Allotments 4 All
Produce => Edible Plants => Topic started by: jazzidoodle on July 23, 2010, 21:09:01
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hi guys i have been watching in the shadows learning as i went. I have now built ty enough courage to ask why my onions are not much bigger than when they went in! those that are have bolted i fed then this year and cv least i have some last year they all disappeared
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Did you try watering them, Rake in fertilizer prior to planting.
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hi yes i watered religiously and fed growmore tell you they look more like spring onions
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Mine are tiny because I couldn't water them. I have had excellent onions other years, but it has just been too dry. Some are medium small, some have barely developed since I put them in as sets. Better luck next year.
Had to dig up an elephant garlic to cheer myself up. They seem to grow huge whatever the weather.
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when did you put them in, autumn or spring, our overwinter are bigger than the spring sown :)
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thats very likely why then. I planted early march i lost the lot last year when i planted in autumn. Oh well as you said there's always next year!
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My red onions are really small too- think it must be the dry weather. :(
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My red onion sets are also only slightly bigger than than when they went in ... Well, some of them even look the same! And my overwintering sets were fine.
So it could be the weather didn't suit them this year.
But as you have not had luck two years in a row, Jazzidoodle, I wonder if there's anything you can do.
Did you keep them well weeded?
Could there possibly be some issue with the balance of nutrients in your soil? I know absolutely nothing about that side of things! But if you've tried to change everything else, could that be something which is stopping the onions growing or taking on water?
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If you put them in, in March then they should have a canny bulb on them by now, How often where you watering, i don't think you should let them go more than a week without water as an onion uses one inch of moisture week ans as thet are short rooted they will struggle after that.
If the tops are looking healthy then try a bit more water there is still plenty time for them to fill out.
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I am guessing they are from setts and it could be a multitude of things that has caused this,not least dodgy setts!
I have avoided growing setts this year and I am growing from seed and they are coming along nicely.
I have had trouble myself over the previous couple years and crops were not as good as I had in previous years
Having said that a neighbouring plot holder gave me a dozen or so setts she had spare ( some red some white)and these too are coming on not too badly but not as good a the seed onions in the same bed.
I never used to feed mine other than the top dressing of FB&B I gave them at planting out time.
Sometimes I would give them a high potash feed once they started swelling but not before!
The most important thing is never to let them dry out once they have started into growth,as this may stunt the growth or indeed stop it altogether!
Can you supply us with a bit more detail on how you have grown yours,that is; planting time,variety,type of soil etc.
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From what's been said I don't think I've watered mine enough, and now the weeds are taking over as well. Think I'll dig them up today and write them off and treat them better next year!
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My Jap winter ones were the best ever, however there was a few that suffered rot on the bottom.
My Spring sown are rubbish, most of them are no bigger than a golf ball and all the greenery has died off.
Quite a few have rot on the underneath, but most look healthy just small.
When they start their growing life they like to be weed free and as they are bulbing up the weeds are a benefit taking unnecessary nitrogen from the soil.
I let the weeds get a bit out of hand early on and I think I disturbed some of them when weeding but I definately didn't disturb the whole crop.
Water early on to get them going and then I only water once a week if they are dry, so they can get some good roots on them.
What went wrong this year I don't know maybe a dodgy batch. :-\
:'( :'( :'(
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I planted mine in March, mulched, but didn't water. They're a mixed bunch as always, but there are a fair number of nice-sized bulbs. I've noticed the size increasing with time, as I improve the soil. The best onions I ever grew were planted over a load of goat manure.
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I have one set that are great and one set rather small. (Both spring sown) I have put mine down to a lack of water and a lack of weeding. I do not believe that hoeing is good for onions so I tend to put the weeds by hand but is has been so dry they have been difficult to remove. Though I thought I had watered them well when I dug them up the soil was dry six inches down.
For the first time ever my overwintering ones have been the best.
My allotment is on a slope and I seem to need a great deal more water at the top.
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thanks all for your advice. I think i an going to put it down to weather conditions or soil hopefully next year in a different spot with different weather I will do better.
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thanks all for your advice. I think i an going to put it down to weather conditions or soil hopefully next year in a different spot with different weather I will do better.
They only went in in March, so they've only had 16 weeks
Give them a root veg feed [high in phosphorus] water it in and then leave them be. They might bulk up a bit by the end of the summer.
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mine are small too I never water them. Any idea what I can put in the ground when I lift the onion (for next year I mean) I read that you don't put onions in year after year in the same spot. ;D
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Don't give up yet.....my spring sown sets have only started to bulk up in the last week. They won't be enormous I guess, but I don't see why they shouldn't store as well if I leave them to mature fully.
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i would hit them with a High nitrogen fertilizer since onion are more like leafy veg then root veg. my seed vendor is usually right on stuff like this.
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My Onions have been hit and miss again this year, some large almost overgrown and others tiny weak little things with some in between. I put it down to my not improving the soil properly. I'm in London with clay soil, last weekend I visited my Mother in South Shields who's house backs on to some allotments, naturally I took a look, only to see dark, moist, rich looking soil with huge white onion bulbs (all a regular size ) with healthy strong looking top growth. The contrast between the different colours was marked. I'm definitely going to try and improve my soil this year.
