Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: Eric44 on December 12, 2019, 16:49
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12th December 2019 and I have just sown a few Ailsa Craig and a few Bedfordshire Champion and placed them on a bright, cool windowsill. I don't have lights or heat in my greenhouse so it's a bit of a risk, hence, only sowing a few to see how it works. Still got Exhibition and a special strain I purchased, but I'll wait awhile before chancing those.
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You are keen. I was just about to re-start the onion club thread, but you have the honour of being the first member :D
I have Globo seeds ready and waiting, so I'll put the usual intro up in the next day or so and we'll be off again on a new season :D Rubs hands in glee :D :D :D
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I've got some Senshu Yellow in plugs in the polytunnel at the moment, haven't decided if I'm going to do maincrop onions from seed or sets next year.
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A thread for those who don't mind nurturing seedlings for a long period and can cope with a slow burner of a crop :) I actually enjoy the process and the sight of little green sprigs of seedlings through the darkest winter months.
You need a cool, bright, frost-free place, so early sowing is not for everyone. I make do with a windowsill in a cool room and then a blowaway mini greenhouse inside an unheated greenhouse, so nothing that special.
The real plus is you (usually) grow bigger, better onions that those from sets and get much more choice of types to grow.
The thread from last year is here for reference.
https://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=129331.msg1507387#msg1507387
The pictures are my crop last year, which I was very pleased with :D
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I've got some Senshu Yellow in plugs in the polytunnel at the moment, haven't decided if I'm going to do maincrop onions from seed or sets next year.
Seeds :D You know you want to ;) :lol:
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I've got some Senshu Yellow in plugs in the polytunnel at the moment, haven't decided if I'm going to do maincrop onions from seed or sets next year.
Seeds :D You know you want to ;) :lol:
Well I have got around 4 packets lurking, so it's inevitable ;)
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I've brought mini seed trays of compost in to warm up on the windowsill :D
I'm going for a Boxing Day sowing as a treat. I've got to work that day, but an onion seed moment before I go will improve things no end :D
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My Bedfordsire Champions and my Ailsa Craig are through but I'm having to turn them everyday to keep them upright. I did succumb and sowed 6 seeds of Exhibition and today the first one has poked through. (promise to self for the New Year, must buy some grow lights)
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My Globo seeds did go in Boxing Day, but no show yet.
I have also managed to buy some Isolbel Rose for sowing later on in the spring ::) That is going to be it though for onions. We have leaf miner on our allotment site, so I have to be selective on how much I grow because of the insect mesh required to keep stuff safe.
I'm even in two minds over leeks this year. When I could grow great rows of them without faff they were a winter stalwart, but I have deep dark suspicions that the mesh protects them from the weather too much and that is why I have had trouble with bolting the last couple of years :unsure: Perhaps onions over summer and greens over winter is a better use of the big mesh tunnels :unsure:
(promise to self for the New Year, must buy some grow lights)
You have reminded me OH nicked the 13amp fuse out of the plug on mine, so I need to nag him to replace that PDQ :lol:
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First onion seeds in: Mammoth Red. I'll be sowing my main crop seeds early next month: Golden Bear, (a few) Exhibition and Redspark and some Zebrune in clumps of 3-5. I've already got a dozen 'Giants' growing in a bed in the large greenhouse at the allotment which are currently around 12" high.
Feels good to get the new growing season underway.
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Ok, I'm intrigued! I've NEVER grown onions from seed. I've got some seeds so any words of wisdom would be most welcome. I've got plenty of window space in the house, the living room temperature fluctuates between reasonably chilly to baking hot (blame the log burner and a steam engine driver!) and the others are mostly unheated for the best part of the day. Do I need a propagator (heated or not)? Is it one seed to a cell or plant them in little clusters?
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Is it one seed to a cell or plant them in little clusters?
You can do either. If you sow and then plant out the lot as a small cluster, you get smaller onions, but lots of them. If you grow them as individual plants, you get big onions and if you sow early, the chance of some real monsters. I would put a couple of seeds in each cell at least and thin to a single seedling if you are going the individual plant route. It saves wasting a cell if a seed does not germinate.
