onions and garlic

[manicscousers]

Well, I've planted out the onions and garlic I had put in pots. They were getting too big inside and the soil is quite workeable and not too cold. If we get bad frost or snow, will they need covering do you think ?

[manicscousers]

[gavinjconway]

Mine are going in at the weekend so we're both in the same boat... they will be fine manics.. last year I planted them out on 30 Dec and was the best crop ever.. This year they seem slow to start and now growing well in the modules.

[daitheplant]

It`s been so wet here I haven`t even dug over the plot. Onions and garlic are potted up, no banana shallots available yet.

[gavinjconway]

I got banana and normal shallots from our local indoor market last week and have them in modules now..

[Bill Door]

I got banana and normal shallots from our local indoor market last week and have them in modules now..

Hmm!  Sorry but I think you will find that your banana shallots (if not done direct with seeds) will not produce 5 or 6 "offsets".  The banana shallot is actually an onion and will only grow from seeds.  You might be luck and the banana shallots will bolt and form a seed head.  If you cross pollenate the flower heads before the bees get there and you cover the flowers up afterwards you may have loads of seeds for next year.

Zebrune onion seeds are the type you are looking for if you want the biggish banana shallots.  Jermor shallots grow quite big (and produce offsets) but do not grow as big or as nice as the Zebrune onion. 

Anyway if you think it will happen for you then so be it.

Enjoy your gardening.

regards

Bill

[manicscousers]

Well, looking at the long range weather forecast, there's not much cold to split the  garlic but at least the roots of the onions won't freeze. These are in an 18" tall raised bed, dai so, hopefully, not to wet. Good luck with the nana shallots, never tried them 

[gavinjconway]

Bill - Last year I bought 2 packets of french banana shallots "Longor" and they all made 4 or more new ones.. 

Like these  http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/shallot-longor-pbr/classid.2000010807/

[kt.]

I was so busy with work I forgot to get garlic in autumn.  Just bought a bulb last week and am going to plant the cloves in containers in the greenhouse, hopefully I will still get a crop......

[gavinjconway]

I was so busy with work I forgot to get garlic in autumn.  Just bought a bulb last week and am going to plant the cloves in containers in the greenhouse, hopefully I will still get a crop......

Kt as long as it is spring planting type it will be fine.

[kt.]

Kt as long as it is spring planting type it will be fine.

I think they must be overwintering as our lottie shop were selling them off 1/2 price & said they should of been in before Xmas.  Is it still worth bothering or wait for new bulbs?

[gavinjconway]

Kt you wont get a good crop so I'd rather get some proper spring planting ones and get them in modules now.

[Nannyben]

What about eschalion shallots, what are they like?  Also anybody grown Spanish onions?

[GREGME]

I don't really know what I am doing with alliums but this thread has inspired me to source some zebrune and long red florence seeds to do for the spring-
think the my autumn planted garlic and onion sets are likely to rot given the weather