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mine are small too I never water them. Any idea what I can put in the ground when I lift the onion (for next year I mean) I read that you don't put onions in year after year in the same spot. ;D
Once you have a well established onion bed you can grow them there year after year no need to move them.
i would hit them with a High nitrogen fertilizer since onion are more like leafy
veg then root veg. my seed vendor is usually right on stuff like this.
No, you should never give onions a high nitrogen feed when they have bulked out this will cause bull neck and they will not store very well.
(http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r111/stumpinsci/Picture201.jpg)
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No, you should never give onions a high nitrogen feed when they have bulked out this will cause bull neck and they will not store very well.
davyw1 that is why you feed them with a higher nitrogen feed before they bulb.
to get bigger bulb you need bigger plant. I found this info in an old horticulture article.
the bernard lavery book"how to grow giant vegetables"p57-62 and colin bowcock book how to grow giant vegetables p43-45
ps I grow my onions from seeds or bought transplants only never onions sets.
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It has been said that its best to let the weeds grow around the bulked up onions so that they don't get too much nitrogen.
Our maincrop are not as big as the overwintering ones were, we put it down to the dry weather cos you can never water as well as the rain does, but they may keep better being a bit on the small side. Thers always next year.
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No, you should never give onions a high nitrogen feed when they have bulked out this will cause bull neck and they will not store very well.
davyw1 that is why you feed them with a higher nitrogen feed before they bulb.
to get bigger bulb you need bigger plant. I found this info in an old horticulture article.
the bernard lavery book"how to grow giant vegetables"p57-62 and colin bowcock book how to grow giant vegetables p43-45
ps I grow my onions from seeds or bought transplants only never onions sets.
Old book, dont you think things have moved on a little,did he break a word record or something.
If you have prepared your onion bed prior to planting there is no need to feed, if you do then the onion goes backwards, this is the prime cause of all onions dying back and the ripening off is usually over, feeding or chasing your bulbs with feed results in the bottom leaves dying off and the conductivity of the soil rising harming the roots.
Now as to YOUR onions grown from seed that you have fed on a high nitrogen feed, lets have a picture of them, when you have posted your picture for all to see i will show you some that have had no feed from planting
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Davy, I'm as careful as I can be to rotate my onions, dreading white rot. I know show growers use the sam ebed but don't they nuke the soil with agent orange or something?
I'd just like to say though: this has been the best year ever for my onions. over-wintered onions are drying now in the greenhouse and almost none went to seed. planted 15 October, and I even got some red ones without bolting. And I've lifted the summer stouron and they're great. One or two had white rot, but I pulled those out and it didn't spread. I kept them well weeded and gave them some growmore.
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i would hit them with a High nitrogen fertilizer since onion are more like leafy veg then root veg. my seed vendor is usually right on stuff like this.
No! That will just give them great leaves and no bulb. Phosphorus is for roots/ bulbs - nitrogen is for leaves.
I grow about 500 a year [just sowed my overwintering ones 30 mins ago as it happens] and never ever would I feed them a high nitrogen feed.
And my onions are legendary - old blokes come from other lottie sites [invited by my neighbour not myself] just to view them. :D
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aj I disagree .
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Perhaps you'll tell us why? If I'm going to give mine anything, it'll probably be wood ash. In general though, I'm not interested in growing massive bulbs, and I find a good soil and a good start are the main things.
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robert: Collin Bowcock and Bernard Lavery agree with me.
to quote horticulture magazine:
bigger plants give you bigger onions.
So if your onions plants are large before they start to bulb , you will get bigger onions.
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Oh eck.. XX Jeannine
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exit moi
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Davy, I'm as careful as I can be to rotate my onions, dreading white rot. I know show growers use the sam ebed but don't they nuke the soil with agent orange or something?
Simon, If you have an area where you know there is no white rot then make this area into your onion bed, a lot of growers don't rotate their onions once they have a good established onion bed.Some of the best onions grown are from a one foot high raised bed this allows good drainage and comfort for the onion.
As for nuking the soil i use Armillatox once in October then again about a month before planting the same applies to my carrot trench, there is no point in trying to keep out pests when you have locked them in.
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Old book, dont you think things have moved on a little,did he break a word record or something.
between the 2 of them they held over 20 world records.
As for old book the books are not that old.
good growing method always work ever if gardening styles and fertilizer formulation do.
I posted my source what source do you back up you statement
ps you have 1 month before you need to start your onion seeds.
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Old book, dont you think things have moved on a little,did he break a word record or something.
between the 2 of them they held over 20 world records.
As for old book the books are not that old.
good growing method always work ever if gardening styles and fertilizer formulation do.
I posted my source what source do you back up you statement
ps you have 1 month before you need to start your onion seeds.
Christ you talk a load BLX why don,t you do as you have been asked by others in the past and post some pictures of your vegetables which i have no doubt are as large as your ego for all to see it may well stop people from thinking you are a right jodrel banker