Onion (bulb)
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- Vegetables and herbs Growing Guides
Onions are a simple, fuss-free crop to grow and will store well throughout the winter. Although they take a while to grow, they require very little effort and nothing beats a large braid of home-grown onions to use throughout the winter.
Growing calendar | |
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Sow outdoors (seed) | Mar - mid Apr |
Plant out/transplant (sets) | Mar - mid Apr |
Harvest | Mid Jul - Sep |
How to grow bulb onions
Bulb onions can be grown from seed or from 'sets' (small bulbs). If you're growing onions from seed, sow the onion seed 1.5cm deep in rows 15-20cm apart. Thin the seedlings to 5-10cm apart. To grow from sets, plant the sets 5-10cm apart in rows 15-20cm apart.
Carefully remove weeds by hand. Water the plants in dry weather, stopping once the bulbs have swollen.
Harvesting and using bulb onions
Dig up the onion bulbs on a dry day around two weeks after the leaves turn yellow and topple over. Onions are easiest to harvest if you loosen them with a hand fork. Leave the bulbs to dry out in the sun before storing. Plaiting or braiding onions is a good space-saving way to store them.
Tips on growing bulb onions
Break off any flower stems (scapes) that appear. The softer part of the scapes are delicious!
Growing notes | |
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Difficulty | Easy |
Germination time | 21 days |
Average time to harvest | 20 weeks |
Equipment needed | None |
Average plant size | 30cm tall, 10cm wide |
Family group to grow with | Alliaceae: garlic, shallot |
Seed saving notes | 2 - Annual, can cross-pollinate |