[Cheshire Phill]

Anyone had success with onions over the winter? What varieties?

Can you get any now and put in? Seeds or sets?

Thanks, have lots of space needs using...

Phill 

[richardoram]

Hi Phill,

I have heard Japanese onions are the variety to go for, I was thinking of trying some myself this but I think you have to go from seed?

Richard

[HilaryG]

I did have some onions in over winter but they didn't do that much better than the Feb ones and I'm not sure what they were
I've just ordered some Autumn sow onions sets from Kings, Senshyu Yellow.  Oh and 2 sorts of garlic. I think I need to feed/prepare the ground better this time?  Have bought a big tub of blood/fish/bone from Homebase. Will that be any good? Or is horse manure better, or compost? 
We use masses of onions and garlic so any advice on how to get max. crop would be much appreciated. 

[richardoram]

We used horse manure year before last on the onion bed (Red Baron) and it worked really well, not so good thsi year but we hadn't prepared the bed and the onions looked more like Shallots!

I don't know about BFB as we only use this for the fruit bushes, I never thought about using it on the veg beds.....

[DD.]

Hi Phill,

I have heard Japanese onions are the variety to go for, I was thinking of trying some myself this but I think you have to go from seed?

Richard

"Japanese" is not a variety as such and is more of a generic term for winter onions.

You do not have to do them from seed, but can. I think most people go for sets.

This link is for an example only, I'll be getting mine from the local nursery for costs sake and will go with whatever they've got in.

http://www.thompson-morgan.com/potatoes1/product/aww4031/1.html

They mature before the spring planted ones and fill in any gap between the stored ones finishing & the new ones maturing.

We gave our onion bed a good dressing of chicken manure this year and had some crackers.

[richardoram]

Thanks DD I must admit to not having really looked too deeply into them so thanks for the heads up.

[DD.]

I've put the link in now.

(Hangs head in shame).

[madcat]

My local hardware shop/seed supplier got their japanese onion sets in yesterday.  I pounced!  66p for 55 sets, three rows for me + 1 for luck.  They did us great this year in the 'hungry gap'!

[Cheshire Phill]

Thanks for all of the thoughts, and the link DD.

Madcat, great shout on the hardware sets thing, shall have a mooch this weekend...wasn't at all sure if sets were available for autumn planting, don't remember seeing them around? Exactly what I am after though...

Thanks!!

Phill

[LivvyW]

I sowed Radar (white) and Electric (red) both sets around September last year and got some beauties, a great crop.

They survived 2wks of 3ft snow, and in March i pepped them up with chicken manure.

The Radar won me a first and 'best vegetable exhibit' in our local show.