All year Alliums Challenge 2016/17

[veggiechicken]

By popular request (Small Pumpkin, Vixylix and Muddled), our next Challenge is to grow Alliums all year round.
SP fancies Leeky Buckets,
Vixy wants to plant a garlic clove a week
Muddled wants as many onions as she can grow
and I'd like to be able to pick a fresh Allium of any sort every week of the year.

So make up your own rules as you go along. Tell us what you're doing or picking each week and lets share ideas.
The Allium family includes onions, leeks, garlic, spring onions, chives and more...........so plenty of choice!

Some of our discussions have been moved to this thread as a reminder...........

[Small pumpkin]

VC I have been pondering the next challenge quandary...............leek bucket challenge?
That's leek not leaky bucket

Think I will leave the big ideas to you, you're much better at it

[vixylix]

Spring onions? I've grown mine in buckets this year (granted once, not weekly) but they're doing really well!

[veggiechicken]

I've been wondering about an All year round Alliums Challenge. Pick a fresh allium every week - be it leek, spring onion, garlic or onion. Waddya reckon?

[Small pumpkin]

I'll play for half the year........I'm a fair weather gardener

[vixylix]

I like it! It'll be warmer planting the garlic in January if I'm only planting one a week

[veggiechicken]

When I said "pick" I meant Pick it out of the ground to eat - not pick it out your seed stash to sow.
My way you'd have to plan your sowing to be able to have a fresh allium every week...............but I guess sowing one every week would also work. Like Wk 1 = leeks, wk 2 = onions Wk 3 spring onions etc.

[muddled]

I'm definitely up for an allium challenge!

I want a way to be self sufficient in onions/shallots without giving them my entire allotment!
I've started a module tray of 'bunches' of spring onions to try and keep me going over the winter in the tumble down greenhouse and I am VERY keen to hear any more ideas for a year round supply!

[vixylix]

VC I figured I plant one clove in week 1, harvest in week 25 (or whatever) etc etc Maybe I'll find something else to pick for week 1 - week 24!

Also - you've moved the goalposts - the carrot challenge was to sow one bucket a week, not pick one carrot a week... cheeky! :P

[veggiechicken]

It wouldn't be a challenge if it stayed the same, Vix

[Penellype]

I'm definitely up for an allium challenge!

I want a way to be self sufficient in onions/shallots without giving them my entire allotment!
I've started a module tray of 'bunches' of spring onions to try and keep me going over the winter in the tumble down greenhouse and I am VERY keen to hear any more ideas for a year round supply!

I'm rarely without onion, although I must admit that I don't eat huge numbers of them. I plant 100 sets (Sturon, which keep well) in spring, harvest them when they die down in August and dry and string them, and keep them in the garage. They usually last until April or May before starting to grow. At that point I chop and freeze any that are starting to sprout so I have a supply of chopped onion ready to use. That tides me over the gap until the new onions are ready in August.

[muddled]

Sadly I don't have a garage.
Or shed.
Or unheated spare room.
Or spare room of any kind....

Storage is always an issue (as is growing space on my little half plot) and we eat LOTS of onions!

I reckon there's a solution though....and I'm confident that a few grapes with good ideas or special knowledge...a few bonkers theories and a nutty VC challenge will be all it takes to find it

[veggiechicken]

Notes for leeks -
There are Summer, Autumn and Winter leeks.
Summer leeks take about 90 days from seed and are picked at about pencil thickness.
Autumn leeks take about 100 days from seed or can be left to overwinter.

I need to look into succession planning for leeks.................in buckets

[Bigmallly]

I'm rarely without onion, although I must admit that I don't eat huge numbers of them. I plant 100 sets (Sturon, which keep well) in spring, harvest them when they die down in August and dry and string them, and keep them in the garage. They usually last until April or May before starting to grow. At that point I chop and freeze any that are starting to sprout so I have a supply of chopped onion ready to use. That tides me over the gap until the new onions are ready in August.

So if you go to the garage for an Onion every week, does that count as picking one Onion per week ?............If so, count me in..........

[muddled]

Notes for leeks -
There are Summer, Autumn and Winter leeks.
Summer leeks take about 90 days from seed and are picked at about pencil thickness.
Autumn leeks take about 100 days from seed or can be left to overwinter.

I need to look into succession planning for leeks.................in buckets

so...are these different varieties entirely then? Because my leeks have been pencil thick for about six weeks now
And the seed packet just says leeks so how will I know which type they are?

(already muddled...oh dear! )