Storing Sturon Onion sets until allotment is ready?

[JaniceH]

Hi all
Having literally only just got my allotment, its not ready to even put the raised beds in yet, let alone plant anything. I have however been given by a friend a small bag of Sturon onion sets, probably around 50 little bulbs.

I have gone through the bag and removed any soft, damp or damaged ones, question is, how should I store them until the bed is ready and the weather/time of year is right please?

I do not have a greenhouse or a garage and Im pretty sure that I have the occasional mouse visit my garden shed at home (dont have a shed at the lottie yet).

[Nicos]

What I do.....

Place sets in potting compost in a tray in a frost free , light place.
They'll produce brill roots which will give an in incredible head start when you finally plant them out!

North facing windowsill?...

[lottie dolly]

Thats what i would have said,it's the only option really,you will be suprised at just how big the roots do get,you can put them almost neck and neck in like nicos said,when it comes to planting out,all you need do is tip the tray up,grab the greenery carefully,give a little shake,just to separate the entwined roots,and plant as you would anything else,i find it easier to prep them first,as it saves time when planting,

[Nicos]

Good thing too is that the birds never manage to yank them out after planting!
Bonus!!!!

[lottie dolly]

How true,plus,what you do plant,will be good sets,and take off,so no gaps in your rows ext,

[JaniceH]

Thank you as I have neither trays nor compost, what sort of depth tray should I get and what type of compost would be best please?

[Bigmallly]

Agree with above or you could use modules. I would go for 1"-2" deep & fill with Multi Purpose Compost.

[Nicos]

Thank you as I have neither trays nor compost, what sort of depth tray should I get and what type of compost would be best please?

Any sort of tray would do.
It only needs to be 3-4 cm deep
Any soil even...just keep it moist
Minimum of 3 cm apart of it's easy to gently shake the roots apart when it comes to planting out

Nothing scientific...just keep moist but not sopping wet and they'll do fine( frost fee)

[lottie dolly]

A multipurpose compost,you don't have to go buying seed trays,you can use plastic meat tray,ice cream/margarine tubs,but make a few drainage holes in the bottom,i usually use an old knife,put tray onto something soft or old,stab and twist does the trick,do not try this in you hand,compost only needs to be aprox 4 cm,i personally only use verb from B&Q,that is only my choice,when introducing the onion to the compost,only bury a 1/4 of it,give a good watering,

[Snadger]

I have to disagree! I tried this one year and found the crop was WORSE than the sets I planted directly.

Just keep the sets in a cool place until you are ready to plant. Or better still go half and half and see if your results differ from mine? You've still got quite a while before they desperately need to be planted (April) and hopefully you'll have an area prepared by then. Or why not just go no dig and plant them through a mulch.

[Bigmallly]

Isn't GYO a wonderfully strange pastime? The best Onions I had were pre-grown in modules.

[veggiechicken]

.........and I started mine in water, not compost last year. I like to be different

[Martin H]

Personally I would spread them out and keep them cool, dry and in the light until I'm ready to plant. If they start in modules I'd worry that the check they receive when planted out might trigger them to bolt. So I would wait another month or so then plant them where they are to grow.

Having said all that, I've never done a scientific comparison. Maybe you could do that, start half of them growing and see which batch does better and report back?

[Snadger]

.........and I started mine in water, not compost last year. I like to be different

You mean you left them outdoors and they blew into the pond!

[Gillykat]

Having said all that, I've never done a scientific comparison. Maybe you could do that, start half of them growing and see which batch does better and report back?

I planted half mine in modules in the greenhouse last week so will leave the other 60+ unplanted to see how they compare