# Onion propagation?



## pookiethebear (Apr 29, 2008)

Does anyone know how to propagate onions? I was wanting to plant onions and garlic and I know to keep the best garlic for next years garden, but how do you get onion sets? Can you just cut off the root end of an onion bulb and plant it to get new baby bulbs??? A person at a farmers market gave me a basket of onion sets but I have not planted them yet. I was wanting to know how to propagate them before I plant them.


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## goatsareus (Jun 23, 2007)

I start my onions from seed, but it is too late this year to start them from seed. I have already planted my plants in the garden. Plant the onion sets the farmers market person gave you. You will get one onion per set. I have no idea where onion sets come from. You plant garlic in the FALL, not now.


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## pookiethebear (Apr 29, 2008)

goatsareus said:


> You plant garlic in the FALL, not now.


Yep I know that. It is being stored in the cool basement while we dig up a spot for it and work on the soil all summer. (or dirt sucks here) I also know that it is too late for onions here as well....Just trying to figure everything out before I start planting. Not even sure I will get anything planted this year, or soil is not that great. I am going to try pumpkins, and a few direct sow things. Hubby is digging up a spot for the garlic and onions today what we will start to work on with decomposing newspaper and some dirt etc... I figure all summer of doing this sure can't hurt the dirt any!! We just started a composte pile so it will be a while before that is useful.


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## turtlehead (Jul 22, 2005)

Onion sets are made by sowing seeds thickly and growing the onions close together. Onion sets are one year old and ready to flower when you plant them (onions are biennials).

If you don't want seeds, cut off any flower heads that try to form. An onion will put all its energy into flowering and it won't have a bulb if you let it flower.


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## goatsareus (Jun 23, 2007)

turtlehead said:


> Onion sets are made by sowing seeds thickly and growing the onions close together. Onion sets are one year old and ready to flower when you plant them (onions are biennials).


Thank you turtlehead. I'm going to see how many onion seeds I have left and look into making my own onion sets for next year!


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## WisJim (Jan 14, 2004)

If you have the garlic bulbs now, they won't store all summer. You should plant them as soon as possible instead of waiting until fall, even though it isn't ideal.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

goatsareus said:


> Thank you turtlehead. I'm going to see how many onion seeds I have left and look into making my own onion sets for next year!


Ten to one says it won't work! It ain't that easy. There are mainly just 3 different varieties which are available as sets. That's because they are the few that require as much as 180 days to maturity plus being able to be stored for that long. The bulk of our onion varieties are 90-100 days and they are the ones which are only available as plants. Few of them can be stored 6 months as a large mature onion, and could therefore not be expected to store longer as an immature bulb.

If you are going to grow your own sets, you need either Stuttgarter or Ebenezer varieties or similar type. The time to plant the seeds is late June or early July. They will begin growing but then react to the shorter length of daylight and already be dormant by late August. Since they will not have stored enough energy to produce a flower stalk, they resume their first year's growth the following spring despite officially being a biennial. 

Martin


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## goatsareus (Jun 23, 2007)

Paquebot said:


> Ten to one says it won't work! It ain't that easy. There are mainly just 3 different varieties which are available as sets. That's because they are the few that require as much as 180 days to maturity plus being able to be stored for that long. The bulk of our onion varieties are 90-100 days and they are the ones which are only available as plants. Few of them can be stored 6 months as a large mature onion, and could therefore not be expected to store longer as an immature bulb.
> 
> If you are going to grow your own sets, you need either Stuttgarter or Ebenezer varieties or similar type. The time to plant the seeds is late June or early July. They will begin growing but then react to the shorter length of daylight and already be dormant by late August. Since they will not have stored enough energy to produce a flower stalk, they resume their first year's growth the following spring despite officially being a biennial.
> 
> Martin


yeah, I was reading that it probably was not a good idea, although I only found one reference on how to make onion sets. I have Gunnison, Prince and Rossa di Milano seeds. I was thinking onion seeds were short lived (?) so what the heck? Think I am wasting my time? I have been really happy starting my own plants, have been only doing this a few years. I like to keep onions over the winter and never had success with onions from store bought sets.


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

Well I want to know when they go to seed to get those even. I was always taught to pull your onions when the tops die off so that's what I do & I don't think I've ever seen flowers on the top?
Also was out working in the garden yesterday & I have 4 onions that are where I planted my white onions last year & again I never seen any flowers & thought I pulled them all. I'm going to see what comes of them, the tops are about 6-8 inches tall already.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

goatsareus said:


> yeah, I was reading that it probably was not a good idea, although I only found one reference on how to make onion sets. I have Gunnison, Prince and Rossa di Milano seeds. I was thinking onion seeds were short lived (?) so what the heck? Think I am wasting my time? I have been really happy starting my own plants, have been only doing this a few years. I like to keep onions over the winter and never had success with onions from store bought sets.