Somewhere warm is good to get them going, but there is no need to use a propagator. Once they are up, they need light and cool conditions to grow, but must be kept frost free :)
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Am I too late to sow my Ailsa Craig's this weekend?
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Am I too late to sow my Ailsa Craig's this weekend?
No not at all. You can sow onions right into the spring months. They are really slow to get going, so the theory about sowing them early is that you can grow really decent sized ones, as they have longer to grow :)
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Mine started showing the first signs of germination on New Years Day and are now under a grow light to get them going :D
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we have quite a lot of onion seed to sow main season Hybound [pelleted] and Karmen also have a packet of Globo and mammoth [Robinson's] as we don't have any heat on in the greenhouse this year I would like to leave sowings for a little longer if possible what would you suggest would be the cut of for sowing onion seed
this is a bit new to me as for years I have always had a heated greenhouse but someone reported me to the council for having a solid fuel heater so I stopped using it to keep the peace :(
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I am about to order my seeds ::) went to get them for sowing and can I find them :nowink:
This year will be Bedfordshire Champion & Italian Long Red.
The only thing I will do differently this year.. is dehydrate 80% of them, that has been a massive success this year.
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No greenhouse and no propagater at new house so I am afraid this year all my onions are possibly going to have to be from sets. I have a lovely little porch on the front of the house which is almost entirely made of glass but it has no power supply, while my OH is away with work next week I am going to get an electrician in and if I can get a socket out there I am going to invest in a heated mat 🤞 and try get some onions and other seeds started.
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I would like to leave sowings for a little longer if possible what would you suggest would be the cut of for sowing onion seed
I think that depends on the variety. The Globo I have say sow by the end of February, which I think is the norm for the big main crop types. The other one I have is Isobel Rose and that says it is OK to sow up to mid April.
My greenhouse is unheated. The onion seedlings usually go out there about the end of January and I keep them in a mini greenhouse inside the main greenhouse. If we get a really cold spell, I chuck some fleece over as well. They have always done OK for me :)
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I've just set off my seeds of Ailsa Craig, Bedfordshire Champion and Red Brunswick :D
Do people start shallots this early or wait a bit later? I've got Long Red Florence.
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Long Red Florence isn't really a shallot, it's just a banana-shaped onion, and not very hardy - so I usually sow them middle of Feb to beginning of March on the window ledge.
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Long Red Florence isn't really a shallot, it's just a banana-shaped onion, and not very hardy - so I usually sow them middle of Feb to beginning of March on the window ledge.
Thanks! I had second thoughts over whether it is a shallot or not just as I hit submit :lol:
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First (3) of the Mammoth Red through.
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Mine started showing the first signs of germination on New Years Day and are now under a grow light to get them going :D
Mine are now up, 10 days after sowing. I purchased a grow light from amazon to stop them getting leggy.....BUT I didn't realise how dodgy a bright purple grow light may look to anyone passing by. I'm awaiting someone enquiring if I'm growing cannabis now... :lol: :lol: :lol:
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Not done my seeds yet, lost 80% of them last year due to damping off. Got some sets toady just in case, Turbo.
Also just been looking at some tropical fish lights LEDs very bright and not too hot, very good for growing aquatic plants so wonder if these would do the job instead of grow light? for my seedlings.
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Hi all
Just sown ailsa Craig in a tall yoghurt pot with lid on with a few holes in placed them in boiler cupboard till they pop through then onto north facing windowsill to grow on,going to do same next week.
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Never grown onions from seed before, but I have some free Ailsa Kraig seeds so thought I might have a go. I can germinate them in the spare bedroom, but don't have room to keep them in there, so I am thinking are the seedlings hardy enough to grow in an unheated greenhouse in the north of England?
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Never grown onions from seed before, but I have some free Ailsa Kraig seeds so thought I might have a go. I can germinate them in the spare bedroom, but don't have room to keep them in there, so I am thinking are the seedlings hardy enough to grow in an unheated greenhouse in the north of England?
