A Staple In the Pantry: Onions

By Jos Van Hage

Onions have been used in the kitchen for centuries and are a staple in many local gardens.

There are several different types of onions ranging from the mild green bunching varieties, sweet tasting Spanish onion, to the stronger flavored cooking onion varieties. There are so many different varieties that there is sure to be one to suit everyone’s taste.

Onions can be planted as seed, transplants, or sets. Onions are hardy and can tolerate a small degree of frost so seeds can be sown into the soil in early May as soon as the soil is workable and then later thinned out as the plants grow. Transplants can be bought in the garden centers or you can
choose your own varieties and start them at home. 

They should be started anywhere from 6-10 weeks, depending on variety (Spanish onions require a longer growing time than other varieties) before they are ready to be planted outdoors in early May.

The advantage to using transplants is that onions will be ready 6-8 weeks earlier than direct seeding, and they will be larger. Onions transplant very well, just make sure not to plant them too deep as they only need to have their roots buried.

Another method of planting onions is using sets which are immature bulbs which when planted will grow into onions. These come as ‘Dutch onion sets’ which are the cooking onions, ‘ multipliers’ which will produce 6-7 green onions per bulb and then shallots, and white and red onions. These are planted
in early May by pressing them into the ground so that tips are above ground.

When using the Dutch onion sets choose small, firm bulbs as these will be less prone to bolting. The advantage to using onion sets is that they are faster to mature into an onion and tend to be less susceptible to disease and pests, but they do cost more and the onions do not get as large as those grown from seed or transplant.

Onions can be grown in a single row or in raised beds. The raised beds can hold 4 rows 6 inches apart and the onions are planted 3-5 inches apart. If the onions are planted too closely they can be thinned out and the young plants that are thinned can be used as green onions. Green onions take very little space and can also be grown in containers, along with your herbs.

Onions grow best in a well drained, fertile soil that has a pH of 6.0 – 6.8. For the past couple of
years we have used blood and bone meal on our home garden and the onions have done very well. Because onions have a shallow root system and moisture is important to an onions growth they will need to be given water if the soil becomes too dry and extra mulching can help retain the soils moisture. Keeping the weeds down also helps as the onions will not have to compete with the weeds for moisture. Onions also need lots of light so choose a sunny part of the garden. A common
complaint when growing onions is ‘onion root maggot’. The infected plants wilt, turn yellow then die. When pulled out of the soil you will notice little holes in the bulb with tiny, legless, creamy white larvae inside the bulb. To help prevent maggots, crops should be rotated yearly, the soil should be tilled in the fall, weeds should be kept down so the adult flies are exposed, and plants should be spaced further apart making it harder for maggots to move from one onion to the next. A floating row cover also helps as it prevents the adult flies from laying their eggs on the soil, and if it becomes a problem, plant onions very shallow so that only the roots are in the soil. If you have an infested
plant remove it quickly and destroy it and the last resort would be to use the chemical ‘Malathion’ which should be applied following the manufacturer’s recommendations. 

Onions require anywhere from 60 days for green onions to 125 days for the ‘Spanish varieties’
till harvest but they can be used earlier if you want to have fresh onions from the garden. The cooking and Spanish onions are mature when the green tops fall over and then they can be pulled and left to lie in the sun for a few days. After they have been cured the dried top is removed 2 inches from the bulb and then the dried onion is ready to be stored in a cool, dry space with good air circulation. If properly cured and cared for you can be eating onions throughout the winter and into spring!

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