All things Allium - Leeks, onion, shallots etc

[BrideXIII]

You do the following SBP

Sow seed of the type you want (Open pollinated, not F1) and grow said onions.
Save a dozen good onions and replant the following March.
These onions will complete their life cycle and all will bolt, leaving you with a seed head. When this starts to dry off, pop a paper bag over the seed head and secure with an elastic band to catch the seed.
When reasonably dry, cut them off and lay in a seed tray lined with newspaper and keep turning till dry and the seeds start falling out.
Seperate the seeds from the chaff and store in a dry cool place.
Label well.

thank for that PW , cos i was encouraged to plant the last of my late dads red onions cos it had shoots, and its doing well under cover with the strawbs, but i had no idea what to do with it from then on in, so basically i just leave it and hope it 'blows'?

[smallblueplanet]

...Save a dozen good onions and replant the following March...

Thanks for the info PW.

Ohhhh, but we seem to be a year out for next years crop of seeds then! Doh! Might try and tap you up next November for some more of your glorious rose de roscoff seeds Monsieur Pigletwillie.

[pigletwillie]

No worries Manda, I will be planting some of the onions grown last yerar from my seed and will get fresh seed from them.

[bobleponge]

Today I planted Atal leeks from Lucien Clause, planted in the style described by PW, as I have had poor success with leeks.
Also planted Fothergills White Lisbon Spring onions, again as PW described.
Will plant more on the 7th in the same fashion and carry out a control as I grow the 2 lots side by side, with exactly the same treatments.

In the interest of science/the moon/I dont know what, today I planted exactly the same as above, but this time on a moon day.
The 2 different lots are on the same tray and will be treated exactly the same until the end of the experiment.

[Newbie]

Planted a pinch of paris Silverskin onion seeds in two pots filled with moist peat-free multi purpose compost, covered with a slight sprinkling of compost, didn't water as the compost was quite moist, put in an unheated propergator & placed on kitchen window sill, crossed fingers .

[BrideXIII]

that will teach me to moan about my shallots, they must like the severe cold is all i can say, cos i checked my beans and onions today, and lo and behold, shallots have lil shoots on them

i is happy now.

plus one of my leeks seeds has germinated

[Two_Sheds]

Our Wilkinsons got their shallots and onion sets in today (spuds too)

[zazen999]

All allium modules have little seedlings, except the banana shallots.

[FROSTYFRECKLE]

Red Brunswick onions have germinated today

[BrideXIII]

i am exasperated, my toms were so quick, but me alliums are making me beg, still only one up.

[maytreefrannie]

Not a peep out of my onion sets and garlic put down on the shortest day.

[FROSTYFRECKLE]

Japanese Bunching Onions germinated today

[BrideXIII]

two leeks up now
and 1 italian red onion germinated overnight

[FROSTYFRECKLE]

Today it's the turn of White Lisbon to germinate

[Seahorse]

Today I've sown small amounts of:

Onion - Red Baron
Onion - Mammoth Improved
Onion - Rosanna
Onion - Tonda Musona
Onion - Ramata di Milano
Onion - Bedfordshire Champion

Shallot - Banana

Leek - Carentan 2
Leek - Solaise Blue
Leek - Jaune de Poitou

They're in a recycled polystyrene tray that I bought some winter pansies in, on my kitchen worktop in front of a large east facing window.