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mom2ems

Onions from seed....my progress

mom2ems
15 years ago

Hello everyone!!

I thought I would share with all of you some progress pictures of my onions. I can't find too many pictures of baby onions, so I thought I would share some of my pictures. This is my first year growing onions of any kind. This will be my second year having a vegetable garden. So please keep this in mind. I'm a newbie and I'm just learning. Because I had no experience with growing onions, I wanted to start out with the cheapest method possible...seeds.

I planted Copra onion seeds starting on January 15th (kind of early, I know). I was REAL anal when seeding them. I planted them in 3 rows, 1" apart; 2 seeds per 1/4th inch, using tweezers. I thinned them out as they came up. I seeded the onion seeds over 5 days. Here is a picture of them at about 5 to 10 days old:

{{gwi:360514}}

I planted them in Miracle-Gro potting mix. Looking back on it now, I should have used a seed starting mixÂ.something much less dense. Over the next weeks, as they grew tall, I would trim them to 3". They also would really lean toward the window/light. I would turn them, but still they would really lean. So, I put some reflective bubble wrap I had left over from an attic project around the onions. This helped the leaning issue tremendously! At about 4 weeks old, I noticed they were looking really sad soon after I had really watered them. A day or so passed and they were still looking bad, so I decided to sprinkle some bone meal on them, and water them AGAIN real good. That was a mistake (I hadnÂt realized the original problem was from over watering). Those onions started smelling really bad and they looked all deflated and yellow. I thought for sure they were goners! HereÂs the pictureÂ

{{gwi:360516}}

After several days of drying out, they started to come backÂwhew! They did lose their second leaf, but at least they werenÂt dead.

{{gwi:360518}}

Here is a picture of my onions today at about 7 weeks old.

{{gwi:360519}}

IÂll try to keep this post updated with my progress or failure of my onions. IÂm hopeful :o)

Garden on everyone!

Catherine

Comments (87)

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm not an experienced onion grower, but from growing onions now, I think a yellowing/dying leaf here and there is completely normal. My onions have been loosing a leaf every now and again since the begining. I don't think it's nomral to have lots of onions with lots of dying leaves though. If it's just one per onion, I think that's normal.

    I went out and took a picture of the bottom of my onions. I usually pull off the dead leaves to keep things looking neat, but I did find some I haven't pulled off yet.
    {{gwi:360531}}

    HTH
    Good luck!
    Catherine

  • tomatoeboy
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks for the info and the pics. That is exactly what my onion leaves look like. Nothing major on any one plant but a leaf every so often browns and dries on each onion just like the ones in your pic. Again thanks for the info and will be looking forward to future updates.

  • citygirlgardener
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I also started onion from seed for the first time this year and it has been trial and error. Your onions look wonderful and how neat and tidy your garden is. . . Your onions are much bigger then mine, but I planted from seed later and then stuck them in a cold frame early, plenty of light but it might have been to cool. I will try starting from seed earlier next year. Happy gardening!

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I guess I haven't mentioned that I do add fertilizer. I have been adding ammonium sulfate every 18 days since the begining. The first time I added it was 2 weeks after planting them in the ground. I really think that is why they are doing so well. We've also had a lot of rain, but not too much (yet...). I don't know if planting my seed so early was the best thing to do. I was kind of thinking I might start next year around Feb. 15th (not Jan. 15th like this year). I don't know....maybe Jan 15 was fine. I guess I'll wait and see how this crop turns out before I make any decisions for next year. I will plant them further apart next year. Every 4" isn't enough room. Every 6" would have been better. All of the onions on the edges are growing at an angle.

    Catherine

  • TJG911
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    "I have been adding ammonium sulfate every 18 days since the begining."

    from what i have read onions require very little fertilization. as new seedlings i give them some dilute neptune's harvest a few times. once out in the garden i fertilize them just 3 times which is a month apart. i've done fine doing this so i'm not sure but you may be over fertilizing (imo you are but...). while the onions may grow fine perhaps it would reduce their storage capacity? just a thought. btw, where did you find a recommendation to fertilize them every 18 days?


    "I don't know if planting my seed so early was the best thing to do. I was kind of thinking I might start next year around Feb. 15th (not Jan. 15th like this year). "

    i don't know where you are but 1/15 is a bit too early for me in nw ct. i used to start them on 2/22 but this year i moved it back to 2/15. at the earliest i'd go to 2/1 but since i don't plant out until 4/15 even 2/1 seems a bit early.

    tom

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well, from what I've read, onions are heavy feeders and do benefit from heavy fertilization. The bigger the leaves = the bigger the bulb. Im following the advice giving on the Dixondale FAQ page regarding when/how to fertilize. They are experts at growing onions, so I figured I couldnt go wrong with following their advice.

