[hubballi]

I planed some onions from sets and seeds in my raised bed. Bedford was one of them as well as sets of garlic. They looked fine but the last few weeks the stems have either died or been eaten off (spring onions the worst) and the onions are pale looking and no larger than a golf ball. The garlic I am not sure as I don't know if I can dig them up yet.

Can anyone advise a novice ? Been feeding with comfry and the odd sprinkling of growmore.

[Hampshire Hog]

Hi Hubballi I would try mainly sets next year and make sure they are good quality from reliable source. Tried a few cheap onion sets this year and others from a potato fair cheap ones were rubbish also make sure you keep them well weeded

heers HH

[pushrod]

Garlic has died off and so needs to be lifted - most people probably lifted their's quite a few weeks ago. Onions are naturally dying off about now as well- lifted mine  a couple of weeks ago. If you are disappointed  by the size of the ones grown from seed then it is probably due to soil fertility or timing. Don't be put off.  Now is the time to start preparing your soil for next year's garlic and onions. You can produce very large onions , 2, 3, 4lb each, from seed with relatively little effort.

[Salmo]

Unless you have soil that allows you to sow onions in late Feb or early March you either need to raise plants sown in modules in Jan/Feb and plant out in April, or grow sets. Sets are easy and results are usually good. Seed is more fiddly but the do keep better and do not bolt. Red sets seem to be less reliable than the white/yellow varieties

[madcat]

Having said all of which - and somewhat to my amazement - my Poundland red baron sets have been brilliant.  Beat the heck out of my white Alisa Craigs, tenderly nurtured by my own fair paws from seed.   

Slightly more inclined to go to seed than the ones raised from seed, but they were not without reproach ....