Onion seedlings - worth planting or not?

[Snoop Puss]

I'm making progress on the plot and could actually get some onion seedlings in the ground next week. They're still on sale here. But it would be a bit of an effort to sort out the bed. And it is getting late... They'd be in the ground Thursday or Friday next week if I were to do this.

So what do you reckon? Worth a punt or not?

[Nicos]

No idea.....but maybe leeks instead?
Can you buy pencil sized leeks for planting out?

[Mark Rand]

If it's too late for them to grow to full size, they could still be used as salad onions if they're cheap enough.

[Snoop Puss]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm growing quite a few leeks from seed myself, but I suppose I could grow more and use those instead of onions. Would have the advantage of being able to leave them in the ground rather than having to store them. That's actually a good thought. Maybe I could start more, or is it too late for that?

And yes, that's an option, Mark. But I'd rather have onions for winter use.

[burnie]

My seed grown ones are not that big yet, not sure how your weather would effect the growth, but I would give it a bash if they are not expensive.

[Snoop Puss]

My seed grown ones are not that big yet, not sure how your weather would effect the growth, but I would give it a bash if they are not expensive.

Thanks. Not expensive. They come in bunches of supposedly a hundred but usually 150+ for five euros or thereabouts. I haven't grown onions for a bit and really miss them. They're one thing we get right, somehow.

[Mr Bones]

I'd give it a shot Snoop, it's all part of the fun

[ameno]

It depends how big the seedlings are.
I planted my sets around this time two years ago and I still got decent medium-sized onions by august, so if the seedlings are already a good size then you should still get a half decent crop. Even if they're a bit small, they should still reach at least pickling onion size.

[Snoop Puss]

Right, I'm going to give it a go. I usually plant about four weeks earlier and get very sizeable jobs. To be honest, a bit smaller than that wouldn't go amiss!

ameno, is it daylight hours thing or does temperature help? Here it is likely to bright and hot right through to late September, but obviously the days will be shorter.

[ameno]

Right, I'm going to give it a go. I usually plant about four weeks earlier and get very sizeable jobs. To be honest, a bit smaller than that wouldn't go amiss!

ameno, is it daylight hours thing or does temperature help? Here it is likely to bright and hot right through to late September, but obviously the days will be shorter.

Daylight hours. Basically, they will only grow leaves and roots at any significant rate until days hit a certain length, then they switch to focusing on bulb growth, so if you plant too late then the plant never gets very big before it's bulb-growing time, and so the bulb never gets very big, either, as it doesn't have much leaf and root to fuel it.

[Snoop Puss]

^Thanks. That's what I was afraid of. Even so, I'll give it a go.

Thanks, everyone.