I guess that I'm not surprised that there isn't much reference on growing onions for sets. Other than myself, I know of few others who are doing it. And as far back as I can remember, the usual red, yellow, and white sets were always available and very cheap. The yellow ones are the best storing of the 3 and should keep well all through the winter if properly cured and stored.

The 3 varieties that you have are all around 110 days to maturity. Normal would be to start them inside Jan-Feb and plant outside in April. If nothing else, you'll grow a lot of scallions.

Martin


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## Oxankle (Jun 20, 2003)

Pooklet:
The onion sets, the little bulbs, are intended to be used as green onions, not for storing or large bulbs. They will generally go to seed before making a decent onion bulb. Plant them now, eat them green--otherwise they will just be wasted.

The plants sold with tops in the spring are the ones we plant here for storing and cooking. 

Don't wait on perfect soil. Plant, grow what you can and improve the soil as you go along. If you wait all summer for perfect soil you will be a year late and still not have soil that is as good as you want it.
Ox


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Backfourty said:


> Well I want to know when they go to seed to get those even. I was always taught to pull your onions when the tops die off so that's what I do & I don't think I've ever seen flowers on the top?


You've always grown your onions from the proper size small sets and the plants have never made a seed stalk. If you had ever had one, you would not soon forget it. The stem may eventually be an inch thick and several feet taller than normal leaves. The flower cluster on top may be as large as a baseball and eventually contain up to a thousand seeds. And there is no bulb left in the ground.



> Also was out working in the garden yesterday & I have 4 onions that are where I planted my white onions last year & again I never seen any flowers & thought I pulled them all. I'm going to see what comes of them, the tops are about 6-8 inches tall already.


Onions are surprisingly hardy, as are all alliums. Even with minimal protection, they will overwinter easily. If you leave them, you will quite probably get to see what an onion flowerstalk is. That should happen about the end of this month.

Martin


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Oxankle said:


> Pooklet:
> The onion sets, the little bulbs, are intended to be used as green onions, not for storing or large bulbs. They will generally go to seed before making a decent onion bulb. Plant them now, eat them green--otherwise they will just be wasted.


All 3 of the normal set onions are capable of 3" bulbs. The whites can get even bigger with the reds generally the smallest of the trio. The sooner they are in the ground in the spring, the larger their potential size. And as Backfourty attests, they also don't always go to seed. Those that do go to seed are the ones which are too big and should have been sold as pearl cooking onions rather than seed. I had all 3 colors last year and had only a single white one go to seed. 

Martin


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## Oxankle (Jun 20, 2003)

Paquebot:

You are in Wisconsin, I'm in OK. As soon as it gets hot here our little green onion sets start making seed. Now and then I get a few that do not but most do. I put them in the ground as early as possible so that they make growth before the days get long and hot--once that happens it is all over. Occasionally I can put green onions two inches across on the table but most are eaten when about 3/4 inch across. We got two inches of warm rain today; they'll grow quickly now.

Even some of the onion plants make seed. I've got one out there now hardly bigger than my thumb that is sending up a seed stalk. I've never been able to grow large onions here. 
Ox


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Oxankle said:


> Paquebot:
> 
> You are in Wisconsin, I'm in OK. As soon as it gets hot here our little green onion sets start making seed. Now and then I get a few that do not but most do. I put them in the ground as early as possible so that they make growth before the days get long and hot--once that happens it is all over. Occasionally I can put green onions two inches across on the table but most are eaten when about 3/4 inch across. We got two inches of warm rain today; they'll grow quickly now.
> 
> ...


It's not the temperature that does it, it's the length of day. Yellow Stuttgarters normally produce well in the Intermediate Day zone but OK is also in the Short Day zone. Either zone, you're not going to find any large long-keepers. Your local suppliers should have potato onions sets for that purpose. Smaller bulbs but will store for up to a year.

Martin


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## How Do I (Feb 11, 2008)

While we're on the subject of onion propagation, I had a yellow onion bought from the store that started sending out shoots. I planted it in the soil and then a few days later pulled the three "shoots" apart and replanted. What am I likely to get from these? They are all now about thumb-size. Should I use them as green onions or will they go to bulb size this season? It was just an *onion experiment* and then I saw this thread and wanted to know if anyone else has ever tried this.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

How Do I said:


> While we're on the subject of onion propagation, I had a yellow onion bought from the store that started sending out shoots. I planted it in the soil and then a few days later pulled the three "shoots" apart and replanted. What am I likely to get from these? They are all now about thumb-size. Should I use them as green onions or will they go to bulb size this season? It was just an *onion experiment* and then I saw this thread and wanted to know if anyone else has ever tried this.


That a good reminder that common onions, as we know them, are not much more than 100 years old and derived from shallots. And, as we know, shallots generally prefer multiplying by bulb division. Thus there is no guarantee what your side shoots will produce. However, my money is on them producing a small seed stalk in a desperate survival action.

