Topic: Onions from seed

[northener]

Hello. Recently bought some onion seed Ailsa craigs. Never grown fom seed before any advice mucho apprecio.

[newtona2]

I agree with redclanger - I planted in modules in two ways last year

1) I put a pinch (3 or 4 seeds) into each module of a 24 module tray in Feb and let them grow on until about mid April then transplanted out into an allotment bed about 8" apart.

You end up with 3 onions growing closely together, which stops them getting too big, and makes them great for pickling.

2) Same method, but one seed per module. Plant out in April, 6" apart. I got about 50 3"- 4" onions.

The first method is very good for spring onions, by the way. Sow about 10 seeds per module, then plant out about 8" apart, and you get ready made bunches!

Tony

[northener]

Cheers for that. What size were they Tony when you planted out.? Neil

[the wizards sleeve]

sounds good for the sping onions ready made bunches will give that a go

[Derekthefox]

Most of my onions are sturon or turbo, grown from sets, presumably these could be grown from seed too? They are certainly onions 'with attitude'  ;D

[terrace max]

Do want to go over to using seed more though to prevent the importation of white rot

And, presumably, the exportation of less hard-earned brass....

[grawrc]

Peter - who's retired  - is the cook in our house and has put out a plea for some of those big , mild, French jobs (I think he means onions  ;)). His eyes water like mad peeling the other ones.

[terrace max]

He need to chop some more then. After 15 years of chopping onions, twice daily most days, no adverse effect!

[derbex]

Lucky you terrace -I seem to be getting worse, the shallots are setting me off now  :'(  Mind you the onions from the supermarket aren't  ???

Still not as bad as A level chemistry -had to make acetic anhydride, At least some of it was a vapour that turns to acetic acid (vinegar) on contact with water -like that in your eyes.

Kids today -safety specs, no carbon tet, or benzene bet they don't even set fire to each other's lab coats any more.

Jeremy

[terrace max]

Perhaps the most infamous trait of onions is the fact that they make you cry when chopping them. Onions naturally contain a quantity of sulphur that, when the chopping process interferes with the chemical make-up of the constituent cells, forms a compound known as propanthial S-oxide, which is released as a gas. This gas reacts chemically with the moisture naturally present on your eyeball to form weak sulphuric acid. This irritates the eye and hence stimulates the tear ducts.

As an aside, sulphur compounds are also responsible for some pretty grotty smells (most notably, hydrogen sulphide is the 'rotten eggs' smell), and many people find them intolerable. This could explain the high percentage of people who dislike raw onions but will happily eat them cooked, after further chemical reactions will have removed any noxious gases.

There are many suggestions on how to avoid crying when chopping onions; one that is not recommended is putting the onion in the fridge or freezer before chopping. Onion cells, like all living cells, are 80% water. If that water freezes, it will damage the cell and hence impair the flavour of the onion.

A better suggestion for avoiding weeping eyes is to wear a pair of swimming goggles, so the damaging gas cannot come into contact with your eyeball. If this is too much trouble, then run some cold water over your wrists. This way, the gas will react with the water on your hands, and the resulting acid will disperse naturally5, with very little getting close to your eyes. A pan of boiling water nearby will have a similar effect.

Other remedies include wiping your chopping board with spirit vinegar (for cooked dishes, when the vinegar will evaporate; not advisable for raw onions), or placing a slice of bread between the teeth. One suggestion is to have a lighted candle nearby, but this Entry does not endorse naked flames in the kitchen, where a candle could easily be knocked over.

[grawrc]

Thank you TM, how thoughtful. I'll buy him some swimming googles instead. ;D ;D ;D

[mat]

Peter - who's retired  - is the cook in our house and has put out a plea for some of those big , mild, French jobs (I think he means onions  ;)). His eyes water like mad peeling the other ones.

I have this problem  :'( and ended up buying a little gadget that chops them for me  ;D  Otherwise I mainly rely on shallots (only need to peel for casseroles)  My mother has just got me to try her (shop) red onions as she said they never affect her (again, white onions do) I tried and they were certainly a LOT better, with only a little effect on me, so I am going to add Red Baron to my list to buy.  My other tip which helps for me, is to ONLY breathe through the mouth, and ensure you do not breathe through the nose; sounds daft, but it really does help.

mat

[Derekthefox]

Red onions are milder, and yes I rarely suffer from those, but I also read a trick which I scoffed at, placing a small piece of bread on the surface of the tongue. I can only guess it has something to do with salivation, but it definitely limits the effect of the onion fumes ...

[Robert_Brenchley]

I rise my hands when it gets too bad.

[Derekthefox]

Rise, or rinse Robert?

I have opened a new thread in Recipes on the subject of peeling onions, to try and observe topic protocol ...

[derbex]

Thanks TM -I'll get the diving mask out.

[Robert_Brenchley]

Rinse. Just stick them under the tap; it seems to work.

[bupster]

Presumably because the acid disperses before the fumes can reach the eyeballs? 8) This goes some way to explain why it doesn't hurt so much to chop loads of onions in a commercial kitchen; I tend to constantly rinse them to get rid of the last bits of papery skin and speed up the process, whereas at home I'm more 'la-di-da, hello clouds, hello sky'...

[ruudbarb]

Did ask this once before and got a collective head scratch - does anybody know a strong cooking type onion that I can grow from seed?  Not a big fan of mild onions but that seems to be all I can find.

Onions are a bit like chillies when it comes to strength - subjective.  I tried Marco from Marshalls last year and found the flavour to be fine so will finish off the packet this year.  Try Red Baron as well because they are quite strongly flavoured and not bland like some reds.

I sow mine in plug trays, plugs about an inch across, by putting 2 seeds in per plug, usually by the end of February, in a heated propagator to get them going.  Once they get to about 1.5" - 2" high the weakest is removed to allow the stronger to continue and they are moved to the main greenhouse which is unheated.  Should a sharp frost be forecast I provide some protection.  When about 4"-6" high I put them outside to harden off in a cold frame [I will have to repair it first because it was wrecked by wind at the end of last year]. 

I plant them out as soon as they ar hardy enough and the roots hold the compost in the plug.  I can't remember the last time I had seed grown onions bolt and they grow just as big, if size is what you want, as do sets planted in March. 

[Derekthefox]

My taste in onions differs between red and white. I like my whites with lots of flavour and strength, great raw with some strong cheddar, or used in cooking. But when it comes to reds, these are nearly always used raw in salads, and so a milder flavour seems preferable ... because of the salad usage, the reds get grown over winter, and the whites during the summer.