They need to stay frost free, so I don't usually put mine out into the unheated greenhouse for a while yet. You can only do so much with fleece to protect them and I am in the south east in a sheltered spot. Perhaps you would be better to wait until mid February and then see how the weather is looking then.
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My onion seeds are just popping through now Ailsa craig sowed on the 12th Jan no heat in greenhouse i've grown onions from seed before should be interesting to see how they grow.
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I'm all behind like a cow's tail this season, I've only just sown mine! Ailsa Craig, Exhibition, Santero, Bedfordshire Champion, Sweet Yellow Spanish, plus some Long Red Florence.
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I'm about to sow my onion seed hybound [pelleted] being my main crop to be sown also have globo Browns exhibition and sweet Spanish going to sow all the seed in pots
never done any good with sweet Spanish last year hopefully we mite be lucky this year fingers crossed
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Globo seedlings now pricked out into small modules. They are looking a bit sad on the kitchen windowsill, but are starting to pick themselves up.
Isobel Rose sown in small trays on Tuesday :unsure: Might have been Wednesday, I can't remember, but they are showing signs of life already :)
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A few Exhibition seeds sown today. I was going to sow my maincrop seeds too but decided to wait a bit longer.
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A good month or so late this year but finaly started the seed
120 Bed champs
120 Long Red Flourence
They are in their pre-chitting trays so wont be long before they go into their pots.
Hopefully a good year again.
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I sowed four varieties three weeks ago, Bedfordshire Champion, Alisa Craig, Red Baron and Isobel Rose. I also started my vigamor shallots last weekend. Started the onions naively in an outbuilding first and not much happened, bought them indoors and we have life. I only started growing veg last year and did sets for onions but I much prefer seeds! Does anyone know when/if I prick them out as they're in seed trays at the moment or do they go straight outside when it's warmer.
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Jskoot
I do mine different to most as I pre-chit the seed before I sow, this way you know seed has germinated and I found it germinates a lot quicker than put in compost, normally within a week.
I then put them into deepish pots so the root can grow then come the time when temps are up then I transplant to final bed
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So not too late for me to sow some seed??
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So not too late for me to sow some seed??
Agreed :D
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Does anyone know when/if I prick them out as they're in seed trays at the moment or do they go straight outside when it's warmer.
You can do either tbh. I do prick mine out to give them space to grow, but others on here grow seedlings in deep pots all together and then carefully pull them apart and plant out, as Aidy suggests. If you get the rootball really wet, this helps prevent any root damage.
It is worth giving the seedlings some liquid feed every couple of weeks, as they sit in their compost for a long time before going out in the ground. Any multi-purpose veg feed is OK :)
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So as you can see from my post yesterday I put the seed into the tubs, this was Saturday night.
Today just two days in and they are starting to sprut. You can just about see from the photo one has sent its little shoot out.
This is a great method.
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So as you can see from my post yesterday I put the seed into the tubs, this was Saturday night.
Today just two days in and they are starting to sprut. You can just about see from the photo one has sent its little shoot out.
This is a great method.
Can you descibe the process?
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Certainly Benny
Its simple, get yoursel a tub, I use owd chinesse take away ones.
Place two sheets of kitchen paper on the kitchen top and place the tub on top, pencil the outline and cut to shape.
Place one of the sheets in the tub and wet it somits damp not soaking, place your seeds on top and then place the other sheet on top.
Dab it down with the off cuts yhen put the tub top on and place somewhere warm, I put mine under the radiator in the bathroom. Check every couple of days and once the seed has sprut then sow into your pot, I use 4 inch pots so they can grow on.
I use this method for all hard seeds.
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Aidy , How many do you sow into a 4" pot?
I have sown some today straight to compost, not easy to see where you have sown them.
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20 per pot Tenhens (but let me remeasure the pots :lol: might be 6 inch)
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Tenhens.
Yep 6 inch pots.
I sowed 85% last night into the pots, couple of days and they will all be up basking in glorious sunshine.
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Aidy
Thanks for the info.
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Your welcome.
All my little babs are popping up now.
Just 7 days from setting them off.
