Question about onions

tight_jock

I always use a black nylon twine strung around canes to keep the pigeons off. I also make a small hole rather than pushing them in.
I think the onions in question will be Stuttgarter Giant - an excellent and easy to grow variety.
Get them in as soon as you can as onions grow according to day length so the bigger they get before the days start shortening, the better your crop.

nodwah

I'm a bit confused about onions still: I live in Scotland and in a failrly chilly frost pocket so should I have my onions in by now or leave them to later? A friend's Dad said never plant anything till you can sit on the soil with you bare !!!!!! Or do you think that's just his own thing??
My red onion sets that I bought are already sprouting but it's frosty so I wont be sitting on the ground!
Are there any northern gardeners out there or do you know of any books about gardening in the north as we have a shorter growing season up here.

What about the old wives tale about planting onions on boxing day or am I mixing that up with something else?

tight_jock

Some people put onion seed in to overwinter in the ground so , personally I would get them in as soon as the soil is workable. If the weather is looking particularly cold, cover them with fleece or a cloche.
:beer:

nodwah

Thanks for that. I'll put then in this half term if it's any milder. I've also saved the smallest shallots from last year so i'll put them in too

tight_jock

Best of luck. Just keep the weeds down around them and soil moist ( shouldn`t be a problem up at home :rotfl: !!)and they will do the rest themselves.
TJ

toblerone_2

i always plant them on a slight slant to stop birds pulling them up and they still grow straight.you can start in pots if you have teleport watch carol clines veg gardening that was on this week it was all about onion growing and she planted direst and in what looked like toilet roll tubes she also bought some that where in the green(could have been leeks them tho)

nodwah

tight_jock wrote:

Best of luck. Just keep the weeds down around them and soil moist ( shouldn`t be a problem up at home :rotfl: !!)and they will do the rest themselves.
TJ

MOIST - HA!

Syman

how deep does the soil need to be for onions/

i have some small belfast sinks (about 10" deep) will these be okay?

also (off topic i know, sorry) what else veg wise could i use these for.

I have a huge sunny balcony, with some shady areas.

CazW_2

I bought some onion seeds the other day... is it to late to plant them this year?

Also... i have a small area in my boarder about 1.5M long and 40cm wide... its quite heavy soil and quite clay... would they grow here?? or should i put them in pots?

thanks
Caz

mjr600

Nothing wrong with starting them off now in seed trays, plant them in the ground NOT pots when they are large enough to handle without damage, space them 4-6" apart (too close and they will be small), dig some lumpwood BBQ ash into the bed, some grit, sand and a dressing of Growmore or similar. They will remain in the ground over winter and next summer you will get onions to eat.

The other option is to buy heat treated onion sets in autum and plant them instead.