[Goldfinger]

Will be doing ours in modules this year after the 'disaster' last year, direct in ground and they seemed never to 'get going'.

[Rexmundi]

Rexmundi: not sure whether you are describing less than 1cm or nearly an inch below the surface, but if they are in pots it doesn't really make that much difference as they should still root OK and you will no doubt plant them outside at the right depth when the time comes. 

Thanks JayG, depth wise, probably around half an inch.

I have them in fibre pots that I was looking to put into the ground in about 4 weeks from now which won't affect their depth. Would you recommend that I remove some of the surface compost leaving around 1cm?

Cheers

[JayG]

Trouble with fibre (peat?) pots is that they can be slow to break down and allow the roots to grow through them, especially if your soil is free-draining and/or the weather happens to be dry.

Either way, I suggest you rip off the top half of the pots they are in when you plant them out, and make sure the bulb is about half way into the soil and the remainder of the pot is buried.

[Touché Turtle]

Sorry to ask a daft question, but I'm getting a bit confused. I've not had dealings with onion sets before!

Should whole bulb be under the soil or not? I was told by a friend to plant them with only the bottom third in the soil, now I'm reading here they should be completely under, or halfway into the soil.

Mine are starting to sprout in the string bag, so need planting but their bed isn't ready yet, so I'm going to pot them up today but now not sure how deep.

[DD.]

It's not that critical in my experience and I defy you to bother to gauge the difference between a half and a third when you'e doing 100's!

I've always planted mine as my grandfather did, so there is nothing showing, but only just below the surface. The critical thing is to not bury them 6" down. If you don't do it this way, you may need to net against birds.

If you're starting them in pots, just with the bottom in the compost is sufficient until proper planting time - you're only trying to get the roots going.

[Touché Turtle]

It's not that critical in my experience and I defy you to bother to gauge the difference between a half and a third when you'e doing 100's!

I've always planted mine as my grandfather did, so there is nothing showing, but only just below the surface. The critical thing is to not bury them 6" down. If you don't do it this way, you may need to net against birds.

If you're starting them in pots, just with the bottom in the compost is sufficient until proper planting time - you're only trying to get the roots going.

Thank you, that's a nice clear answer. I'l follow your advice and put them bottom-only in pots til their bed is ready. 

[JayG]

With limited space I concentrate on the more productive and higher value shallots these days, although I still grow some onions from seed.

When I used to grow sets I did actually just bury them to help hide them from birds - I used to hoe the top inch of soil first to make sure I didn't have to force the sets into the ground, and being therefore quite loose it soon adjusted itself around them.

Perhaps should have explained that the reason for removing the top of peat pots before planting is to avoid the "wicking" effect if they protrude above the soil which can prevent the rest of the pot from breaking down, thereby restricting the roots.