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Never grown onions from seed before and the ones that I sowed the other day have started to show !! Well happy! :D :D Just need to get some more underway.
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Never grown onions from seed before and the ones that I sowed the other day have started to show !! Well happy! :D :D Just need to get some more underway.
Sounds like a great result for your first try :D
It does get a bit addictive this onion growing lark. I have a mini greenhouse inside the main greenhouse stuffed with seedlings and probably no room for them all on the plot ::) I think it is just a way to get going early in the season, sort through seed packets and feel you are growing something. It speaks to the inner seedaholic in us all :lol:
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Am I too late to sow onion seeds?
Presume the answer can be that nothing ventured, nothing gained :D
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Am I too late to sow onion seeds?
Presume the answer can be that nothing ventured, nothing gained :D
No ! Sow them into some decent compost in a module tray three seed per module and germinate in a warm place. When they are through get them into a greenhouse or under some sort of protection where they get plenty of light and grow them on until they are to be planted out at about 25 cm apart they will form nice clumps medium sized onions which will keep well if they are the correct variety... try golden bear F1 from premier seeds on eBay.
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Am I too late to sow onion seeds?
Presume the answer can be that nothing ventured, nothing gained :D
No ! Sow them into some decent compost in a module tray three seed per module and germinate in a warm place. When they are through get them into a greenhouse or under some sort of protection where they get plenty of light and grow them on until they are to be planted out at about 25 cm apart they will form nice clumps medium sized onions which will keep well if they are the correct variety... try golden bear F1 from premier seeds on eBay.
Thanks for advice.
I'm just off to hunt out my seed packet :) Can't remember which type they are but already got this years compost.
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Am I too late to sow onion seeds?
Presume the answer can be that nothing ventured, nothing gained :D
No ! Sow them into some decent compost in a module tray three seed per module and germinate in a warm place. When they are through get them into a greenhouse or under some sort of protection where they get plenty of light and grow them on until they are to be planted out at about 25 cm apart they will form nice clumps medium sized onions which will keep well if they are the correct variety... try golden bear F1 from premier seeds on eBay.
Thanks for advice.
I'm just off to hunt out my seed packet :) Can't remember which type they are but already got this years compost.
One thing I would advise with onions is not to use seed that is more than one year old. I have found that the germination of seeds more than one year old is very disappointing. So for the cost of 1.50p you could get 130 santero F1 seeds inc delivery!
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Never grown onions from seed before and the ones that I sowed the other day have started to show !! Well happy! :D :D Just need to get some more underway.
Sounds like a great result for your first try :D
It does get a bit addictive this onion growing lark. I have a mini greenhouse inside the main greenhouse stuffed with seedlings and probably no room for them all on the plot ::) I think it is just a way to get going early in the season, sort through seed packets and feel you are growing something. It speaks to the inner seedaholic in us all :lol:
Hopefully they will get to the kitchen . If I'm in tears later this year all will be good :lol: :lol:
Still cogitating if I'm a seedaholic. :unsure: :unsure:
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After procrastinating all Winter I finally sowed some Ailsa Craig yesterday along with my leeks and around 60% of the seeds have already germinated.
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After procrastinating all Winter I finally sowed some Ailsa Craig yesterday along with my leeks and around 60% of the seeds have already germinated.
Hopefully come September you will have some nice onions to hang up... or as I do put into trays to store.
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After procrastinating all Winter I finally sowed some Ailsa Craig yesterday along with my leeks and around 60% of the seeds have already germinated.
Hopefully come September you will have some nice onions to hang up... or as I do put into trays to store.
I lazily left mine on the staging shelves in the polytunnel and they've stored pretty well!
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After procrastinating all Winter I finally sowed some Ailsa Craig yesterday along with my leeks and around 60% of the seeds have already germinated.
Hopefully come September you will have some nice onions to hang up... or as I do put into trays to store.
I lazily left mine on the staging shelves in the polytunnel and they've stored pretty well!
My onions from last season are still storing extremely well. I think the real secret is not lifting them too soon, I let the foliage die right back the I make sure the are completely dry by putting them in the log store which is covered but open to the drying winds. I then trim the dry roots off and cut the tops off and put them in plastic trays like those seen in veg shops. They then go into my workshop which is dry but cold.