    {{gwi:360533}}

    The article mentions to fertilize "every 2 to 3 weeks".18 days is just a number I decided on that was between 2 to 3 weeks.

    The only thing that I have read about reducing storage capacity in onions is pulling the onions before all the tops are all yellow/dead. Even a little green left in the leaves reduces their storage capacity. Im going to try to harvest them when everything is good and yellow/brown. Onions having big, green leaves hasnt come up in my reading as a problem when it comes to storage capacity. Time will tell, I guess. Though I really dont think its a problem. Im going to keep on my fertilization schedule as planned and see how things work out.

    Im in NW PA (near lake Erie). I do think Jan 15th was too early. Maybe not though. One thing is for sure, Im soon to find out. Ill keep this post going, even if things dont turn out well and I made mistakes. Maybe Ill save some hassle for someone else.

    Catherine

  • TJG911
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    wow every 14 days for an organic spray! i'm organic and as stated spray neptune's harvest at 3 weeks after transplanting out but then only every 30 days and just 3 times. my onions, copra and red wing, have green growth that looks as vigorous and lush as yours. this has been my method for several years and it works for me. i guess this works too but it seems excessive based upon my experience.

    now as far as "reducing storage capacity in onions is pulling the onions before all the tops are all yellow/dead. Even a little green left in the leaves reduces their storage capacity. Im going to try to harvest them when everything is good and yellow/brown." allow me to comment. from what i have read and do, this is the method for harvesting and curing onions.

    when about 20% of the tops are starting to fall over, gently push all the greens down at the base of the neck using a bow rake. this puts more energy into the bulb. i leave them in the garden for another week unless a big rain is coming - you really want the onions to not get water at this stage if possible. after about 7-10 days i pull them and let them sit in the garden covering the bulbs with the leaves for about 5-7 days. then i put them on drying racks in my shed (by now it is late august) until mid october. by then all the tops have dried or should have. i cut a few tops just above the bulb and if no liquid can be squeezed out of the dried tops then process all the onions. i cut off the dried tops and trim the roots to 1/4". i store them in the basement in mesh bags cuz i usually have the fridge full of cabbage and potatoes. i don't have potatoes this year so i'll put the onions in the fridge around mid october. 37 degrees is the correct temperature for storage. my onions from last summer are still in good shape, i don't have many left. one year i had them in storage for 14 months.

    i think the key thing is to push the greens over at the right time and then to dry them thoroughly for several weeks. storage is important to me as i grow about 100 pounds of onions and that's why i chose these 2 varieties as they store very long.

    tom

  • korney19
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Tom, why would you only spray such a weak fertilizer (2-3-1, instead of recommended 21-0-0) only once a month????? You would think, with all the millions you've made in the insurance racket business, that you could afford weekly or every 10 days, no?

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Its been a little over a month since my last onion update. Here is a picture of what they look like now.

    {{gwi:360534}}

    {{gwi:360535}}

    It has been a very wet and cool/cold summer here in PA. A couple weeks ago I noticed some of the onion leaves were getting a gray fuzzy mold growing on them. To try to control the spread of the mold, I removed all the leaves with any mold on them. During that first week, the mold seemed to stay on just those first few rows of onions. Here is a picture of the mold.

    {{gwi:360536}}

    For the past 5 days weve had nothing but rain and more cool temperatures. There was finally a break in the rain yesterday and I noticed the gray mold on my onion leaves was much worse. I sprayed them with some fungicide (neem oil), but today they look no better. Maybe theyll look better with some time, but Im doubtful. The mold has spread to about half of my onion plants and much more of the leaves are infected. The leaves are soft and falling on top of each other, which makes the situation worse. Here is a picture of the infected leaves circled in red.

    {{gwi:360538}}

    I am unsure on how to proceed. I cant just remove all the leaves that are affectedits way too extensive. I hate to pull all infected plants, because that would be half of my entire crop. I dont want this mold to affect the bulb. It would be okay if my bulbs stop getting bigger. They look pretty good right now for the most part (except the onions in the center are smaller due to being planted too close together.Ill change that for next year for sure). I did pull one infected plant to see if the bulb was okay. The bulb was fine (whew!).

    If anyone has any experience with molding onions leaves, please share. If I get no advice, Ill probably just wait and see and hope for some sun.