I've been trying to find a large storage onion for Oxankle but was close with the potato onion suggestion. Up to a few years ago, there was a small area along the Texas-Arkansas border where someone was growing sets for a particular large potato onion. A few oldtimers may remember them as being the only onion available in stores in the winter. Nearly 3" but usually consisted of 2 "half" onions within a single outer skin. Mostly for cooking since each half had its own skin. Haven't seen them for years but someone reported buying and growing them in Arkansas 3 or 4 years ago and every bulb was a double. Supplier was in Texas. I wasn't able to get any to propagate here and no SSE member maintains them. I suspect that it really was a variant the yellow potato onion which will get to 4" under ideal conditions. I've got 36 of those in the ground so far with another 50 or so waiting for space as well as to see what a later planting will produce.

Martin


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## Forerunner (Mar 23, 2007)

After harvesting your first year onion sets that you grew from seed,
cure them in a partially shaded area, stalk and all, protected from rain, for a week or so. Store them in a room temperature, dark, dry place in your house.

Treat garlic the same way. Either can be cured by laying out on screens or racks..... or tied lightly and hung under a porch or overhang.
We lay ours out on a hay rack.

Garlic does NOT like to be stored for the winter in a warm, dry location.
It thrives planted in the fall. It also thrives in your root cellar right next to the potatoes. My storage garlic from last year had two inch long green shoots and small roots starting to develop about March.
I planted a large portion of those cloves and they are all but caught up with that that I planted in the fall.

Onions are a tough breed to satisfy, but, work with what you have. Do your best. Learn from your mistakes and go on.
Martin is right. The big yellows probably give the best all around service for growing, storing and eating.


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## Oldcountryboy (Feb 23, 2008)

Oxankle, I've never been able to grow a large onion head here in Delaware county, Ok. either. I've even bought those big vadalia onion plants they sell around here. They still end up not being as big as the vadalias they sell in the stores around here. 

I just thought maybe it's because I have such a heavy clay soil that gets rock hard if you don't keep it busted up every few days. I've just gotten to where I only mess with the sets and just deal with storing small onion heads. If there too small I just leave them in the ground. Come fall they start greening up again and if they don't get ate up in the fall, then when early spring comes once again they green up again. This gives me some early green onions to eat on while I'm planting a new bed of onion sets. 

Something I'm gonna try come this fall when my onions start greening up again. I'm gonna plant some onion seeds and see if they will grow big enough to use as onion sets for next spring. I hope it works cause I need to learn how to harvest onion seeds and use them for next years crop. This way I wont have to keep buying onion sets every spring. 

Don't know if it will work or not but I've been trying to sow onion seeds in the summer time and none of them ever come up for me. I'm thinking it is just too hot here in our good part of the earth. 100 degrees plus come August. Nothing grows in that kind of heat.


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## Spinner (Jul 19, 2003)

I've had good luck cutting the roots off store bought onions and planting them. They will grow a new onion. I don't think they produce seeds until the second year.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Oldcountryboy said:


> Oxankle, I've never been able to grow a large onion head here in Delaware county, Ok. either. I've even bought those big vadalia onion plants they sell around here. They still end up not being as big as the vadalias they sell in the stores around here.


Try 1015Y Texas Supersweet in OK. We can get them up to 3" here so you should be able to get 5" easy enough. Yellow Granax is an equal to Vidalia and we don't get any great size here, either.



> I just thought maybe it's because I have such a heavy clay soil that gets rock hard if you don't keep it busted up every few days.


Deep, loose soil is important. Also extra phosphorus. NPK needs would be a 1-2-1 ratio fertilizer initially and extra nitrogen later. 



> Don't know if it will work or not but I've been trying to sow onion seeds in the summer time and none of them ever come up for me. I'm thinking it is just too hot here in our good part of the earth. 100 degrees plus come August. Nothing grows in that kind of heat.


Onion seed is one of few that has a fairly decent germination rate at 96Âº so it might be a problem with soil moisture and/or texture. Last year, for the Amish bottle onions, I spread about a half inch of sand and then worked that into the top inch of soil. That was easy to keep damp and loose during the critical germination period.

Martin


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## gilberte (Sep 25, 2004)

Maybe the answer to my question is above but I missed it (I've only had one cup of coffee so far this morning). I start my onions from seed in flats around the end of February. I set the plants out as soon as I can work the soil in the garden. I usually get good size bulbs this way and have been happy with the process so far.

What I want to know is, if I let a few of the plants send up a seed stalk (I usually cut them off), will it produce seed that I can harvest and use next year and if so how do I go about collecting said seed?


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

gilberte said:


> What I want to know is, if I let a few of the plants send up a seed stalk (I usually cut them off), will it produce seed that I can harvest and use next year and if so how do I go about collecting said seed?


Plant sends up seed stalk. Blossom head develops at top. Insects pollinate the multiple flowers. Each flower produces 3 or 4 seeds. Plant dies and seeds dry. Collect seeds for planting next year.

Martin


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