Shallots - how to get the best yield

[nick the grief]

Nick you said:
You can save your own shallots year on year TEB so you don't need to keep buying them
Could you explain how please? How do you store them over the winter without them sprouting or going soft?
tnx notmilk

What I do is I lif tem in the clumps when the leaves start to brown and then put them on the staging of my greenhouse roots up to dry off in the sun.

After a few days you can shake off or rub off most of the soil and then the bulbs can ripen eventually as you turn them they will just fall apart into the individual bulbs and then I select the best shaped ones and Just stand them up in a seed tray and put them in my small shed at the bottom of the garden ( cool & shady) the rest you eat/cook with or pickle. Come around november/december they will start to sprout and then I just gently push them into plantpak 15's ( 15 modules to a seed tray) in the potting gompost that comes out of my CHrysanthemum pots as it will be low in nitrogen but a fair nit of Phosphates & potash still on the compost which will help the roots form. They are then transfered to the cold greenhouse and left to over winter.

About feb time I give them a spray with warm water to wake the little buggers up and then plant out March/April.

Mine are Hative de Niort so you can plant before or around Christmas without worry. Some of them you can't plant till March or they will bolt ( run to seed) and then they don't store too good.

As to growing from seed. The only one I can think of is Ambition it's an F1 but that its good in this case as you want them all to maure on the same day and be uniform really I guess but you only get 1 per seed ( they don't split) and I'm told you can't save the "sets" for the following year

Hope this helps

take just prior to planting I think this year

[TEB]

As far as I know, Sturon are onion sets and should only have one stem. All of the sets with multiple shoots will be shallots!

Cheers Snadger when I got them they werent labelled but I kinew one were Sturon and I compared them both to a picture and was only 100% incorrect so I am improving .

[TEB]

What I do is I lif tem in the clumps when the leaves start to brown and then put them on the staging of my greenhouse roots up to dry off in the sun.

After a few days you can shake off or rub off most of the soil and then the bulbs can ripen eventually as you turn them they will just fall apart into the individual bulbs and then I select the best shaped ones and Just stand them up in a seed tray and put them in my small shed at the bottom of the garden ( cool & shady) the rest you eat/cook with or pickle. Come around november/december they will start to sprout and then I just gently push them into plantpak 15's ( 15 modules to a seed tray) in the potting gompost that comes out of my CHrysanthemum pots as it will be low in nitrogen but a fair nit of Phosphates & potash still on the compost which will help the roots form. They are then transfered to the cold greenhouse and left to over winter.

About feb time I give them a spray with warm water to wake the little buggers up and then plant out March/April.

Mine are Hative de Niort so you can plant before or around Christmas without worry. Some of them you can't plant till March or they will bolt ( run to seed) and then they don't store too good.

As to growing from seed. The only one I can think of is Ambition it's an F1 but that its good in this case as you want them all to maure on the same day and be uniform really I guess but you only get 1 per seed ( they don't split) and I'm told you can't save the "sets" for the following year

Hope this helps

[ATTACH]1977[/ATTACH]take just prior to planting I think this year

It helps me, many thanks

[Cutecumber]

I don't want to worry you, Nick, but you appear to have a snake in your greenhouse.

[moggssue]

I know I'm too late for this year (and sorry to jump in on yet another thread folks!) but when I buy my sets for next year, is it possible to buy less than the packs I see in garden centres? There are far too many for my likkle space, I would only want around six sets I reckon? Thereafter, I shall follow Nick's advice about saving my own - thanks Nick!

[TEB]

I have noticed that some GC sell them in packs of 10, my local greengrocers also sells them loose.

[moggssue]

Can you plant the ones you buy in the greengrocer then? I'll keep my eye out for smaller packs in GC, have to go further afield than my local one me tinks!

[TEB]

well he sells shallot and onion sets especially for planting mind you so does the local hardware shop - fortunately time has slowed for Ross on Wye and we havent got a McDonalds or Burger King, Kentucky Fried yet (fingers croosed)

[Flummery]

Although I've got them growing away nicely in the garden, I'm still eating the stored ones from last year. Getting to the fag end now but they are a fabulous crop. Can't imagine only wanting 6!

[moggssue]

Its not so much only wanting six (sets to plant that is, hopefully a few more to eat later!!), its not having much room or expertise as yet! I'm trying to do a bit of most things to see what I'm able to grow this year and what sort of crops I get, then going for it with the successful ones next year, and turning over a bit more garden to the veg too! Dont have a greengrocer never mind one who sells stuff to plant, mores the pity! I've got a big bag from the local GC, given half away and will plant the rest out this evening with all fingers and toes crossed!

[Cutecumber]

same for me - I don't have room for the ones I am growing!

[notmilk]

WOW thanks Nick for your very informative reply!
UNfortunately I don't have green house, and as i'm generally busy (read lazy) i don't think i could be bothered with all that!
I'll take the easy route - eat all thiis years crop and buy some sets next year!