When it comes to growing onions, certain steps need to be taken. This will help your onions grow successfully well. Explained below are some tips in growing onions:
1) GROW YOUR ONIONS FROM SEED OR ONION PLANTS
This will help you grow your onions successfully well. Growing your onions from seed or onion plants is much better than growing from onion sets and will prevent your onions from bolting and also keep the onions from drying out before they are planted.
You can plant your onion seeds in the ground or you can make use of containers. As soon as your onions have grown several inches, separate them and proceed to plant them in the garden.
Read also: Learn how long it takes onion to grow
2) PLANT THE TYPE OF ONION THAT MATCHES YOUR LOCATION
There are 3 varieties of onions which are:
I) Short-Day Onions: They grow best in the Southern States including the low desert of Arizona and begin to bulb when day-length is 10 – 12 hours. An example is Red Creole.
II) Intermediate-Day Onions: They grow best in middle regions of the United States and begin to bulb when day-length is 12 – 14 hours. An example is a Yellow Candy.
III) Long-Day Onions: They grow best in the Northern States and begin to bulb when day-length is 14 – 16 hours. An example is Red River.
3) PLANT YOUR ONIONS AT THE CORRECT TIME
This is an important aspect when planning to grow your onions successfully. Looking at most areas, the best and recommended time to plant onions is 4 – 6 weeks before the last frost date. The seeds, however, should be started indoors about a month before this process. (Learn how to plant onions)
4) PLANT THE ONIONS CORRECTLY
Plant your onions in an area having direct sun which lasts between 6 – 8 hours with the top soil being loose and having good drainage. Your soil must not be too alkaline and must not be too acidic as well. The onion should be planted 1″ deep and should be spaced 4″ apart in rows 8″ apart.
5) FEED ONIONS REGULARLY DURING THE GROWING SEASON
Feed your onions with an organic fertilizer high in phosphorus. This should be done right after planting. The onions should also be fed with a high nitrogen organic fertilizer 3 weeks after planting.
Continue this process every 3 weeks during the growing season. This promotes large leaves and onion tops. Stop fertilizing as soon as your onions begin to bulb. Ensure to water adequately after each fertilizer application.
Read also: Learn how to compost onions
6) WATER ONIONS CORRECTLY
Water your onions well after planting and also, ensure to water deeply after each fertilizer application. Stop watering once you notice that the onion tops are beginning to fall over.
7) HARVEST ONIONS AT THE RIGHT TIME
Onions are almost ripe for harvest when you notice that the lower leaves on the onion plant are withering and drying up with falling over of stems. Stop watering when you see that most of the onions have fallen over.
To harvest onions, exert your pull on the stems but do so gently and carefully. If the onions are stuck and difficult to pull, make use of a shovel to dig them out. Learn more on how to harvest onions here.
CONCLUSION
I hope you find this article useful. I would like to hear from you about these onion growing tips. Let me know if you have any questions.