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Having never grown onions from seed how deep do you plant them out ??? i think mine are ready to go out they've grown quite tall :)
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Last year I put mine in deep enough that they didn't fall over easily, around an inch I think.
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Yes if the soil is fairly open it does no harm to plant the a little bit deep, I use a pointed dibber, 3 or 4cm . I have had to watch things in the past because my soil is very fine and quite clay like so when the sun gets on it it set very hard , this can restrict the growth of the onion bulb. Now with my no dig raised beds the soil is open and not a problem.
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Having never grown onions from seed how deep do you plant them out ??? i think mine are ready to go out they've grown quite tall :)
It is quite early for them to go out, so I would just be ready to stick a cloche over them if you have a frost forecast. I'm glad they have done well for you though :)
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Yes if the soil is fairly open it does no harm to plant the a little bit deep,
One point I'd like to add that my soil is very heavy so I tend to fill the hole around things like onions with a little multipurpose compost rather then back filling with clay!
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My Ailsa Craig, Globo and Bedfordshire Champion all looking good in the sunshine today!
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I've just noticed this thread, I'm trying onions from seed for the first time this year having used sets for the last 10 years. Fingers crossed that they will be successful.
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I've cut back my onions a good 3 or 4 times so far and wanting to move them into an unheated greenhouse to make space indoors. Will they need hardening off over a week like I usually do for summer veg or are onions less temperamental and could go outside quicker?
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I've cut back my onions a good 3 or 4 times so far and wanting to move them into an unheated greenhouse to make space indoors. Will they need hardening off over a week like I usually do for summer veg or are onions less temperamental and could go outside quicker?
Mine are in the unheated greenhouse on the bench, with fleece handy to chuck over them if we get a hard frost forecast. I would cover them up overnight for the first week, then only worry about doing that if it goes really cold :)
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After chittig i put 5 seeds in a module and all are now sprouting. Can anyone tell me when they should have a module each? I have taken them outside today to get used to some colder temps
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After chittig i put 5 seeds in a module and all are now sprouting. Can anyone tell me when they should have a module each?
If I am doing any pricking out, I usually wait until they have started their second leaf. You can plant out as a group if you want. They grow into a clump of smaller onions than if grown singly, but it is an option :)
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My Ailsa Craig, Globo and Bedfordshire Champion all looking good in the sunshine today!
Get those in the ground pronto! They look great. I am a little disappointed with my seedlings but they are going in very soon and a fraction the size of those. I do not think a bit of frost should it arrive will do much to those onions are quite hardy.
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My Ailsa Craig, Globo and Bedfordshire Champion all looking good in the sunshine today!
Get those in the ground pronto! They look great. I am a little disappointed with my seedlings but they are going in very soon and a fraction the size of those. I do not think a bit of frost should it arrive will do much to those onions are quite hardy.
Planning to plant out in about a week or so. Sown on Boxing Day which is why they are so forward!
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Never grown onions from seed before and the ones that I sowed the other day have started to show !! Well happy! :D :D Just need to get some more underway.
Sounds like a great result for your first try :D
It does get a bit addictive this onion growing lark. I have a mini greenhouse inside the main greenhouse stuffed with seedlings and probably no room for them all on the plot ::) I think it is just a way to get going early in the season, sort through seed packets and feel you are growing something. It speaks to the inner seedaholic in us all :lol:
Nearly lost my first sowing , put in spare room misjudged how warm room was compost drying out :ohmy: , fingers crossed watered in time :ohmy:
Have sown some more today while in the greenhouse following Aidy's sowing tip.
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Hi,
I've been putting the onions and shallots ontop of my plastic shed in the garden in the day but bringing in at night for the last 5-6 nights while its been nice. Do you think they will be ok to go overnight as yet and if not what to the overnight temps need to get to?
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Do you think they will be ok to go overnight as yet and if not what to the overnight temps need to get to?
