Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: mdjlucan on February 09, 2019, 06:33
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I'm going to start them off in pots When do I enter them into the ground
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Are you starting seeds off, or little onion sets?
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Onion sets
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When I've started sets off in tiny modules, I've waited until I can see the roots starting to come out of the bottom of the module and, often, a little life coming out of the top of the set.
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When I grew onions from sets I used the same principal as Yorkie. However, after having half of crop of Red Baron go to seed I started using seeds and have done for the last few years. Not had a problem with going to seed since. On the downside, pricking out trays of onion seedlings is playing havoc with my back! Sowing four seeds per module and planting them out gives you plenty of onions, saves on compost and they can be dibbed in easily. They are a bit small, but who needs big onions in the kitchen?
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Dev - is this "muiltsowing" you plant out the clump of seedlings together?
I was reading about this yesterday on the Charles Dowding Website - he did it with Beetroot & Leeks found it quite interesting.
Missey
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Hi Missy. Yes - Charles sows 4 or 5 onion seeds per module (the 40 hole type) dibs holes and plants the whole module. The onions push each other aside, and if you feel like it you can twist the odd one out and use as Spring onions. It works the same with beetroot - I go for 4 maximum - and for leeks the same. With spring onions you can sow up to 10. The skill is in twisting the plants when you want them rather than pulling the whole clump, except for the leeks when I just dig up the clump. You won't get giant onions beets or leeks, but they are a useful size for the kitchen. Give it a go!
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I will give it ago thanks Dev although think I'll have to do some normal planting just in case :D
Missey