    Catherine

  • TJG911
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    i've never seen mold on onions but this year is like being in rain forest. i suspect the mold will not harm the bulbs but i really don't know. if you want to try using milk i'll supply the recipe. milk has anti fungal properties. if you are really concerned then start the harvest - push the greens down with a rake at the base ie treat the plants as if 25% are starting to fall over.

    o 1 cup milk (any kind but i use whole milk as it has more fat)
    o if you use whole milk use 1 teaspoon dish detergent to help the milk stick to the leaves (don't use anti bacterial or you will kill off beneficial bacteria in the garden)
    o 1 quart of water
    o appropriate amount of liquid fish concentrate fertilizer for 1 quart of water (i use this if i want to fertilize otherwise skip it)

    spray this milk solution on the onions early in the day so the sun is on the plants all day. the sun seems to help. this works for powdery mildew on squashes and cukes.

    your onions are nice size, what was the variety?

    tom

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I did some more reading after I posted. What I have on the leaves is powdery mildew (did I say that before?). I read that this type of fungus will not usually kill the plant, but will create a poor quality bulb, which will get spongy in storage. So SAD! Everywhere I read, it said the infected plants should be culled. Once the plants are infected its very difficult to get rid of it and it will just spread to other plants. So, unfortunately, that's what I did. I pulled any onion that had any fuzz on it. I would say half had the mold. I spent all day chopping them up and putting them in my freezer. I'm hoping to finish that job tomorrow.

    {{gwi:360540}}

    {{gwi:360541}}

    I hated pulling all those onions but I didnt want them to just rot away in the garden or in storage. The bulbs I did cut up where in great shape. Ive used lots of frozen onions in the past and I think they are fine. I would just have wished I could have stored them the normal way!

    The bulbs were in such great shapeit seemed such a shame to just chop them up. It was a hard decision! I did know I had to pull the plants. The fungus was moving and infected other plants.

    I dont have a picture of the remaining onions in the garden. They are falling over because they used each other to support themselves. They arent BENT over just leaning quite a bit. If they start getting yellow, Ill knock them over. I sprayed the remaining onions with neem oil.

    I know it's been really wet and cold but I do blame myself for this problem. I planted these plants WAY too close. They are planted where I did have some powdery mildew problems last year (I didn't realize it could infect plants the following year). AND I should have pulled the onions as soon as I saw any fuzz. I would have lost a lot less. A LOT less.... Hindsight is 20/20 :o(

    Thanks for the milk recipe.

    My onions are copra.

    Catherine

  • korney19
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Catherine, those onions looked mighty nice! That's a shame you had to pull them. I haven't had any powdery mildew on mine here in Buffalo, but I spray regularly & preventatively with Daconil/Ortho Garden Disease Control or mancozeb. They prevent or control most diseases, mildews, blights & rots on most vegetables (tomatoes, onions, garlic, corn, squash, pumpkins, cukes, etc.) I don't know how effective neem is on onions, I know it's NOT effective on tomatoes for blights. If you are trying to be organic, maybe you can try copper, baking soda or potassium bicarbonate. I've never had much luck with the organic type remedies and just stick to what works for me.

  • TJG911
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Catherine,

    copra store a good year. the onions look nice but the green are so green i'm sure they could have gone another week or more. the fish milk recipe will cure powdery mildew on squash plants so you should have tried it on the onions. you had nothing to lose and maybe could have left them growing. my copra started to fall over a week ago and i bent them over. i pulled them all this week. i bent over the red wing yesterday.

  • luvahydrangea
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Just wanted to say, thanks for sharing. Great thread!

  • nina_lee
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I know this original post is old. But I was wondering why you would cover onions? I am new to this and was just curious. Thanks

  • pwdsht
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am new too at starting onions, you mention using bubble wrap,is that to cut the amout of light? Also can anyone else comment on using flour. lites to start onion seeds? Thanks for the good pics!!

  • heirloomjunkie
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Fluorecent lights are WONDERFUL for starting onions seeds. Mine surely would have died without them. There is a forum called 'growing under lights' check out the FAQ. And, just so you know, you don't have to buy the expensive "grow lights". A simple shoplight strip for 15 bucks will do. Just remember to keep them really close to the bulbs. One to two inches max.

    What kind of onions are you growing?

    Kim

  • pwdsht
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Kim; Thanks for the info, have Candy onions +a few white Lisbon, last yr I planted a few Lisbon directly in garden & left them grow, got as big as softballs & they are still keeping well!

  • heirloomjunkie
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Pwdsht-
    How far apart did you grow the big onions? I planted too close together last year and ended up overcrowding and they were stunted. How long did they take to mature?

    Kim

  • pwdsht
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Kim; I planted 6" apart & 99% were very large, It was 15th of Sept. when tops were fully dried

  • heirloomjunkie
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Awesome! I'm putting mine out tomorrow, and will try that spacing instead.

    Kim

  • davidbooth65
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I just wanted to say that I loved this thread. The average second year gardener is growing onion sets. Mom2ems is growing, err going places. You grow girl!

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Okay...I started this thread over a year ago and this is my last update (probably!) on my onions. (I was happy to see this post revived!)

