[Arnfields]

What type of reds have you planted?

I dont know of any overwintering types.

Errr...no idea to be honest, was in my usual panic seed buying mode as I had a bed with nothing growing in it - and I can't have that!
Maybe they won't cope with the winter but if they do - I will make a concerted effort to find the label (in the depths of the shed) so I can grow them again

[harry]

I don't officially take over my allotment untill Jan 1st and havn't been able to get permission to start work yet. Is Jan 1st to late for this winter or is there something i can plant.

[Mr B]

Hi Arnfields,
   I think you will find that the winter red onions are 'Electric' I got mine from Scats and they are doing quite nicely dispite the wet. This is the first time I have grown them though.
Regards,
Chris

[madcat]

I don't officially take over my allotment untill Jan 1st and havn't been able to get permission to start work yet. Is Jan 1st to late for this winter or is there something i can plant.

You will be able to get hold of dormant soft fruit bushes and get them in during a warmer, wet spell so they are nicely settled for the spring.  But you are too late for autumn japanese onions and garlic ....  Feb time you will be able to get spring garlic and shallots in ..... and we are off for another year's growing!

[Trillium]

The problem i have is every year they grow flat, what i mean is they are oval in shape rather than spherical.
I i push them into the soil so the tips of the sets are just poking through and they all seem to be growing really well but when i come to harvest them they have flat bottoms.
Does anyone else have this problem and if not, what am i doing wrong

Some growers believe that if the onion is forced into the soil which is not loose enough, that the base can immediately become a bit rootbound and the bottoms flat, along with some root damage. The preferred method of planting is to use a hand trowel and make a small slit in the soil into which you slip the onion bulb and then gently firm in the soil around it. The soil below must also have been loosened well to a depth of at least 8" so the roots can feed and the bulb expand with little trouble. Weed free is also crucial.

As for the onions not keeping well, too much water/rain is usually the culprit. Onions like and need watering but not too much. They'll keep absorbing water to the point where they just won't store well later. Had that problem this year with my mum's onions which she gave me. She got 5x the rain I did. Mine are keeping, hers aren't and we've lost a lot already despite storing in a special cold cellar.  Same with her garlic, most of it moldy already. Mine are doing fine. (I supply her with garlic seed so I know how we both stand).

And as the others have said, variety is also a key factor to shape. I notice that the shape of the set bulb I pick up is the end shape (oval vs round) so that's something else to consider when you plant. Perhaps you got a lot of oval bulbs.

[chriscross1966]

Try growing one of the big onions from seed ... start Kelsae, Mammoth, Russian Standard or Spanish Giant on a sunny windowsill in modules in January, harden off and plant out in March, plenty of BFB when they go in and top dress mid April and again mid May. They'll need a watering if we go a week without rain, not hard to get 2-3lb onions and if the weather's kind Russian Standard is supposed to hit 7lbs outdoors apparently....

Pumpkins... try Sumo, Hundredweight or Atlantic Giant, they're all huge....

chrisc 

[DavidT]

Harry, by the time you`ve cleared and dug the plot it will probably be early spring. A perfect time for you to start growing.

[cooperman]

grow your onions from seed - a lot more consistent, more choice and most of all cheaper!

[stompy]

Hey Tillium

I do push my sets into the ground rather than scraping out a small trench.
I wonder if this could be it, as i push them in it compacts the soil underneith them?
thats What i do with my broad beans too.

[zazen999]

I don't officially take over my allotment untill Jan 1st and havn't been able to get permission to start work yet. Is Jan 1st to late for this winter or is there something i can plant.

you can get onions, garlics, broad beans and peas going now in modules/trays and plant out later winter/spring - so if you have anywhere spare get a couple of seed trays or some pots and get some sown now. 

[harry]

I don't officially take over my allotment untill Jan 1st and havn't been able to get permission to start work yet. Is Jan 1st to late for this winter or is there something i can plant.

you can get onions, garlics, broad beans and peas going now in modules/trays and plant out later winter/spring - so if you have anywhere spare get a couple of seed trays or some pots and get some sown now. 

Thanks for all the helpfull advice i've plenty of seed trays at home so i'll get some growing

[Trillium]

Hey Tillium

I do push my sets into the ground rather than scraping out a small trench.
I wonder if this could be it, as i push them in it compacts the soil underneith them?
thats What i do with my broad beans too.

Unless the soil is freshly loosened up, you risk damaging the onion's root plate by pushing it into soil which indeed further compacts the soil below. (same for garlic) Once that's damaged, the results aren't what you'd like. I don't bother trenching if its a few weeks between turning over the soil and planting. I use a small hand trowel to split the soil an inch or 2, slip in the bulb, then hand push the soil back over the slit

The same goes for bean seeds - you risk splitting them by shoving them into firm soil. I take my hand trowel and scrape off an inch or so of soil in a trench, lay the seeds down, then pull the soil back by hand and firm it down. You'll get much better germination this way....unless slugs and earwigs eat off the new shoots For the latter problem, this year I'm doing as my sister does - sprinkle sulphur powder all around and over the trench, just enough to discourage the little beasts but not affect the plants.