onion sets

[Justy]

bought bag of sets today for 40p at garden centre.  Just planted them out as i thought it was worth a try for 40p.  Has anyone ever planted them this late before?  Did they work?!

[Justy]

[Merry Tiller]

well you'll probably get some green leaves to use as salad onions but you'll get no bulbs worth using, maybe you could pickle them

[PREMTAL]

Hi Justy,
             If the sets have sprouted then it is most likely that they will all go to seed.

However, if they have not sprouted then plant them at least 12" apart and 2 feet between rows.

This will give them the best chance of maturing into something worth the effort.

                                                     PREMTAL ;)

[tim]

Don''t know what you'll get - not something one often tries!
But if you had asked before you planted, I would have said no more than 4"apart. You don't want to take up a lot of ground with an iffy crop?

I never plant at more than 4" - I grow for cooking only & prefer onions 3-4" in diameter.

Forgive the dissention, PREMTAL?

[chrispea27]

sure you should get something,maybe spring onions? :P

[kitty]

i planted some i found lurking in me seed basket about 10 days ago-they seem to be doing as well as the ones i planted earlier-they look the same......how do onions know the date?
with this terrible weather i think the onions will assume  its mid may anyway..
i'm taking their calendar off them to keep them in the dark!
kitty ;D

[westsussexlottie]

You can get fantastic strong flavoured spring onions.
Go for it - one bunch of spring onions is around 60p in the shops so you can't lose!

[Justy]

did them 5" apart - a couple had very small sprouts on them but not much.  I thought the same as you kitty - weather has been so awful that everything is delayed (although my earlier planted sets are looking pretty good).  They are promising a long hot summer so they may get chance the other end of the season!

[Mothy]

I put a bag of sets in 4 weeks ago that my folks-in-law brought me back from Belgium. They have grown very quickly and I hope they get close to the 200- odd I planted ages ago!

Nothing ventured and all that?

[littlegem]

i put some sets in two weeks ago, they've all got about ten small shoots on them, is this not a good sign?

[kitty]

an excellent sign!you'll have onions as big as babies 'eads by july! ;D

[Merry Tiller]

Sorry but onions do know what the date is ;) it's all down to the amount of light I think

The size of the bulb is relative to the amount of top growth at a certain point of day-length if I remember rightly

still nothing ventured etc. I'm sure you'll get something usable

[kitty]

nope!
i just ran out into the pouring rain and thunder and lightening-took a vox onion pop-and the nearest they got was may the 8th.
now,either my onions are a bit dim...
or theyrealy think its may the 8th..
actually-the sets i planted at the start of me season are only a weeny bit bigger  than the ones planted a fornight ago......and i think you're right-all onions will be usable-sometimees ya need a littlun-sometimes a biggun!