I'm cursing it's attitude and headstrong independence.

January 10, 2015	#7
shelleybean Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 2,648	I'm growing a Bermuda onion this year, Crystal Wax. I care more about sweet flavor that storage ability. __________________ Michele

April 20, 2015	#8
AZGardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Zone 9b Phoenix,AZ Posts: 390	Hey guys! My question piggy backs on this onion post so I thought I would ask vs starting a new thread... How do you know when the onions are ready to harvest? I have about 40 red and 40 yellow onions, that I started from transplant in early Feb. Some of the stalks are big and perkier then others so its hard to tell if those are ready and maybe the others aren't? Or just pick one and see? 3 mos from Feb 15th ish would put me in mid May. Thanks in advance! __________________ Kelly from Phx, AZ Toes and Tomatoes on FB

April 20, 2015	#10
AZGardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Zone 9b Phoenix,AZ Posts: 390	Interesting... With our heat I suppose they will be ready by June?? Its in the 90's here already... Gah! __________________ Kelly from Phx, AZ Toes and Tomatoes on FB

January 21, 2014	#2
yopper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: U.P. Michigan Posts: 91	24 below zero last night & 20 inches of snow on the garden .... onion plants still in texas!!! YOPPER

January 22, 2014	#4
loulac Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: France Posts: 554	I'm impressed by all the care you give to your onion seedlings, I wonder if you have ever tried buying very small bulbs and bury them in line in your garden. You can find different varieties -white, red, purple. They will start growing as soon as the temperature is warm enough and they will require only some weeding. Good luck !

April 20, 2015	#9
Father'sDaughter Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: MA/NH Border Posts: 4,917	Typically with onions you want to wait until the tops flop over and dry up if you want to store them for any length of time.

April 21, 2015	#12
troad Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Des Moines, WA. Posts: 358	The tops of the onions will start to fall over as they near the end of growing. If the perkier onions have a solid talk in the center of the bulb they are probably trying to go to seed. If you can keep them well watered and as little stressed as possible as they are bulbing you will get fewer plants growing seed stalks and more storage bulbs. __________________ There's a fine line between gardening and madness.

April 21, 2015	#13
beeman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 692	For all the DE users around. Can I suggest you have a look at the video towards the bottom of this page for an automatic watering idea? I am in the process of using it and it's working well. http://www.bigelowbrook.com/Products...p/Default.aspx

April 25, 2015	#14
AZGardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Zone 9b Phoenix,AZ Posts: 390	Well I only have 2-3 leaves, still. This is 2 months after planting. So apparently I'm not watering enough? I will give them some fish emulsion today, as its supposed to rain tonight. Hopefully. __________________ Kelly from Phx, AZ Toes and Tomatoes on FB