Onion Planting Time?

[2LaneCruzer]

We plant onions here about mid February. I always plant about 15 or 20 bunches of Texas 10/15 green onion plants, and we have all the green onions we can eat. My dilemma is that they rarely make mature onions over about 2 inches in diameter; most are smaller. Can anyone suggest a variety or a planting methodology that will yield a few larger, mature onions? We like the sweet yellow onions, but would plant most anything that will yield some nice mature onions. We usually plant our onion plants fairly close together and thin them out as we use them. Any advice would be appreciated.

Dennis

 

[Gunny]

I've raised Walla Walla sweet onions several times, they grow pretty well here, usually get onions from 3-4" diameter. Actually got some seeds started already for this year's crop.

 

[Bird]

Dennis, I always did the same as you, except I normally only set out 10 bundles of the 10/15 Y onions. They made very good onions, but not really large sizes.

 

[Western]

Dennis, I get the same results, think we are eating them too fast?:confused3:. I just tilled in about 30 "volunteers" missed from last Spring/Summer.

I did use fertilizer last year and got some better 2-3", but working out of town so much, I think I shorted them bad for water. The AGGIE horticulture site has some good tips on growing and fertilizer recommendations.

 

[paulemar]

You should try some "Candy" sweet onions. It looks like Oklahoma is perfect for these intermediate day onions. Go to the dixondale farms website.
Dixondale Farms, Onion Plants Since 1913 - Onion Plants
They sell onion plants (Buy more=less cost per bunch)and the website has all kinds of info so you can grow the correct onions for your area. They also tell you how to grow them.
For years I used to grow small onions and was always disappointed until I grew the correct kind and grew them properly.

 

[RobertBrown]

This is one variety we use here. Texas Grano

They are sold as "Strawberry" onions as they are grown in the same field, at the same time as crop (strawberry).
They get huge.
Texas Early Grano 502 PRR - Heirloom Seeds: Sustainable Seed Company

Also the White Granex is a popular variety

 

[randy41]

onion size is very dependent on hours of daylight. there are long day and short day varieties. the long day ones are usually for places above 40 degrees latitude. not sure that this is the cause but it could be. the other thing they need is water. irrigate 2 or 3 times as much as you think they need or get a lot of rain.

 

[paulemar]

2Lane Cruzer, You are in a similar situation to me----sort of. I am on the southern end of the growing zone for long day onions. My days just don't get long enough to grow really huge long day onions. I can grow them OK but everything must be perfect as far as planting timing, fertilizer, weeding, etc. If I plant them late because of bad weather and the garden isn't ready, they won't have enough time to make good top growth, thus a smaller onion. Each leaf on an onion = 1 onion ring. Intermediate day onions aren't so sensitive to that long day or short day length need. Where you are in Oklahoma, you can't get the short day onions planted early enough in the season, because of weather conditions, to get big top growth before the days get too long to continue the bulbing process. Your onions start to bulb, but stop because the days become too long. You can grow really nice green onions because the Texas 10/15 will continue to grow, but only tops, small bulbs. Even though I'm up North, I grow 1 bunch of White Bermuda (short day) every year as green onions because they never bulb beyond about an inch or two, but produce beautiful green tops. I also grow the intermediate day onion "Candy" and get many softball sized onions every year. I use "nitrate of Soda" 16-0-0 during the growing season for onion fertilizer and 10-10-10 during initial ground prep, but you can use whatever you have available in your area. Just remember, a balanced fertilizer before planting and a high nitrogen fertilizer to encourage top growth up until they start to bulb. A soil test will help with fertilizer requirements. Be careful with the nitrogen, you don't want to over fertilize especially if you use some kind of slow release type. Water well when they start and continue to bulb, but stop as they approach maturity and the tops BEGIN to fall over. Onions are easy once you have it figured out. Good luck! Now, about bugs and disease! ---------Oh never mind.

 

[sixdogs]

First do a soil test and while waiting for it to come back rip the soil down to about 12" so water and roots can get in. Smooth the soil and plant a location-appropriate onion correctly spaced and fertilize according to the soil test. Onions take a unique blend of fertilizer and trace elements.

No mulch, no wood ash, no nothing other than the above and we used to grow a couple thousand a year the size of baseballs. Until you know what works, plant a couple different varieties. We bought our plants from Dixondale Farms in Texas that had the best onions we ever used. Read their catalog.