I would not risk it yet. They need to stay frost free and we have a week of cold overnight temperatures forecast.
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Hi,
Can someone tell me how I know when the seedlings are ready to go into the ground? I've got some in modules, they are about an inch high at the moment. Thanks!
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Hi,
Can someone tell me how I know when the seedlings are ready to go into the ground? I've got some in modules, they are about an inch high at the moment. Thanks!
Unsure of the same myself, mine are approx 2 inches long and have been cut back to about an inch about 3 times since January. Started them to get over the post Christmas blues! Last week I put some in the soil and covered with a cloche and some I kept in the modules but put the modules outside with a propagator - to try and assimilate them to the outside temperatures. Going to check on them today, hopefully all are OK and I can put the module onions in the ground maybe? I don't have enough cloche to cover them all so the propagator trick was to try and avoid having to cover them all at once and harden them off 'out of the ground'.
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Mine are still in the unheated greenhouse at the moment. It is more down to the weather, than the size of the plants. I was thinking of putting the earliest sown ones out under a cloche in the next week or so. I'm not sure about risking it with no frost protection at all.
A really hard late frost could finish them and that would be a shame after getting them so far.
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My Ailsa Craig are happily sat in the polytunnel. I'll put them under a cloche outside on the next warmish day, waiting until I can plant them out.
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I think my seedlings are still a bit too diddy to go out for a while. Stupid question - but do you pull the seed husks off the tops, or just leave them to fall off eventually? (As you can probably tell, this is the first time I've tried onions from seed - I usually use sets).
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I think my seedlings are still a bit too diddy to go out for a while. Stupid question - but do you pull the seed husks off the tops, or just leave them to fall off eventually? (As you can probably tell, this is the first time I've tried onions from seed - I usually use sets).
I cut them off with scissors. If not, they they tend to weigh them down and can lead to further problems of them on the damp soil.
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Planted my onion plants this morning and put a cloche over them 'Ailsa Craig' this is the first year i've grown them from seed i tend to plant sets, it will be interesting to see how i do.
I also planted Spring onions red and white plus radish seeds :)
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Anyone hve any updates with what they are up to? Mine have been outside still in their modules during this fine weather and as temps have been good I’ve left them outside over night. They don’t seem to be doing much. Hope there are ok with cold but not frosty nights?
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Anyone hve any updates with what they are up to? Mine have been outside still in their modules during this fine weather and as temps have been good I’ve left them outside over night. They don’t seem to be doing much. Hope there are ok with old but not firstly nights?
Same, mine our outside now in their trays. They wont do anything in their compost as it's depleted so they need to be fed or planted. I'm going to plant mine in the next few days all being well.
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My onion seeds or plants I planted out a few wks ago are all doing well, I also planted out my beetroot a few days ago and there doing well :)
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Planted mine out about a week ago under debris netting as the birds kept pulling them up! Shallots at the near end, then Globo, Ailsa Craig and Bedfordshire Champion. Garlic at the far end.
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Mine have also been out for about a week, under an insect mesh covered tunnel. This is them yesterday after I had watered them.
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We are having here, a few have lost about 30% or more of our seedlings over the last few days, not sure what is going on.
I have now transplanted all mine into ground just hope they survive and pull through.
Others have lost their brassicas its a little weird the way some are losing some things and others losing other types of plant.
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I’ve done a very foolish thing and got my shallots and onions mixed up ??? So annoyed with myself.
Won’t harm them to be planted out together will it!? Apart from my ocd being offended when there are mixed up rows??
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I’ve done a very foolish thing and got my shallots and onions mixed up ??? So annoyed with myself.
Won’t harm them to be planted out together will it!? Apart from my ocd being offended when there are mixed up rows??
Shallots grown from seed just produce a single bulb, so I can't see it making much difference. If it is sets you have planted, the shallots will make a clump, so you might get a bit of overcrowding here and there.
Can't help with the ocd though. You will just have to try not to look at them too closely :)
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And can you tell me how deep I should plant them?