    I let those onions sit in my garage for about 6 weeks. It was real obvious when they were dry enough...no more green was visible. I braided them into ropes and stored them in my unheated, yet insulated garage all winter. It gets really cold in there but it doesn't freeze. This was not optimal, but it's what I have. This worked REALLY well. I lost maybe 10 to rot out of all those onions. By mid March it was getting too warm in the garage and I put the rest of my onions in the fridge. I think I waited a week or so longer than I should have (note to self). Some of the onions were starting to sprout...not too many though. I still have plenty to last through till August (though I doubt they will survive that long...they were not stored perfectly).

    So, there it is :o)

    Catherine

    and just saying....I did start up my onions this year in a 1/2 inch plug tray for ease of transplanting...BIG MISTAKE. Those things dried out so fast and it was so easy to over water. UGH! I killed half of them. I transplanted the survivors to my "old" planting containers and they are doing much better. I wanted 200 onion plants...I might get 150 if I'm lucky. Oh well...live and learn!

  • renee48111
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am taking a minute to comment on this thread. I hardly ever post on gardenweb. I use this site mostly for research and find that I learn more from this site than the library of books I have.

    Catherine, I am very impressed with your commitment to this thread. I actually read the entire thread which I rarely do. Your garden is beautiful! An inspiration to myself and I am sure, many others. I have been growing a veggie garden for over 35 years and this thread on onions was very knowledgeable for me as onions have been one of the hardest plants I have ever tried growing. I have always started them from seed and they never get larger than a golf ball. Anyway, loved the photos and loved your enthusiasm! Good luck to you and thank you for sharing! Renee

  • jaceysgranny
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I was glad this thread was revived too. I've enjoyed reading it since the beginning. You did a great job for a new to onions gardener or an experienced one. You should be proud.

    Nancy

  • gardenathome
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi, Catherine! Thank you so much for sharing this with us. We were thinking about growing onions from seed too. This is a wealth of information. Appreciate it so much! Excellent job!!! :-)

  • caryltoo Z7/SE PA
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks Catherine. I'm growing from seed for the first time this year. I did mine by WS. They only have two leaves, but they should probably go out in the garden soon.

    Caryl

  • gardener_deebs
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    This thread was so helpful, especially the pictures! Thanks a lot Catherine :)

  • heirloomjunkie
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I just stuck my green onion seedlings out in the garden today. So proud of them! Is there anything I can do to ensure they stay srong? I can deal with frost by covering them till they're established, but I'm worried about wind damage and the like. Probably being overprotective...

    Oh yeah, and I bought some Georgia Sweet stick outs, pretty big, a while back. They seem to be doing absolutely nothing. Not dying, but not exactly taking off either. There is some new growth, but I'm not sure what to expect. Last year, my onion sets grew like crazy. What gives?

    Kim

  • seekingshare2
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I was transplanting my onion seedlings tonday and a neighbor who also gardens stopped by and said that I should be trimming the roots from the onion seedlings so they are short. Well I have actually seen onion seedlings sold in the stores and the roots are short so I trimmed off a good part of the roots and planted them. Now I'm concerned that I may have made a mistake in doing this and killed 100 onion plants. anyone have any thoughts?

  • tilmitt
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    When transplanting my onion seedlings a week or two ago I accidentally ripped many of their roots off. However within about a few days they started to stand up straight and seemed to recover well. Only a few died. But as a policy I wouldn't recommend deliberately cutting the roots. I think all this cutting back mentality is taken too far by most people. The plant grows by expanding root and leaf area, destroying these just reduces the plants capacity to grow and shocks it needlessly. It you want a plant to grow...let it grow.

  • annpat
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Great thread!

  • yopper
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Just my 2 cents!!!! And what works for me. I only plant sets for green onions.I like big & sweet onions.I used to grow my own plants yrs. ago but now I buy plants from dixondale.I get bigger onions from there plants than I did from what I grew and a lot easer to plant.I plant as early as I can a light frost or snow will not hurt them.I had 2 inches on them 2 days ago and it was 23 degreeze last night and they are looking good today! I plant a wide row of 4 on 10 inch centers.Onions do not like to be crowded.I fertelize with 10-10-10 about 3 times through the growing season once their growing good.When 3/4 of the tops have fallen over[DO NOT BEND THE TOPS OVER] I pull them.I leave in the garden a couple days depending on the weather to dry the dirt on them so it will rub off with a gloved hand. I then trim the tops to 1 inch and cut off the roots. Then I put them inside out of the weather but where the air can move through them for a month then into storage. This is what works for me.Any questions please ask. YOPPER

  • fmart322
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    That was the coolest crop of onions I have ever saw. Sorry you lost some but still, that reall was cool.

  • tastytravels
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    WOW!! Excellent thread! I'm thinking of growing my onions from seeds so this thread totally inspired me. Thanks!

  • firstmmo
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Good threads never die!
    I loved seeing the progression and like others said, it was totally inspirational. I haven't nearly enough room to grow 1000 onions but I will try growing about 50. Thanks for all the great info, the helpful personal tips and the photos!

