This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

Re: Speaking of onions.....

Janet wrote:

>I have only grown scallions before,  but this year I have some large
beautiful
>onions in the garden and the tops are beginning to fall over and die. 
When I
>do harvest the onions,  I have read they are supposed to be hardened in
the
>sun for awhile.  How long is this done?  How long do home-grown onions
keep if
>properly stored?

I don't know where you are in the world but I assume you are in a Temperate
Northern Hemisphere zone.

In temperate northern hemisphere climates onions are planted in
March/April and allowed to grow until about July. During June/July the
bulbs form. Once the bulbs are fully formed the outer skin will begin to
harden and the leaves will start to die back. The tops may fall over, or
not.
If not, don't do it yourself as this can cause cell damage and create the
conditions for fungus to grow, thus shortening storage time.
At this time it is OK to gently lift the onion slightly out of the soil
with a fork.
This will encourage the rest of the leaves to die off, by breaking the
roots.
The onions can then be lifted properly and left in the sun to dry off.
Cover
them if it rains to prevent the leaves from going slimy. Once totally dry
on
the outside either cut the leaves off and store the onions in net bags, old
tights
(pantyhose) or trays, or plait the dry leaves and hang up the resulting
strings of onions in a cool dry frost free place.

Storage times vary according to the variety or onion and conditions of
storage.
Onions planted or sown in August/September and grown overwinter tend not to
store very long, possibly no longer than Christmas. 
If they were grown this season, then depending on variety, they could store
through to next April or May.
Some varieties store better than others so it really is difficult to say
precisely how long they will store.

Regards
Stephen

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Stephen Griffiths, 
34 Fernwood Crescent, London, N20 0RN. UK.
e-mail:- stephen.griffiths@dial.pipex.com
URL:- http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/close/xpz05
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index