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Evening all, first year growing onions and shallots from seed as posted earlier. I've had mixed success with the seedlings in the pouring shed, Bedfordshire champion very good but fasto, Isobel rose have grown to about an inch and a half and then some are withering and going a light brown colour, as if the leaves are dying down. I don't know if it's been too hot for them in this freak April heatwave, or maybe I've watered them too much. So, I've done some direct sowings into the ground to see how they get on and will plant on the strongest of the seedlings from the shed this week.
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I had the same thing with the Isolbel Rose seeds I planted. They were so tragic, I ditched the seedlings the other day and have resown in modules with about 5/6 seeds per cell. I'm going to try for a later crop of small bunched onions with them.
The Globo are out of the plot under a mesh tunnel and are doing fine.
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I had the same thing with the Isolbel Rose seeds I planted. They were so tragic, I ditched the seedlings the other day and have resown in modules with about 5/6 seeds per cell. I'm going to try for a later crop of small bunched onions with them.
The Globo are out of the plot under a mesh tunnel and are doing fine.
I have grown Isobel Rose this year too. I have to say they are looking rather good. I am hardening them off during the day and bringing them back into the cold greenhouse at night for another 3 or 4 days. I sowed quite a lot of seed all together in a biggish pot. Also doing well are Red Brunswick and Batun. I am not sure I am going to find room for them all. Might give some away and plant a few in tubs to pull as spring onions - the Batun especially.
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Planted them all out now, done a few extra direct sowings for good measure. Had to discard a lot of the seedlings, but the ones planted out look quite healthy so fingers crossed.
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Been in about 3 weeks now, they’re loving all this sunshine
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My multi-sown Long Red Florence are on the list to be planted out today :)
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This year has the potential of being written off :(
I appear to losing my seedlings every day, they are either dying off or being nicked by feathered criters.
I have put another 90 red florence on the go hoping they will grow on in time to crop.
Fingers crossed
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I was going to plant out my Ailsa Craig but the ground was rock hard. Given it a good soaking and a mulch with MPC, hopefully I can pop them out in a day or two.
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Mine went in about a week ago albiet they are tiny. Just with some net over to stop the birds. Hope they will be ok!
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I have now planted out the Isobel Rose, Batun and Red Beard and netted against birds. Gave the ground a good watering in the bed with the bunching onions on plot 7 as it was rock hard. Plot 8 is much wetter and was ok to plant the Isobel Rose in.
Red Brunswick to go out on next visit to the plots.
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My multi-sown modules of Isobel Rose are now germinating. They already look better than the batch I ditched, so I think the other lot just suffered in the cold nights we had back then. The Globo on the plot are doing well.
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Finally got mine in the ground last week.
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Mine went in yesterday: clumps of Santero, Zebrune, Golden Bear and
Isobel Rose Redspark with a few Exhibition, Giant and Red Mammoth planted singly. Probably far too many and I can see onion soup being a staple this coming winter....
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Isobel Rose seems popular this year. Is that because it is a new variety? Or have we all been beguiled by their description in a catalogue?
Proof will be in the crop and the taste.
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Isobel Rose seems popular this year. Is that because it is a new variety? Or have we all been beguiled by their description in a catalogue?
Proof will be in the crop and the taste.
My reds are actually Redspark not Isobel Rose! I remember looking at IR so suspect I picked up the wrong packet for one reason or another....
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have we all been beguiled by their description in a catalogue?
I think I have :lol: My second lot, which are clump sown in modules, are up and looking pretty good. Whoever Isobel is, she liked the warmer days of spring much more than the chillier ones when I first tried sowing. We shall see if I have been suckered into buying a novelty again :unsure: I am easy prey during the grey days of January and February every year :blush:
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We shall see if I have been suckered into buying a novelty again :unsure: I am easy prey during the grey days of January and February every year :blush:
You are not the only one ::)
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A few of my bigger varieties starting to bulk up.
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Wish mine were bulking up. They don't seem to be doing anything :(
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Wish mine were bulking up. They don't seem to be doing anything :(
They're fine and look just like my 'normal' onions do at the moment. The one in the picture is a big variety and will easily reach 4-5lb in weight with no special treatment - I was given a few seeds a few years ago by someone who regularly grows them to 10lbs+.
