[shoozie]

Last autumn, for the first time, I planted a pack each of white and red sets.  They were a real disappointment and a grand total of seven survived - even then I had to lift them and transplant into pots.  The winter was very wet, so I guess they rotted.  The potted up survivors grew well in the end.

I don't know whether to try again - any tips for successful growing welcome please  - thanks

[gavinjconway]

Hi Shoozie - onions normally grow so easily... What were they? Were they Japanese Winter onions or just normal summer type?  I grow a packet of whites and always pick first onions as green onions on 1st May every year. They are a good stop gap between nothing and the  summer crop..

[Mrs Bee]

I grew some red and white Japanese onions again this year to over winter. They did not do as well as last year Ithink because of the rain. I had several that rotted but we still had enough to make it worthwhile.

We got about a carrier bag full and I still have a few left.

You might as well have another go. We just followed the instructions on the packet and planted them in our raised beds.

[compostqueen]

I bought some today!  I will plant them in the first available gap along with shallots and garlic.  They are well worth it when you think that nearly everything you cook contains an onion  

[Kirpi]

Overwintering onions don't seem to do much over winter anyway so I guess the risk is they sit there and rot if it is too wet over winter.

Last year, I put my overwintering onions into module trays in cold frames and planted them out in spring. That way I was able to control the amount of water each got.

It has been an excellent crop this year and having roots on when I planted them out meant they did not heave out of the ground as sets tend to do. I will do this again this year.

[pvc]

I would agree with compostqueen my overwintering onions this year were brillant.they were much larger than my summer ones .I. bought  a mixed bag from wilko's and they have stored very well, they are definately worth the bother

[BabbyAnn]

I noticed your location is Scotland shoozie and wonder if autumn is leaving it a bit late to plant overwintering onions and maybe get them planted as early as possible such as any time now up to mid September to give them chance to throw roots out before winter?  Don't worry if you see no top growth until spring as this is perfectly normal.  If the soil is heavy, maybe plant the sets in a raised bed with sharp sand dug in to help with drainage and don't bury them but nestle them on the top - the onions should be able to cope with cold wet weather but not waterlogging, and I highly recommend digging in well rotted manure rather than compost (I have noticed my onions seem to develop rot at the base when grown in soil with compost but not so with manure)  Also, don't bother with red or the white (as in white skinned) onions as my experience so far after several attempts is that they really don't do well over winter.  Senshyu Yellow or Radar would probably be the ones to choose.  And apply a potash fertilizer in spring as this seems to help with the bulbing up.

[New shoot]

I'm a lot further south, but my plot is heavy clay and was really hard going in the first couple of years.  To give overwintering garlic and onions a chance I dug organic matter and grit into a patch like BabbyAnn suggests and now they are a crop I do every year.  I pull them as soon as they are big enough to eat like giant spring onions and am a big fan   

The other benefit is you also get a new patch of great soil the following summer to plant up a follow on crop.

[arugula]

I didn't bother with over winter onions last winter shoozie. Onions are cheap as chips to buy in the shops and they don't seem to crop for me as well as either garlic or shallots, both of which I use a lot and consider more expensive. I didn't think they really tasted that much better home grown either.

[Potty Plotty Lotty]

I mainly grow them for the leaves-nice to chop up and add to stir fry/salad. It's something for almost no effort early in the season.

I also like having as much in the plot over winter as possible-it cheers the soul through the dark months!

 

[SG6]

Just been looking at these as a possibility.
Have decided to get 2 small lots of seed and try the seed.

Moreveg do seed in small quantities, 50 or 60 seeds per packet, so the idea is get 2 varieties of overwintering onions (about £1 total) and put these in.

A £1 isn't a great loss if all fails, and if half a dozen of each come up then worthwhile.

Is there a list of Overwintering Onions ??
Identifying what is and what isn't can be "entertaining".

[mattwragg94]

I didn't think they really tasted that much better home grown either.

Realy - i find homegrown onions taste alot sweeter than bought onions! Maybe its just me?

[mumofstig]

Just been looking at these as a possibility.
Have decided to get 2 small lots of seed and try the seed.

Moreveg do seed in small quantities, 50 or 60 seeds per packet, so the idea is get 2 varieties of overwintering onions (about £1 total) and put these in.

A £1 isn't a great loss if all fails, and if half a dozen of each come up then worthwhile.

Is there a list of Overwintering Onions ??
Identifying what is and what isn't can be "entertaining".

If you are taliking about onions that are sown in Autumn to yield in June apx (overwintering onions)then Senshyu is the commonly available variety, real seeds suggest Sturon can also be sown in the same way. You'll have to sow quickly though as you're towards the end of the advised sowing period.

Ordinary onions can be sown from end of Dec in a greenhouse - eventually to be planted out later in Spring.

[SG6]

So far managed to find the following "mentioned" as overwintering onions:
Sturon,
Early Paris White,
Radar,
Senshyu,
Electric.
Shakesphere,
Red Winter,
Troy,
Snowball.
Toughball,
Bridger.

Have seen Stuttgarter stated as such but ather reading would imply it is boarder line ans is more an over wintering variety owing to our milder winters we appear  to have.

Will get a couple of varieties and sow in a couple of rows in a few weeks as basically little lose by giving them a try. I may even get some onions out of it as well, which even if 1 gets to a reasonable size is better then the onion sets I planted at the start of the year.

[arugula]

I didn't think they really tasted that much better home grown either.

Realy - i find homegrown onions taste alot sweeter than bought onions! Maybe its just me?

Compared to the vast difference you get with most veg.