Topic: cheap over wintering onions

[adrianhumph]

Hi all,  :D
              Bought yesterday at good old Wilko`s, Japanese senshua yellow onions
 69p for 50. :o This must be a bargain. Has any one grown these? What are they like?

                                Adrian.

[RosieM]

Hi Adrian,

I went over to the allotment this morning to pull my main onion crop, shallots and reds are already up.

I swore for the umpteenth time this month that I will never buy sets from Wilko again.  :'(

I got them as an experiment, should have duplicated them with some from my nursery as a trial really, but I'm short on space.

They have been a total disaster.   >:(

I normally have excellent results with onions and in 15 years on allotments have never had such a poor show. It could merely be coincidence but I am not prepared to take the risk with main crops again. To be honest I thought, in my obvious naivety, that if you looked after them properly there should be no difference in quality, how wrong could I be.

Perhaps others have had more success.

Rant over...and breathe...

good luck

Rosie

[Roy Bham UK]

;D I bought these from Wilko they are now the size of tennis balls (soz about pic quality) they are still in situ although my friend pulled a couple last week and said they were deilsh. 8)

[wardy]

Senshyu are supposed to be really good croppers.  I suppose the quality of the sets though could be down to the individual store and how they are cared for in transit, and storage temps etc  :) 

[RosieM]

I've been persuaded!  I'll try the Senshyu - I have nothing to lose but 49p!

Let's hope I can exorcise my Wilko ghost.

When are they harvested, I have never overwintered onions before. I already do purple sprouting, kale, chard, perp spinach, cabbage, broad beans, lambs lettuce, garlic, leeks and roots and I'm going to have a bash at lettuce under cloche and potatoes under fleece any other suggestions?

Rosie   :D

[cyrilsquirrel]

That sounds like a bargain , but it means going into town for Wilkos  :(

Does anyone have a good online supplier for japanese onions?

[wardy]

Kings have got their wintering onions on sale and they're offering Senshyu Yellow for Aug sowing and June harvesting (that means from June I think)
www.kingsseeds.com
I was well chuffed with my hunions last year.  Planted mine late (Nov) and they sat there quite happily all winter and they don't seem to do anything but grow taller and I recall they started to bulb up about Aprilish.  I made a frame of canes and build-a-balls with, tightly stretched mesh over, to keep birds off.  Please if you use netting make sure birds can't get caught in it.  Spent ages yesterday with my little niece untangling a blackbird caught up in the stuff as it was too slack >:(     You can take if off once the onions get big enough for the birds not to pull up  :)  You can weed then too .  Mine were fab and I've still got loads left to eat.  Teo of my lotty neighbours turned their noses up at sets - don't know why.  They're brill and I'm certainly doing them again  :)

[cyrilsquirrel]

Cheers Wardy....I'll go take a look      :D

[BAGGY]

Ours were Wilkos.  About 50% bolted.  Most of the rest got white rot.  I am nunion cursed.

[Roy Bham UK]

;D I was watering some plants in the conservatory today and I got a whiff of the hunions and shallots I'd picked for drying off, MM! they smelt delicious, reminded me of Indian cooking, yummy. 8)

[wardy]

Roy   Try putting your garlic in there too.  Close the door and leave for a bit and when you go back in - WOW!  Smells like a deli  :)

[redimp]

Brought some onions and garlic back from the lotty in the car one day - it was hot.  That with a particuarly interesting programme on Radio 4 meant it took a while for me to get out of my car when I got home.

[daveandtara]

thanks for the heads up adrianhumph, been and got some today!
Tara xx  ;D