  • gardenvt
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have actually read this thread twice - in Jan 2011 and again today to remind myself of all the things I read here as this is my first time growing the onion family.

    I was ready to plant out May 2 but we have threat of very heavy rain for tonight so will plant out tomorrow.

    The plants are all a good size with nice bulbing (bulging). I haven't trimmed the tops of the onions (or shallots & leeks) since I put them in our mini cold greenhouse to harden off. The tops are about 10-12 inches. Is this OK?

  • tryinginfla9b
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    This is probably one of the best threads I've read.
    It has given me the inspiration to grow my own onions from seed. My seedlings are are about 3" tall and I have the bed ready for transplant when they get bigger.

    Just wanted to 'bump' this thread back up for others to read.

    Larry

  • claydirt
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Great thread, Catherine and everyone!!! I've been gardening about 2 years and still I'm still learning a lot. My onions never got bigger than a tennis ball. In 2012, I think I'll plant them farther apart (maybe 8") and add nitrogen more often.

    Does the sulfur in "ammonium sulfate" make the onions taste stronger? I like the mild candy onions and hesitate to add sulfur to the garden.

    Also (if you're still there Catherine) how did the green beans work out planted next to the onions? I did that and it seemed ok, but I've read that they shouldn't be planted next to each other. Anyone know if this is a nitrogen issue?

    Fantastic pictures!

  • Doryman
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I saw this post about a year ago, but now the pictures seem to be gone. If Mom2ems is still around, would you be able to repost the pictures? This was a great resource.

    Many thanks

  • nanelle_gw (usda 9/Sunset 14)
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'e grown onions before, but not in awhile. I have tried seeds, and I have tried plants from dixondale.

    My ambition this year has been to grow cippolini from seed, and it has not been easy. This thread is encouraging me.

    I live in an intermediate zone, and would love to try growing a short day cippolini over the winter, sine it is very hot and dry here in the summer, especially where I grow them. I bought two varieties from seeds from Italy, put them in self watering seed trays in Nov to plant out in Feb, which is what was suggested in Golden Gate Gardening. They looked great for about 6 weeks, then I bottom fed them with diluted fish emulsion. It started going downhill from there, and I was only able to salvage a few. Not sure if it was starting to go downhill before I fed them, and that is why I fed them. I know I was worried they were planted t thickly, but didn't seem ready to move to bigger pots. I did move some, and those are among the survivors. Those are now planted in clumps in my earthbox outside. I didn't t feel I could successfully separate them when I planted them out. I also direct seeded some in the same box, and in a tray inside, but its been two weeks and neither are up.

    Sigh.

    The ones bellow are from 04.

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I can't believe this post is still going!! I haven't checked in on it for a long time. That's awesome. I'm sorry the pictures are no longer visible. I no longer use the web hosting company that the pictures were uploaded to. I can't edit my posts to change the links to the pictures either.....that's unfortunate.

    I'll copy/paste all my posts/replies into one new follow-up post with pictures that load for anyone who wants the information. It will be on my to-do list in the next few days.

    ~Catherine

  • mom2ems
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    **This post is a follow-up to my original post back from 2009 with the images back inside the dialog. My intent is to put all my original responses in this one reply so you can see how my growing season went from start to finish in this one reply. I won't paste EVERY reply I made, but I'll put in what gives the most complete picture on how I grew my onions. It may seem a bit choppy at times, but in some of my responses I was replying to others comments. You'll get the gist of what I did, mistakes and all.

    ~Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Wed, Mar 4, 09

    Hello everyone!!

    I thought I would share with all of you some progress pictures of my onions. I can't find too many pictures of baby onions, so I thought I would share some of my pictures. This is my first year growing onions of any kind. This will be my second year having a vegetable garden. So please keep this in mind. I'm a newbie and I'm just learning. Because I had no experience with growing onions, I wanted to start out with the cheapest method possible...seeds.

    I planted Copra onion seeds starting on January 15th (kind of early, I know). I was REAL anal when seeding them. I planted them in 3 rows, 1" apart; 2 seeds per 1/4th inch, using tweezers. I thinned them out as they came up. I seeded the onion seeds over 5 days. Here is a picture of them at about 5 to 10 days old:


    I planted them in Miracle-Gro potting mix. Looking back on it now, I should have used a seed starting mix or something much less dense. Over the next weeks, as they grew tall, I would trim them to 3". They also would really lean toward the window/light. I would turn them, but still they would really lean. So, I put some reflective bubble wrap I had left over from an attic project around the onions. This helped the leaning issue tremendously! At about 4 weeks old, I noticed they were looking really sad soon after I had really watered them. A day or so passed and they were still looking bad, so I decided to sprinkle some bone meal on them, and water them AGAIN real good. That was a mistake (I hadnât realized the original problem was from over watering). Those onions started smelling really bad and they looked all deflated and yellow. I thought for sure they were goners! Hereâs the picture:


    After several days of drying out, they started to come back. Whew! They did lose their second leaf, but at least they werenât dead.


