[strangerachael]

So I have read all the previous posts I can find on growing onions from seed, I don't think mine are ready for planting out just yet, but i still have one question: how deep do you plant them? At the moment a lot of the seedlings are falling over and their roots are showing above the compost. Obviously they won't be planted as deeply as leeks, but presumably they need to be a bit deeper than they are now?

[DD.]

I just stuff mine in about 1" down.

[Trillium]

I do mine about the same depth. Seems no matter how deep I plant them, they'll still pop out which seems to be their preferred habit.

[A Reyt Tayty]

I've tried doing onions from seed this year. No success whatsoever. Set them in individual modules, some in the house, some in the greenhouse. They get to about 1" high and then keel over. I don't waterlog them, or keep them too dry. Bad packet of seed?

[JayG]

Last year I lost three quarters of my onion seedlings at about that stage Tayty - looked like damping off, probably due to too much water and too cold (they weren't covered so it shouldn't have been too much humidity.)

This year (same seed, Sweet Spanish White) I have only lost a few, although it's quite difficult to get them to grow strongly whilst still in a tray in the greenhouse. All I've done differently is make sure the compost is damp rather than soggy.

[potatogrower]

put mine in trays, nice open space. its all trail and error for me at the mo. i would say best to start in sept/oct indoors and let them grow slowly and planted around now outside in spring. i dug a groove 2 inch deep, layed them in with roots beneath and cover up with soil and let them grow. as long as they have a good root system they should grow without much attention.

[shokkyy]

I did read somewhere that onion seeds don't like to be sown in wet soil/compost, so maybe that was the problem.