How to Choose the Right Onion Varieties for Your Location

At the risk of making onion-growing seem complicated (it isn't) remember that the more information you start with, the greater your chances that your first growing season will be a whopping success story rather than ho-hum. That brings us to another three categories onions fall into:

Long-day onions, covers all of Oregon, Nebraska and Pennsylvania and cuts through Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. These form bulbs with 14 to 16 hours of daylight, usually in zone 6 and colder regions of the north, and are planted in late winter and early spring.

Intermediate-day onions hit a wide swath, taking in the top half of California and Texas, and cut through Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. They form bulbs with 12 to 14 hours of sunlight and grow best in zones 5 and 6. They're also planted in the fall where winters are mild and early spring in northern regions.

Short-day onions are the bottom quarter of the states in a semi-circle, so every one of the southern states — generally zone 7 or warmer — fall into this category. They form bulbs within 10 or 12 hours of daylight, require mild winters and when planted in the fall, mature in late spring. In the north, bulbs are smaller.

According to Marshall, flavor and pungency are often what determines the type of onion to look for. Sweet, white onions are long-day varieties while strong-flavored yellow onions fall into the intermediate or short-day categories. When planting, select an area in full sun so your onions won't be shaded by other plants. As far as soil type, it should be well-drained and loose, because compacted soil restricts bulb development. Plant in well-drained highly organic soil.

Reducing the amount of tilling you do and avoiding synthetic fertilizers and nitrogen will help increase the soil's organic matter naturally. Rotating your onions with other crops regularly also reduces the loss of soil nutrients. The minerals and micronutrients already present in your soil negate the insistence that chemicals, including herbicides, are needed to grow healthy crops, though adding compost is universally beneficial.

Article Source: mercola.com

 

How to Choose Onion Varieties for Planting

There are a number of onion types that come in white, yellow and red. Size-wise, they can range from tiny pickling onions to large Spanish cultivars. They can be shaped like a globe, a top or a spindle. It's said that the sweetest varieties are flatter, or rather like an oval with the stem on top. According to Rodale's Organic Life, onion varieties include a perennial bunching type of scallions, called Allium fistulosum, that are practically disease free and insect proof.

And a "multiplier" potato onion from the A. cepa Aggregatum group develops a bulb cluster, so every time you harvest them, you have bulbs to replant for a virtually limitless supply. When you get your onion transplants, try to get them into the ground as quickly as possible. If you can't plant due to rain or whatever, spread them out in a cool, dry area. If they start drying out, it's fine; as members of the lily family of plants, they'll live another three weeks. Once planted, they shoot new roots almost immediately.

When planting sets, you have to push the flatter side down into damp soil. Push until the pointed part of the top is showing and 4 or 5 inches apart. Plant as soon as the ground can be worked, and try to make sure the temperature doesn't fall below 20 degrees F. Rows can be planted as close as 12 inches apart or as far apart as 18 inches. Again, planting too deep keeps onions from forming large bulbs.

Always water immediately after planting, and keep them relatively damp as harvest time gets closer. In between, careful weeding so that foreign plants that are stronger don't choke out what you're trying to grow, especially when plants are young, is important. It may be extremely tempting to put dirt on top of forming onion bulbs, but don't! When you see onion bulbs that appear to be lying there, lifeless, remember that their roots are still underground getting the nutrients they need.

You'll know bulb onions are ready when their tops fall over. It's a natural indication that they're fully mature. Then, pull them up, allow them to dry, separately, clip the roots and cut all but about an inch off the tops. Keep them cool and dry for storage. More pungent onions store longer; sweeter onions need to be used up sooner.

Article Source: mercola.com