Also, don't plant all at once but stagger the crop so you can stagger the harvest. Either that or give up the day job to harvest.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

2Lane Cruzer, You are in a similar situation to me----sort of. I am on the southern end of the growing zone for long day onions. My days just don't get long enough to grow really huge long day onions. I can grow them OK but everything must be perfect as far as planting timing, fertilizer, weeding, etc. If I plant them late because of bad weather and the garden isn't ready, they won't have enough time to make good top growth, thus a smaller onion. Each leaf on an onion = 1 onion ring. Intermediate day onions aren't so sensitive to that long day or short day length need. Where you are in Oklahoma, you can't get the short day onions planted early enough in the season, because of weather conditions, to get big top growth before the days get too long to continue the bulbing process. Your onions start to bulb, but stop because the days become too long. You can grow really nice green onions because the Texas 10/15 will continue to grow, but only tops, small bulbs. Even though I'm up North, I grow 1 bunch of White Bermuda (short day) every year as green onions because they never bulb beyond about an inch or two, but produce beautiful green tops. I also grow the intermediate day onion "Candy" and get many softball sized onions every year. I use "nitrate of Soda" 16-0-0 during the growing season for onion fertilizer and 10-10-10 during initial ground prep, but you can use whatever you have available in your area. Just remember, a balanced fertilizer before planting and a high nitrogen fertilizer to encourage top growth up until they start to bulb. A soil test will help with fertilizer requirements. Be careful with the nitrogen, you don't want to over fertilize especially if you use some kind of slow release type. Water well when they start and continue to bulb, but stop as they approach maturity and the tops BEGIN to fall over. Onions are easy once you have it figured out. Good luck! Now, about bugs and disease! ---------Oh never mind.

Thanks a bunch guys. They haven't been selling the Candy onions here for some time; there was some sort of fungal plague that really devastated them a few years back; but I'll see what's available. As for fertilizer, I can't find Ammonium Nitrate any more, since the OKC bombing, but we can get Urea and Ammonium Sulfate. I understand that Sulfur is not recommended for oinions, since they tend to become hot. Are we saying that I need a "long day" or "intermediate day" onion to get big onions?

 

[randy41]

you need an intermediate or short day.

 

[Western]

2lc, here is the TAMU website with Texas recommended variety's and information.

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/vegetable/files/2010/10/E-514_onions.pdf

 

[DennisArrow]

Gotta really thank you for pointing out about the Dixondale outfit.

Dixondale Farms, Onion Plants Since 1913 - Onion Plants

Went to the website and then called......Prompt, courteous, knowlegeable, and downright friendly. Ordered several kinds of bunches for short day and intermediate growing hours that will get me finally the onions I have been trying to grow. The local feed store guys get what THEY think is right and obviously after many tries for years they don't bring in stuff that is worth a hoot.....My order will be mailed on the 3rd so just in time to get a good early start.....THANKS for the information guys..........God bless.........Denni

 

[sixdogs]

Gotta really thank you for pointing out about the Dixondale outfit.

Dixondale Farms, Onion Plants Since 1913 - Onion Plants

Went to the website and then called......Prompt, courteous, knowlegeable, and downright friendly. Ordered several kinds of bunches for short day and intermediate growing hours that will get me finally the onions I have been trying to grow. The local feed store guys get what THEY think is right and obviously after many tries for years they don't bring in stuff that is worth a hoot.....My order will be mailed on the 3rd so just in time to get a good early start.....THANKS for the information guys..........God bless.........Denni

That's fine so now you're part way home.

You need to break up--fracture-- the ground down to as deep as you can with 10" or 12" preferable. Do what you can. You also need to learn the fertilizer needed for onions. It's more that to just say add N (nitrogen) when I think that's only part of the issue. You could look at what onion growers sell for fertilizer and then replicate as close as you can with local fertilizer. It's the ratio of N-P-K that matters.
And don't forget the weed control or this will be a one-year exercise of fun followed by progressively worse years of not fun.

Onions are easy after the learning curve detailed above but you should do fine. Please post photos of your success and we can all benefit.

Oh, those plants from Dixondale will look puny but take heed since every one I ever planted grew perfectly. Get your soil work done NOW so you ave a good seedbed ready when the time comes. You can't have the plants in hand and then start. You need time for a smooth seedbed to get prepped.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

dont plant here till may, ground is frozen and white right now.

 

[sixdogs]

One other point. Plant deeper than instructions will advise or they could blow out of the ground before they get rooted. We used to dig a small trench a couple inches deep and plant the onion in it with dirt hilled up on the outside of the trench as a windbreak.

Advice here is to broadcast fertilizer but I would suggest "banding" it on both sides of the plant. Broadcast fertilizes weeds outside the row while banding just the onion. Be careful with too much fertilizer until plants are big enough to handle it.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

you need an intermediate or short day.

I guess I'm confused. REALLY confused. I thought the Texas 10-15's were short day and that's why I only get the golfball sized onions. We're not Key West Florida, but OKC should have longer days than, say, Maine.

 

[radioman]

One trick I use here in northeast I plant double rows of onions spaced about 3-6 inches apart. Onions really dont take up much space and thinning one side to eat and leave rest growing helps for fall crop.

 

[randy41]

I guess I'm confused. REALLY confused. I thought the Texas 10-15's were short day and that's why I only get the golfball sized onions. We're not Key West Florida, but OKC should have longer days than, say, Maine.

so 2lc you've heard of the land of the midnight sun? in summer the days are longer in the north.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

so 2lc you've heard of the land of the midnight sun? in summer the days are longer in the north.

:ashamed: Garsh, fellers. I shoulda knowed that. I had it all bassackards.