    Here is a picture of my onions today at about 7 weeks old.


    I'll try to keep this post updated with my progress or failure of my onions. I'm hopeful :o)

    Garden on everyone!
    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Mar 4, 09 at 23:01

    I didn't use any bottom heat. The room temperature was/is about 72 degrees on cloudy days and probably closer to 75 degrees on sunny days (this window is my bedroom, so I keep this room comfortable). I'm not sure what conditions were present when the seeds were coming up (less sunny I'm sure...it was in the middle of January in PA...lol). I did use a clear plastic dome to retain good humidity. I used pre-dampened soil and I'm pretty sure I didn't water the seeds after planting. I thought there was enough moisture from the damp soil to activate the seeds.

    I purchased my seeds from Johnnyseeds.com. I bought the pack with over 1000 seeds and planted them all. I think the germination rate on the pack said 75%. I got at least that much if not closer to 90%.

    I'm sorry your germination rate was so low. That would truly be disappointing.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Mon, Mar 9, 09

    ......

    I think I planted mine a tad deeper than a 1/4th of an inch. I put some masking tape on the tweezers I used to mark the depth so all my seeds were at the same depth. Most germinated at about day 5. Some came up a bit later, but not more then a day or so later.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Fri, Mar 13, 09

    In the past few days, Iâve noticed my onions were getting a bit pale. Some of the leaves were really pale and dying off. They were a bit dry, so I watered them. This didnât improve the color at all. I waited until they needed watering again but this time I added Miracle-Gro to the water. I hope this improves the color of the leaves and stops the die off of the leaves. Most of the plants have 2-3 leaves. I think they should have more by now (they are 1.5 months old). They would have more if the leaves would stop dying off (my fault, I realize). I have been holding off on adding any fertilizer because I used Miracle-Gro potting soil with fertilizer in it. It says on the bag it should feed the plants for up to 3 months. Well, apparently not so with my onions. I did test the Miracle-Gro soil and the ph was a bit high at 8 (optimum for onions is 6 - 6.5). But the potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus were in the medium level range (comparing with the color charts provided with the soil kit). They have grown quite a bit taller in the past week. Maybe thicker, but they are still thin (still normal and okay I think). Looking back I should have added some fertilizer in their water 2 weeks ago at least.

    In the next few days itâs supposed to be real sunny, so that should help them out also. I plan on getting a fluorescent light today. This Sunday I start sewing lots of different plants. The light will be nice to have and I wonât have to be too worried about them not getting enough light.

    The one thing I've really noticed about growing from seed, is how emotionally involved I am with these plants. I get a bit sad when they look sick and excited when they do well. How pathetic is that! I don't remember feeling this way when I would buy plants from the gardening center.

    Thatâs it for now!
    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Tue, Mar 17, 09

    I did go out and get 2, 4â shop lights. I emptied a shelving unit I had in the basement and put it by the window with the lights. I turn the lights on in the evening when itâs starts to get dark and on cloudy days.
    Here is a picture of my onions. They are now 8 weeks old.


    They donât look too bad. I did cut away any dying leaves. They are maybe the thickness of toothpicks. In this picture the leaves are about 6" tall. I do cut them back to 3-4", which I did right after this photo was taken.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Fri, Mar 27, 09

    My onions are now 10 weeks old...WHA-WHO!! I have been trimming them to 3" at least twice a week now. I think I'll start keeping them at 5".....3" seems too short now. The base where the leaves come out of the plant is higher than it used to be. They grow about a 1/2 inch a day! Go onions go! I water them with Miracle-Gro once a week. Here are some pictures:


    Some onions have 4 green leaves and some have 2. Here is one with 3. I think they've had about 5 to 6 leaves total, but they die off over time. I think it might be normal. I hope it is, anyway.


    I hope everyone else's onions are doing well!
    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Sun, Apr 26, 09

    I finally planted my onions today! Iâm glad I donât need to "baby-sit" them anymore. Here is a picture of some of them before I planted them out. They are over 3 months old now.


    Here is a picture of them all planted. There are about 350-370 onions. I forgot to count them after I covered them with the row cover. I was just tired and glad to be done. It looks like I murdered all the onions!! I sure hope they spunk back up.


    I think next year Iâll try using those 280 plug trays. That might help with the transplant shock. Separating the onion roots was surprisingly easy, but I did notice lots of extra roots left in the dirt in the pots. I was trying to be careful.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Mon, Apr 27, 09

    It was really warm here when I planted my onions. It was also very windy. The temp. was in the 80's, I think. Cool and calm would have been perfect. If these onions don't recover, I'll know it's worth waiting for a perfect day to plant.

