[JohnB47]

My overwintering onions have started to fall over, although they havent started to go yellow yet. It's as if something is just pushing them over. I suppose it might be a fox. They were planted in Nov last year. Even if they haven't gone yellow, is it time to lift them now?

[Beetroot queen]

Mine fell over but they are still green so i am leaving them alone. They seem happy even if horizontal.

[Nikkithefoot]

Once the tops have fallen over you can gently lift the bulbs, leave for a few days if the weather is sunny and dry. Then lift and keep somewhere dry until the tops have dried up. They will need using first as they don't store well. By the time you are using the winter onions the spring planted ones will be ready to do it all over again.

[solway cropper]

I'd say leave them. Tops falling over isn't really a sign of anything and after the cold spring they are going to need all the time they can get in order to bulk up. I've kept overwintered onions till December. They store reasonably well if you dry they properly.

[DD.]

I'd go with the latter advice.

There's no need to lift until you really know they are drying off of their own accord.

Usual advice: Winter onions don't store well, so if they are of a good size, you may as well use them.

[Trillium]

I'm with DD on that one. Some of my tops have fallen over but I think it's from the neighbour's dog running through the patch   

[Willow_Warren]

I was going to ask a similar question.  Some of my winter sown onions are looking quite large now and starting to form a kind of brown skin on the bits exposed above the ground.

Never grown onions before (apart from spring onions), so I wasn't sure what to do with them.

I'm eager to get eating though 

Hannah

[DD.]

Start eating them Hannah, they're obviously big enough and they're not going to store too long.

[RookieJim]

I've been pulling them and eating them as I need them due to the storage issue. I'm not gonna bother planting so many this winter due to the storage issue, which DD warned me about last year.

They taste great though.

Jim

[Willow_Warren]

Start eating them Hannah, they're obviously big enough and they're not going to store too long.

My definition of a large onion and other peoples might not be the same 

If I'm using them straight away can I just, pull, chop, cook and eat???  If so, I think one might be going in the lasagne tonight 

I did not grow many that many I don't think I'll have too many.  I can always chop and freeze any extra ready for spag bol meals and the like

Hannah

[DD.]

Yes, just use it straight away!

[gavinjconway]

On 1st May every year I start pulling mine as green onions and they are normally about a bit bigger than a thumb in size. They are just a filler before the maincrop are ready which also get started as green onions. Then once they are all out I replace with another crop of some sort - this year its cabbages and romanesco that have been in pots for a while. This way I have the pleasure of an extra 6 weeks or so of fresh green onions..  Winter onions are not meant for storing - just as a filler gap..

[JohnB47]

Thanks everyone. Useful to hear others experience.  I've never had that fallen over thing before. I've decided to leave mine until they go a bit brown on the leaves, or until I decide they're big enough to eat.