Growing shallots from the store

1) I've read that you can just plant the bagged shallots you buy at the grocery and you'll get very good yields - is this true?
2) I'm in 6b - is it too late to plant these shallots now?
3) Can shallots also be used as green onions by just cutting the tops? If so, could I (judiciously) harvest the tops and still get a shallot?
4) How long does it take shallots to reach maturity with a bulb? How do you tell if it's mature?
5) What kind of spacing would you recommend in raised beds with good soil?
6) I'm growing chives from seeds (slow) and they seem to have survived transplant into a large container I'm using for a variety of herbs. Chives have very nice (edible) purple flowers - do shallots flower as well?

Thanks - I'm totally fascinated by the whole allium family. I only wish my wife didn't hate the entire onion category so I would have someone to enjoy them with!

Mark

Hi Mark, I am not sure if you meant you bought the Shallots ready to eat, or you bought some tiny ones ready to plant, if they were ready to eat, then they are already mature, IF you bought them ready to plant out in the garden then you are not too late to plant them in your zone, the spacing I would use is 6 inches apart and rows 12 inches apart, but you can always use the spaces between the rows for short growing things like salad crops, radishes, lettuce etc, as they crop in a shorter time than the onions. Shallots are much milder flavoured than most other onions and the way to plant them id to use your fingers to make the holes as they only go into the soil up to the neck of the small bulbs, the bulbs mature under the soil in little groups attached to each other, dont add manure for this years crop as they dont like this, last years manured ground will be fine, but add a handful of general fertilisers around the rows and fork this into the soil. they mature quite fast and if planted now, should be ready by about July weather depending, the way to tell if they are ready for harvesting is when the green leaves turn yellow, what I then do is, carefully lift them out with my garden fork and lightly shake the soil away, then I either lay them on top of the soil so the bulbs harden up a bit, or remove them completely and lay them on a wire mesh in a cool place (garage) till they are completely dried, then I tie them in clumps by the leaves into long strings and use them as required, hope this is some help to you.
By the way, if you like all the Allium family, I grow some really nice ornamental onions, they come in all different heights and colours from white to deep purple, the flowers vary from huge football sized flowers to tiny birds egg size, they are perennial and come back year after year, they are bulbs too, but you cant eat them, the tall ones are great mixed in with other flowering plants, Good Luck. WeeNel.