    I did water them as I was planting. I was really careful with that, because I have lost plants (once) for not being careful about keeping the roots wet at all times. I was being careful, but it was really windy and they could have gotten some damage (let's hope not!). It's always windy here, so I couldn't just wait for the wind to die down. I've given up on trying to grow anything on a trellis. They ALWAYS blow off or get damaged.

    I have been keeping an eye on my onions and so far they look okay. I watered them today also. They haven't really spunked up yet, but the new leaves on the onions are pointed up. The older leaves are still down, but not limp. I know my onions were used to growing next to each other and they didn't need to support themselves. I'm hoping that they are just adjusting to their new environment. The next nice day, I'll see if I can't straighten them up by watering them and pushing around the dirt a bit. We're in for some rain so it might be a few days.

    I'll take some pictures too.
    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Sat, May 16, 09

    I bought my seeds from Johnny's Selected Seeds.

    I finally got around to taking my camera out to the garden. My onions have recovered nicely. It did take a week though. I lost 5 plants...maybe they were buried too deep or some fertilizer burn. I shouldn't have sprinkled that little bit of fertilizer on the dirt before planting. I ran out of bone meal, so I thought, why not? I will not do that again! However, the plants are 3 weeks now in the ground and most have doubled in size.


    Here is an average sized onion plant.


    _________________________________________________________

    Sat, May 16, 09

    I thought I would post an update picture on all my onions. About the beginging of June, I removed the row cover from my onions because the leaves were really getting bent and I didn't figure that was a good thing. Most of the leaves are still bent, but are still green, so I assume all is well.



    Have a happy summer everyone!
    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Fri, Jun 26, 09

    I'm not an experienced onion grower, but from growing onions now, I think a yellowing/dying leaf here and there is completely normal. My onions have been losing a leaf every now and again since the beginning. I don't think it's normal to have lots of onions with lots of dying leaves though. If it's just one per onion, I think that's normal.
    I went out and took a picture of the bottom of my onions. I usually pull off the dead leaves to keep things looking neat, but I did find some I haven't pulled off yet.


    Hope that helped Good luck!
    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Jul 1, 09 at 11:35

    I guess I haven't mentioned that I do add fertilizer. I have been adding ammonium sulfate every 18 days since the beginning. The first time I added it was 2 weeks after planting them in the ground. I really think that is why they are doing so well. We've also had a lot of rain, but not too much (yet...). I don't know if planting my seed so early was the best thing to do. I was kind of thinking I might start next year around Feb. 15th (not Jan. 15th like this year). I don't know....maybe Jan 15 was fine. I guess I'll wait and see how this crop turns out before I make any decisions for next year. I will plant them further apart next year. Every 4" isn't enough room. Every 6" would have been better. All of the onions on the edges are growing at an angle.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Jul 1, 09 at 13:42

    Well, from what I've read, onions are heavy feeders and do benefit from heavy fertilization. The bigger the leaves = the bigger the bulb. Iâm following the advice giving on the Dixondale FAQ page regarding when/how to fertilize. They are experts at growing onions, so I figured I couldnât go wrong with following their advice.

    The article mentions to fertilize "every 2 to 3 weeks".18 days is just a number I decided on that was between 2 to 3 weeks.

    â¦..

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Sun, Jul 26, 09

    Itâs been a little over a month since my last onion update. Here is a picture of what they look like now.



    It has been a very wet and cool/cold summer here in PA. A couple weeks ago I noticed some of the onion leaves were getting a gray fuzzy mold growing on them. To try to control the spread of the mold, I removed all the leaves with any mold on them. During that first week, the mold seemed to stay on just those first few rows of onions. Here is a picture of the mold.


    For the past 5 days weâve had nothing but rain and more cool temperatures. There was finally a break in the rain yesterday and I noticed the gray mold on my onion leaves was much worse. I sprayed them with some fungicide (neem oil), but today they look no better. Maybe theyâll look better with some time, but Iâm doubtful. The mold has spread to about half of my onion plants and much more of the leaves are infected. The leaves are soft and falling on top of each other, which makes the situation worse. Here is a picture of the infected leaves circled in red.


    I am unsure on how to proceed. I canât just remove all the leaves that are affected, itâs way too extensive. I hate to pull all infected plants, because that would be half of my entire crop. I donât want this mold to affect the bulb. It would be okay if my bulbs stop getting bigger. They look pretty good right now for the most part (except the onions in the center are smaller due to being planted too close together). Iâll change that for next year for sure). I did pull one infected plant to see if the bulb was okay. The bulb was fine (whew!).

