This is their 2nd year in the garden.. I always thought onions grew underground but they look like they are going to grow in the stalk. Can someone please clarify?
Thanks so much!
How do onions grow?
Most onions are biennials. That means they form seeds the second year after sprouting. Yours look like they should have been pulled last year.
Yikes.. Iast year they just formed smaller leaves (scallions).. but this year..oops. Do they grow in the ground?
Yours have now gone to the blossom stage and they are putting all their effort into blooming, too late for bulbs. If you've had them in the ground for 2 years then you probably have them planted too deep.
If you planted scallions, that is, green bunching onions, they'll never form bulbs, just thick stems a lot like leeks. But by the time they're in flower, they'll have turned hot and bitter.
Bulb onions can be used as green onions or scallions when very young, but when they form a bulb it usually pops out of the ground where you can see it.
It really does depend on what you planted.
They look like nice white allums!
Thanks all!
I planted mine only a few months ago and they're already starting to flower. Does that mean I should pull them up? Or pull the flowers off?
The bin just said red onions, so I'm not sure of the actual variety. I think I put another type in, too. I haven't looked for a bulb popping out of the ground because I thought it would take several more months for that.
Thats pretty much what happened to me.. I was waiting for a bulb to pop out but...
It is critical to buy onion varieties that are appropriate for your area, and plant them at the right time.
Varieties that grow well in Texas will grow poorly in Pennsylvania, and vice versa. Onions are very sensitive to the day length. In the North, days are very long during the summer (with a short nighttime) and shorter during the winter (I remember it getting dark at 5pm and not getting light until 9am when I lived in New Hampshire). Day vs. Night lengths are not nearly as pronounced in the South and so this affects onion growth dramatically.
It is unlikely that you will find onion starts at Wal-Mart/Lowe's/Home Depot of the correct variety at the correct time for planting. Consult a knowledgeable local nursery.
This message was edited Jul 16, 2009 9:36 AM
Hey Feldon30,
I still have my Granex short-day onion PLANTS from last season. I never planted them. If you think they might still be viable, when should I plant them?
I did consult a knowledgeable local nursery. That's where I got them from. They sell the ones that are appropriate for this area.
I grew bulbing onions last fall from seed for the first time. I kept waiting for the big bulb to appear at the surface. Instead I saw a swelling but they didn't look impressive. I really didn't think they were worth the space and harvested a bit early. I had transplanted too deeply and they did great in spite of it. Beautiful Red Creoles that are a perfect short day. I'm going to start more seeds around October 1.
Will I get seed from the flowers?
Thanks
bre
barhea7 you need to plant long day types for your lattitude. Walla Walla , Alisea Craig, Red Burgermaster ,Mars, and Yellow Spanish are some that will or should grow well where you live.
Now THAT is how onions should grow!
L Tilton thank you this is an every year event since I learned to mostly feed well,weed well.and water well. When I did the Ron Ronco methoid I was a flop . You know the ron Ronco way plant it and for get it LOL. It is a sure fire way to get a flop.
Every time I see one of eweed's photos I'm just consumed with jealousy and grudging admiration. When I grow up, I want to be as good a gardener as he is. Of course he cheats...the PNW is perfect.
They're gorgeous! Mine are ... a bit smaller. My son showed up one day with a bunch of seedlings that he didn't have room for them all, so I squoze them into a spare row.
Next year, I think I'll start my own from seeds inside.
Eweed,
Since you are so obviously successful at growing onions, would you please consider holding a tutorial on growing them? Or, at least post a step-by-step "how to?" I'll sign up for the class.
Linda
Count me in too- those are some fantastic onion plants! eweed, please-tell me what onions I should grow in the TriCities WA area- I put out some WallaWalla plants, ans some Candy- they both did quite well, and I am just now harvesting them. But dry bulbs that I planted in the spring didn't do too well.
