Onions from seed

[Stacey Steve]

At the begining of the year I started onions seeds off in trays and then potted them on in the vain hope that I would have more raised beds prepared to plant them out into.

Guess what, they are still in pots and like diminutive spring onions.

I should have some free beds in a couple of months which I can plant them out into. The last two years I have planted sets out in October and let them grow over winter.

My question is would my little onion plants grow on over winter like as if I had used sets?

I assume that they would grow and when the weather turns cold, that they would then slow down or go dormant but pick up again on warm days.

Anyone know the answer?

[Snadger]

I think onion sets rely on the fact that an onion is a biennial and shouldn't run to seed until the second season.
From what I can gather they are grown close together (similar to yours) to inhibit growth the first year.
What I am not sure about is the ripening process allowing the sets to be lifted and planted the following spring. If the amount of water is diminished over a period of time I would guess this would ripen them, but proffessional growers may treat them with something to achieve the same. I know you can get heat treated sets which are supposed to have killed the embrionic seed head.
Worth trying a few out of interest s'pose!

Onion sets are very cheap to buy and although not 100% gauranteed to produce a crop they would be a better prospect I feel.

You could just use them as spring onions of course or plant them (as I do) among other veggies that haven't quite matured yet.
I've done this recently in reverse by planting calabrese in my Japanese onion bed whilst the onions are still there. The onions are now ripening and will soon be lifted leaving the calabrese to romp ahead!

[zazen999]

I grow onions all year round so yes. They do slow down but do better when you plant them into the ground and give them a bit of room.

To give you idea of timescales.
Last September I sowed onions in pinches, so 3 or 4 in pinches around the garden.
Some, I have just harvested as fist sized onions that had pretty much grown as big as they were going to, the tops had fallen over and the neck had narrowed and the tops were drying out nicely.
Some, I harvested as spring onions a couple of weeks ago, these were red onions and hadn't grown anywhere nearly as big as the white ones. They were the same supplier, same 'make' Cipolla - but the white ones grew big and the red ones didnt. Sown within a few weeks of each other.

I give my onions about 9 months if grown from seed, if you can get yours into open ground - even if they go inbetween other crops then they should get a spurt on.

[Shortie]

So Zazen - from seed, you're eating your onions 9 months later? As smaller onions I guess.

Do you ever keep any to treat as sets, and if so do you lift them, dry them and replant, or just leave them in the same ground until they're much bigger onions?

[zazen999]

Not so small; the white ones were fist sized last week!

I often sow them in seed beds [ie clean sieved soil and compost mixed with coffee grounds and surrounded by wooden frame], and transplant into final position once they are big enough/when I need the seed bed for something else. Or they get sown direct and just left. Never lifted any to treat as sets; but have been known to move onions 3 or 4 times when changing my mind about what is going to go where. Moving them does impact on growth though.


Most of the sets planted out last november have bolted; and I have another 50 that were planted out 9 weeks ago into the lottie; we shall see what happens with those. Of the few that haven't bolted though; they are looking absolutely fab - so I haven't give up on using sets quite yet!

[Snadger]

The two renowned bolters from set grown onions are spring planted red and autumn planted Japs.
Luckily I only had a couple of japs (out of about 100) that bolted this year so I will always use Autumn sown sets as opposed to seed and I will always use spring sown red onion seed as opposed to sets!

[zazen999]

Mine that bolted were all white tho'!