[BicesterKev]

Hi, I got a nice little crop of onions last year but the foilage was quite large and led to what I considered unattractive onions as I didn't get a nice and small "stem" to them. It didn't detract from the taste of them but didn't look great. Is that a case of too much water getting on them or something else? I've got 200 in this year and would like to improve on last years efforts. I mixed some BBF into the soil prior to planting.

[gavinjconway]

Hi B-Kev.. did you let them grow till they were ready to be pulled up i.e. Were they starting to dry off and fall over? If you dont let them grow out to the finish they will have bull necks. But in saying that the weather last year was so bad it could have been a factor to your crop.

BFB is a good all round fertilizer and you can add some potash later in about 6 weeks time as they love a sprinkling. 

[BicesterKev]

Thanks for the replay gavin. I did get a bit impatient and pulled the neck over and then pulled them out a week or 2 later. I guess from what you are saying that the neck actually gets smaller...well I never knew that! From what I remember of them they were slightly green at the neck...in a good/raw way if you know what I mean.

[fatcat1955]

Never bend the neck's over, let them run their course.

[DD.]

It used to be standard practice to bend the necks over, but the RHS now say this:

Onions can be harvested when the foliage turns yellow and starts to topple over. Although it is sometimes suggested to bend over the foliage or gently lift the bulbs to break the roots this is no longer recommended.

[JayG]

If the necks are thick because a flower head has been produced, then whether you nipped it off or not you will still have onions with thick necks which are hard to dry properly for storage.

Otherwise, bending over onion tops when they start to die down to hasten the ripening process seems to be going out of fashion, and I can see the logic of that. Growing conditions are bound to make a difference - if your onions are still growing away quite strongly in October you have to do something (yes, it has happened to me!)

[crh75]

I think planting too deep and also cause a thick neck.