Thanks for all the info! And a how-to would be great b/c apparently I have no clue what im doing ^_^
You are all way to kind. I will tell you what I do but just not right now I am just way to busy. Onion season is over now anyway well maybe not in the hotter climates. I type with one finger so it takes a while.Ernie
I planted Texas Sweet this year for my first try at onions. They looked good for the first six weeks but then for some reason I lost the tops. Some looked like an animal might have knocked them over and never righted themselves. Now the tops are all dried up. Is this normal and will the bulbs continue to grow. I have maybe three that are pushing out of the ground and are looking healthy. I only have one that has kept its top and is flowering now. These were puchased at lowes in April. Anyone with any experience with Texas Sweet in the midwest. Thanks
Dave
Calypso: When the tops fall over that is when it's time to pick them. They will not continue to grow once the tops are dry. Also if they start to flower, also time to pick, because the plant will put all it's effort into flowering and not bulb making.
This has been interesting reading. Today I just made my first actual trip into my garden since the beginning of May as I've been sick, and the first things I tried to weed were my onions. Mine had flopped over and didn't look so good...guess that is due to the Ron Ronco method...but I could also see that some of them had bloomed. I've learned alot reading this thread, but it sounds too late for a do-over this year? What do you plant here in the middle (Kansas) - long or short day. I've heard of a day neutral...what is that? Is that what those of us in the middle U.S. should look for? Thanks for all the good information, and eweed, I'll definitely look for your directions as yours are just gorgeous.
Kathy
This message was edited Jul 25, 2009 4:40 PM
I usually by my onion sets at the local greenhouse or hardware. We usually plant white and yellow bulb onions as early as we can work the soil. As they grow we start pulling the tender ones for spring onions. After we are done with the young ones I was taught to step them over, more or less break the stem to keep them from bolting. My GF always did this, he said it forced the bulb to grow. I still have a few flower but mostly they just get bigger. I they dry/wilt them on a wire mesh and braid the stems and store in a ventilated place. Holly's Ric
Oops, forgot the pic. Ric
Aaah, all the times I cringed when I accidentally stepped on them - when i should've been doing it more! Good to know.
My Mars red onions at the NW Washington fair. To get an idea of the size look at the ful sized paper plate they are smothering
The reds again and the yellows above,The whites are to the left of the reds only got a third they were hit by mildew and I had a hard time picking any that were good enough to show.
The final score was a blue ribbon for 2 onion groups. A white ribbon for one onion group. A blue ribbon for two tomatoe groups. and a red ribbon for apples. and a blue ribbon for sweet peppers wah hoo
This message was edited Aug 20, 2009 12:45 AM
This message was edited Aug 20, 2009 12:47 AM
Heaps of congratulations! Those are beyond magnificent.
eweed, Congrats on those ribbons. I will say that your previous pic of your growing onions is amazing. We have been using that Ron Ronco method, Plant it and forget it. LOL We get a nice crop but nothing like what you have. I was also surprised to see how far out of the ground you plant yours. I would say that 3/4s of my onions are in the ground and 1/4 is up. Looks like you have about 1/4 in the ground and 3/4s up, would that be about right?
I just asked Ric why we plant ours deeper and he explained that we want spring onions with the long white top. Then what doesn't get pulled early is left to grow larger and that is why he plants deeper. Holly
Holly then when you get to the point of knowing you are leaving them why not rake the excess away from the plant. Onions just don't develope right when planted to deep. Those big onions you see are growing almost on the top of the ground. The other thing I have done when I have gotten them to deep is hose the dirt away.
All in all it's easier to just plant shallow and grow spring onions some where else.Some times I plant them in a 25 gallon tub very thick and feed them with lots of MG.
Those tomatoes look yummy. I was thinking the same thing maybe next year plant some deep and some shallow.
Nice onions!
Crackless tomatoes! What variety are they?
I want to know what those 1st prize tomatoes are, too! I also would love to see what a slice looks like- I don't like a lot of seeds in my maters! PLEASE show us---
The Tomatoes are Moreton whos see has been off the market for 10 years.Your in luck Harris seed has just this year brought it back. The jury is still out on wheather the new is as good as the old.It has a small seed caviety and is tight.The guy I get seedling starts from after he plants what he needs for his market garden has been using this early beefsteak for his main tomatoe to grow to sell. He sells about 17,000 in 2 inch pots every year. Its a winner LOL
I better stop this tomatoe talk and get back on the topic of onions before the thread police come after me.
eweed I dont mind if you talk about tomatoes ^_^