Large onions

[oliver90owner]

Showing, it is a hobby, lots of people like to grow things to show.


Agreed and, of course, they do not all finish at that size!

 

[enrico]

Just sown tomatoes and chillies. Like them in the summer so plant early. Autumn is always too late for me!

 

[tonybloke]

really large onions aren't grown from seed

 

[pargyle]

Just sown tomatoes and chillies. Like them in the summer so plant early. Autumn is always too late for me!

Wow ...where have you got them ? In the airing cupboard ? A bucket of water in my greenhouse has been frozen for two days ... nothing would germinate.

 

[Luminos]

Wow ...where have you got them ? In the airing cupboard ? A bucket of water in my greenhouse has been frozen for two days ... nothing would germinate.

I use an electric propagator for mine

 

[Chrisfnvs]

All of the large exhibition onions are grown from seed nowadays if you are aiming for the show bench that is, the traditional time to sow was boxing day but the elite growers now sow early December, don`t forget they have all the equipment and facilities to do so, heated propagation rooms, heated and light greenhouses with lighting for 24 hours a day for the first few weeks then gradually reduced down to supplement natural day light, heating cables and fans to circulate the air etc, they will be grown in perfect conditions and potted on until planting in their final growing position in the onion house in late April early March where they stay until ready to harvest in July, they will then need a period of 5/6 weeks to ripen to a golden straw colour which in its self is an art, if everything goes according to plan and i say if, you will have a set of 6lbs onions for the September shows, you can still grow decent sized onions for the kitchen table from sets and some shows have a separate class for onions grown from sets, but they will not be a patch on those grown from seed, you must grow the right cultivar (strain) it is a waste of time growing seeds from the usual seed companies (for the show bench)to compete you need seed from exhibitors who have spent years selecting and selecting most having originally come from Kelsae strain. Chris

 

[Drinkstone]

My onion sets are crap this year, most rotted in the mud, however, garlic is doing fine.

Not to late to get some more in I think. I have my first seed sown on Boxing Day now up 2" inches and repotted, sown in propagator now in greenhouse. Second batch just put in. If no greenhouse or propagator what about a plastic cloche? Have another go what have you got to lose.

 

[pargyle]

Not to late to get some more in I think. I have my first seed sown on Boxing Day now up 2" inches and repotted, sown in propagator now in greenhouse. Second batch just put in. If no greenhouse or propagator what about a plastic cloche? Have another go what have you got to lose.

My onions are decimated ... were under water for nearly a week ... only a handful visible now ... too wet to do any investigation but I'll start some more sets off next month if it dries up. Garlic (both normal and elephant) doing incredibly well ... weather doesn't seem to have affected them at all.

Something has devoured all my overwintering cabbage plants and the broad beans are getting nibbles in the leaves - thought it was too wet and cold for leaf beetles but that's what it looks like ?

 

[biglongdarren]

have only been growing veg for three years now,the first year i used onion sets but the last two years i have sown from seed,usually sow around the 3rd week in january.
i pull them in september and i am still using them yet,although a few did turn brown in the middle,most of them are still fine.
old age is giving me a big onion head too
Darren

 

[Erichalfbee]

What a grand shot (the second one )
Better than the fence full of moles I used to see when I lived in Cumbria.

 

[Chrisfnvs]

Nice Shallots Darren the key to being able to store Onions over winter is in getting them dry enough before storage, all the Onion family will be prone to neck rot if the tops are still a bit green before storage, so drying them as in your picture or on some wire mesh is essential, they look nice Darren what variety were they ? Chris

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

For me, I don't see the point of growing them.
The reason being, the farms around us grow onions, parsnips, carrots, potatoes, small pickle onions, swedes, etc. As the tractors and trailers pass the house, on the corner of our top field, they drop a large part of their load for us to pick up for free. ( Well that's how I see it).
We still have bags for life full of them sitting outside the back door, so I don't think I will be growing them yet...

 

[biglongdarren]

For me, I don't see the point of growing them.
The reason being, the farms around us grow onions, parsnips, carrots, potatoes, small pickle onions, swedes, etc. As the tractors and trailers pass the house, on the corner of our top field, they drop a large part of their load for us to pick up for free. ( Well that's how I see it).
We still have bags for life full of them sitting outside the back door, so I don't think I will be growing them yet...

any wonder there free after falling off the back of a lorry i wouldnt be paying for bruised dented onions either.
Darren

 

[enrico]

What a grand shot (the second one )
Better than the fence full of moles I used to see when I lived in Cumbria.

The reason you can see onions like that is cos the fence WAS full of dead moles,!
Too many live ones here! They work their way along the onion sets turning them on their sides!

 

[SixFooter]

on of the several downsides to owning an allotment full of asian people is there continuos growing of onions and several other plants, this means that there is some where at all times harbouring a pest or desiase and as such, i have no chance of growing any thing for that long without it sucomming to death, rot or mites

Ignorant in 3 respects!

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Ignorant in 3 respects!

Four, if you include spelling.


Dusty