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Here are mine. Globo, which is a large variety, that were sown on Boxing Day and Isobel Rose that were module sown on 18th April and planted out as clumps.
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Wish mine were bulking up. They don't seem to be doing anything :(
They're fine and look just like my 'normal' onions do at the moment. The one in the picture is a big variety and will easily reach 4-5lb in weight with no special treatment - I was given a few seeds a few years ago by someone who regularly grows them to 10lbs+.
Cheers, I do need to get round to weeding them. They're taking over at one end of the row, poor onions.
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Mine are just starting to swell, looking fantastic!
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Cheers, I do need to get round to weeding them. They're taking over at one end of the row, poor onions.
I noticed yesterday that mine desperately need weeding - best get to it tomorrow ::) 'cos so far they're looking good, one crop that really has appreciated the weather, I think.
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A photo of some of my onions grown deep bed stylee. golden bear on the left and long de Florence right. The bed is 2.5m x 1.25m and I think there are about 160 onions in the bed. The sturon growing in another bed are not as far on although planted at the same time they get just a little bit more shade in the morning and it really does make a difference.
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The necks are just starting to go over on my early sown ones. Not too far off to harvest time now :)
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Final harvest. The pick of the bunch are whoppers as well :)
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Final harvest. The pick of the bunch are whoppers as well :)
Lovely crop, there :D
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Lovely, I had a break from growing them this year as they always get some rot, funny but the shallots don’t! So I might sow early this year in late autumn early winter, plant early with a view to harvesting early next year& see how that works.
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So I have a plan :blush:
Not the best year this year, lost many early on so....
I have recenetly read you can sow Bedfordshire Champion late August/ September, well its late enough I reckon.
I plan on growing on in beds in the greenhouse over winter and transplant spring next year. Hopefully a good crop that maybe ready a tad earlier so when lifted I can then get the bed ready for me winter carrots as I grow the little ones, I have 4 rows of them in now to see how big they get.
Any ways 112 onion seeds are now prechitting
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Here are a few of mine some Sturon, magnificent long de Florence and some Golden bear. If Long Florence stored I would probably just buy one packet of seeds each year these were grown Charles Dowding style four or five seeds per 30mm module then a few taken as spring onions the others grown on further taking the odd one for the kitchen. We have been eating them as spring onions then as green onions in the kitchen since beginning of July and now the are ready to lift those few were just lifted. I have some decent shallot too but not from seeds. Anyway back to lift the rest of them to get them fully dried out for storing.
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Not a bad crop, what they lack in size they have made up for in quality as last few years I have had white rot, only lost a few to it this year. Did not give them much water during the dry spells which might explain both.
Shallots have not enjoyed the weather and are also smaller than useual.
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My Isobel Rose crop. These were module sown with a few seeds per cell and planted out in clumps fairly late. At the end of May they looked like weedy chives.
Given all that, not a bad crop and I am thinking of making picked onions with the small ones. I have a plan. I'll use white vinegar to show off the colour and stash them away for the festive season :D
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My onions weren't too bad. The Isobel Rose didn't get to a huge size, but adequate and taste was good. Red Brunswick reliable as ever.
Batun were very good as a spring onion.
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I have been quite counter-cultural and sown onion seed in a greenhouse in September and planted them out largely under cloches and a cold frame. Has anyone tried this before and failed? Why is this which appears to mimic natural propagation not mainstream?
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So I have a plan :blush:
Not the best year this year, lost many early on so....
I have recenetly read you can sow Bedfordshire Champion late August/ September, well its late enough I reckon.
I plan on growing on in beds in the greenhouse over winter and transplant spring next year. Hopefully a good crop that maybe ready a tad earlier so when lifted I can then get the bed ready for me winter carrots as I grow the little ones, I have 4 rows of them in now to see how big they get.
Any ways 112 onion seeds are now prechitting
Aidy is trying this out and has already posted on this thread about it :)
I guess it depends whether you can offer a protected enough space to get them through the winter and whether it proves to be worth it. Time will tell on that one.