Onions from seed

[snowmanaxp]

I would like to try onions this year. But am really not sure how to go about it properly.

I am in zone 7b just south of Raleigh NC. I have been reading about the number of hours needed to form bulbs and got information from my local coop extension. I use April 7th as my last frost date which is conservative. The extension lists it as April 1st.

Should I start the seeds inside or just wait and plant them directly outside? When do I start/plant them?

I have determined that I should try either short day or intermediate day types. I would like to try any of the sweeter varieties. I'm not sure what I will be able to find at the store. I really don't want to pay S&H for one packet of seeds.

Any growing tips are welcome.

 

[jjs7741]

The only onion seeds that I could find in the stores were the yellow granex. That is the same as the sweet vidalia, the only difference is the vidalia is grown in Vidalia, Georgia. Onions can withstand temps down in the 20's maybe even lower so last frost isn't that important. The important thing is to get them in the ground early enough to get good growth to get good bulbs. The size of the bulb is determined by the number of leaves on the onion plant at the time when bulbing starts based on daylight hours.

I would recommend getting the bunches of plants from the garden center when they go on sale. In my area it is late Feb, early March. I would also recommend buying mail order from Dixondale Farms. They have a good selection, ship when it is time to plant or when you want if you want them later, and reasonable prices. With them, the more you buy the cheaper it is. They sell in bunches of 60 plants. For 1 bunch it is 10.75, 2 bunches 14.75, 3 bunches is 19.75, etc and shipping is included. I used them last year and was very pleased with the quality of the plants.

If you definately want to start from seed, the time to start is now to get them as big as possible before setting out. Really, it probably would have been better to start in December. Even if you start from seeds, check out the Dixondale Farms website. They will tell you everything you need to know to grow onions.

I hope you have a great season.
jacob

 

[wordwiz]

Snowman,

(Living in North Carolina? Snow?)

Anyway, I wouldn't waste my time trying to grow from seeds or ordering plants on line. Around here, every hardware store, supermarket, nursery and box store sells onion sets - basically they are bulbs that you plant. Costs a bunch - like maybe a nickel per bulb, max. Some stores offer a variety, some have only one or two types. You can plant them before frost free day - they tend to survive. A couple of years ago, son #1 (who sometimes is not close to as bright as a sun) mowed my onions. I found most of them but missed a couple. They came up the next year - in multiples!

Mike
Who is getting snow, though not a bunch - yet!

 

[jjs7741]

I think the farther south you go the harder it is to find sets. I know that the extension does not recommend them here. Probably cause the weather is too hot then cold then hot then cold. They just tend to go to seed and then you get a bulb that is of less quality and doesn't store well. Check with what your extension suggests, but you may have to grow from plants.

jacob

 

[chilehunter]

Snowman,

(Living in North Carolina? Snow?)

Anyway, I wouldn't waste my time trying to grow from seeds or ordering plants on line. Around here, every hardware store, supermarket, nursery and box store sells onion sets - basically they are bulbs that you plant. Costs a bunch - like maybe a nickel per bulb, max. Some stores offer a variety, some have only one or two types. You can plant them before frost free day - they tend to survive. A couple of years ago, son #1 (who sometimes is not close to as bright as a sun) mowed my onions. I found most of them but missed a couple. They came up the next year - in multiples!

Mike
Who is getting snow, though not a bunch - yet!

I agree! go buy some onion bulbs from any store, well at least around here you can buy them anywhere & cheap.
if you want to grow from seeds, they sprout kinda fast to a point you'll be left with needing to put lights on them.

heres a onion website you can order from

www.bopf.com