The Trusty Gardener-Planting Onion Seeds-Two New Varieties
March is the Time to Start Seeds For Mid to Late May Planting
Welcome back. It’s March already. In this part of the country, March means it’s time to start seeds indoors for outdoor planting in late May. As I write this article, the weather is turning cold once again with about a foot of snow cover and wind chills in the low teens. More like February weather. It’s been a crazy winter for sure.
Two weeks ago I started some seeds and placed the containers outside. Yup, you read it correctly. This is known as Winter Sowing and the technique works well. The following article details what I planted and how the technique works.
These containers are now buried in the snow, waiting for warmer temperatures to germinate.
Planting Onions
Onions are one of the vegetables that will work using Winter Sowing. In fact, I did plant some onions a few weeks ago. However, they will sprout later compared to those planted indoors. The variety I planted is green bunching onions (scallions), so even though they probably won’t germinate until late March or even April, they will be fine since they don’t grow that large. Winter Sowing is also a good way to delay germination which in some cases can be useful.
Today, as I mentioned in my title, I planted a couple of onion varieties that I have never tried. I used planting containers that I purchased a few years ago. They don’t have drain holes but have clear dome lids with vent holes. It is a good idea to allow for some ventilation. I will check them every few days and water as necessary using a spray bottle.
As usual, I recommend a good seed starting or potting mix. It is not a good idea to use your garden soil for starting seeds as it could contain mold, etc. that could impede germination. I thoroughly wet the soil and tamp it down before planting. This can take a little time as some soil mixes are slow to absorb water. After adding the seeds, cover with the recommended depth of soil (one-quarter inch for onions), and water using a spray bottle.
It is not necessary to place the containers in sunlight. In fact, I do not. I keep them in a warm location until germination occurs. Once the seeds sprout, then sunlight is needed and I will transition them to my outdoor greenhouse when the weather allows. Hopefully towards the end of March.
Normally, I plant Yellow Sweet Spanish onions from seeds. This is a large sweet onion that also stores fairly well. In addition, I normally plant Stuttgarter onions from sets, a standard yellow onion that stores phenomenally well. It’s hard to find many onion varieties as sets. Sometimes you can find onions as plants locally if you’re lucky. Some seed catalogs also sell onion plants.
Both of the new onion varieties are from Pinetree Garden Seeds. I was impressed with their catalog and prices. I featured this seed catalog in a previous article:
Aisla Craig Exhibition Onion (Heirloom-105 Days)
From the Pinetree Garden Seeds website:
Long Day. British Heirloom 1887. This fine large onion has gained a big following in the past several years. Bulbs in excess of 3 pounds are possible, but the real virtue of this variety is the quality. Color is a snow-white, centers are bull’s eye single, tops are vigorous, and the flavor is very sweet. Great for slicing raw. Every year that we grow it we reaffirm that Ailsa Craig is the biggest, the earliest, and the best.
I am looking forward to trying this onion. I’m sure it will be similar to the Yellow Sweet Spanish, however, it is white and it may be even larger.
Bianca Di Maggio Cipollini Onion (Heirloom-95 Days)
From the Pinetree Garden Seeds website:
Long Day. Italian Heirloom. This antique variety has flattened disk-shaped bulbs with a mild sweet flavor. It has a storage life of up to three months. Perfect size for kabobs, pickling, and roasting. The roasting balsamic vinegar really brings out its flavorful taste.
I am also looking forward to growing this onion. I think they will work well in kabobs on the grill this summer.
Stay tuned for more updates.