    If anyone has any experience with molding onions leaves, please share. If I get no advice, Iâll probably just wait and see and hope for some sun.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Mon, Jul 27, 09

    I did some more reading after I posted. What I have on the leaves is powdery mildew (did I say that before?). I read that this type of fungus will not usually kill the plant, but will create a poor quality bulb, which will get spongy in storage. So SAD! Everywhere I read, it said the infected plants should be culled. Once the plants are infected itâs very difficult to get rid of it and it will just spread to other plants. So, unfortunately, that's what I did. I pulled any onion that had any fuzz on it. I would say half had the mold. I spent all day chopping them up and putting them in my freezer. I'm hoping to finish that job tomorrow.



    I hated pulling all those onions but I didnât want them to just rot away in the garden or in storage. The bulbs I did cut up where in great shape. Iâve used lots of frozen onions in the past and I think they are fine. I would just have wished I could have stored them the normal way!

    The bulbs were in such great shapeâ¦it seemed such a shame to just chop them up. It was a hard decision! I did know I had to pull the plants. The fungus was moving and infected other plants.

    I donât have a picture of the remaining onions in the garden. They are falling over because they used each other to support themselves. They arenât BENT over just leaning quite a bit. If they start getting yellow, Iâll knock them over. I sprayed the remaining onions with neem oil.

    I know it's been really wet and cold but I do blame myself for this problem. I planted these plants WAY too close. They are planted where I did have some powdery mildew problems last year (I didn't realize it could infect plants the following year). AND I should have pulled the onions as soon as I saw any fuzz. I would have lost a lot less. A LOT less.... Hindsight is 20/20 :o(

    My onions are copra.

    Catherine
    _________________________________________________________

    Thu, Mar 25, 10

    Okay...I started this thread over a year ago and this is my last update (probably!) on my onions. (I was happy to see this post revived!)

    I let those onions sit in my garage for about 6 weeks. It was real obvious when they were dry enough...no more green was visible. I braided them into ropes and stored them in my unheated, yet insulated garage all winter. It gets really cold in there but it doesn't freeze. This was not optimal, but it's what I have. This worked REALLY well. I lost maybe 10 to rot out of all those onions. By mid-March it was getting too warm in the garage and I put the rest of my onions in the fridge. I think I waited a week or so longer than I should have (note to self). Some of the onions were starting to sprout...not too many though. I still have plenty to last through till August (though I doubt they will survive that long...they were not stored perfectly).

    So, there it is :o)

    Catherine

    and just saying....I did start up my onions this year in a 1/2 inch plug tray for ease of transplanting...BIG MISTAKE. Those things dried out so fast and it was so easy to over water. UGH! I killed half of them. I transplanted the survivors to my "old" planting containers and they are doing much better. I wanted 200 onion plants...I might get 150 if I'm lucky. Oh well...live and learn!

    THE END

  • AiliDeSpain
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hello, I was just reading your thread and was wondering about the wilting you experienced after you planted out your seedlings. I just planted 1/3 of mine today and they wilted and have not stood back up yet. Of course I am worried they are not going to make it. How long did it take for yours to perk up after transplanting?

  • Doryman
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Catherine

    I still cannot see the pictures, not sure if its just me or what.

    Regards

  • illidanx
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm interested in seeing the pictures but could not view it either.

  • Randy.Canada
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I also enjoy this thread, and also see none of Catherine's photos. For years, I failed at growing onions. Last year I had much better success (first-prize ribbon at the garden club). I grew Ailsa Craig, Sierra Blanca, and a few yellow types (Patterson, Bridger, Early Yellow). This year, I sowed about 1,200 seeds (the same 2 whites, assorted yellows, Yellow di Parma, and Red Burgundy).

    I use Gaia Green Living Soil (very much like ProMix MINUS the chemicals PLUS earthworm castings). Most of my seeds germinate within a few days of sowing. Miracle Gro uses chemicals in their mixes and that is not something I want for seedlings. Potting Mix is for house plants. I think seeds really need the best mix you can give them... definitely not black soil at $1./bag, etc.

    So most of the onions sprouted. I know farmers who start their huge Spanish onions in January. Their onions are huge. Here, 3rd week of April, I am planting them out into the beds (an assortment of all the types).

    By the time you eat them (green, small, etc.), I do not think that 1,000 onions is a lot. Onions are in just about every sauce, soup, meal, recipe, and the yellows are for winter use.

    In the image (cell phone through a screen), you can see that I sowed into 3" and 4" pots (like we buy them at the nursery, packed edge to edge). The empty pot on the left is Red Bull seed from Johnny's... a couple of years old (they say that onion seed does not keep... seems to be true since not one sprouted). The yellow thing is just sticky for bugs.

  • nanelle_gw (usda 9/Sunset 14)
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Updating my post from Feb 2013 with some pictures of some recently harvested shallots and cipollini onions.

  • nanelle_gw (usda 9/Sunset 14)
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Darn. The pics.?

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