Description, cultivation technology and care of winter onions

Description of the variety

Of course, not every variety of onions and garlic is able to survive the winter cold, but breeders have tried to breed varieties and hybrids that can be dormant in the ground under the snow, but grow in conditions of not too long daylight hours. Shakespeare bulbs can withstand frost down to -18^O, therefore, it is most often used for planting in the fall. It is unpretentious, does not require special care, the crop can be harvested in 70-80 days.

The bulb itself is rounded with white flesh and brown integumentary scales. Varieties "Radar" and "Ellan" are characterized by good germination, excellent taste, early ripening. So "Ellan" can be consumed already in June, when spring onions and garlic are still growing, and last year's harvest is over. The turnips are of medium size (100-150 g), and if well cared for, "Radar" can please even large ones - up to 300 g.

Such winter varieties “Sturon”, “Baron”, “Centurion” enjoy deserved popularity. From the beginning of the growth of the seed to full maturation, it takes 2-2.5 months. "Sturon" is perfectly stored for at least 8 months, and "Centurion" is distinguished by a high content of vitamin C and a pungent taste.

The somewhat flat, golden-brown fruits with a pungent taste of the Stuttgarten Riesen variety ripen in 2 months and grow to 150-200 g. The Kip-Well variety name speaks for itself: it is preferred to grow for long-term storage. It has the same elongated bulb shape as the Bamberger variety, but slightly larger. Winter onions of these varieties have proven themselves to be unpretentious in care and convenient for planting in the fall.

Garlic and onions in plantings before winter are distinguished not only by early ripening, but by even larger turnips. The fact is that winter onions, like garlic, begin to grow earlier than spring onions, they do not miss a single bright warm day for growth and development. Until about mid-May, there is still enough moisture in the ground for its growth, so until that time it does not require special attention, which is also very convenient.

Planting and leaving

At the end of summer, onions are harvested, sorted, sent for storage. For planting in the spring, a set of 1-1.5 cm in size is selected, and the one that is less than 1 cm dry before spring, it is better to plant it in the fall - then it will not only not disappear, but also will delight the owners with an early harvest. Yes, the germination of garlic and onions after planting in the fall is slightly less than in spring, but before winter they plant already culled seedlings - the owner does not lose anything. And if you take special varieties for winter plantings, then you will not have to complain about germination.

The soil before planting does not need to be specially prepared; the garden bed can simply be removed from the previous plantings, dug up and left alone. According to the rules of crop rotation, onions (like garlic) cannot be grown in one place for more than 2 years, after that there should be a break of 5 years. ... If the soil was fertilized before planting, this will be enough.

The place for the onion bed is chosen unshaded, it is better on a hill, you can fill in a high bed as soon as the earth is free, you can even mix ash into it - this will be the only fertilizer in the fall. Onion sets are planted on a turnip, the neck is not cut off before that, grooves are marked at a distance of 15-20 cm, the bulbs are buried 3 cm at a distance of 8-10 cm from each other. Then they are covered with light earth and lightly crushed. You cannot plant deeply, because in the spring the onions (or garlic) will not have enough strength to break through the hardened soil.

If the gardener wants to get an early green feather, then he plants samples, that is, bulbs that are too large for a set (or too small for a turnip). They are buried in about the same way, but you can plant them more often - after 5-8 cm, you do not need to leave space for the growing turnip. After planting, there is no need to water it specially, but you need to close it before frost. To do this, use branches after pruning trees and shrubs, dry leaves or legumes. They will cover the planting during the first frost, hold back the snow, and help overwinter.

And in the spring, as soon as the snow melts and the earth begins to warm up, this old covering material must be removed, and the sun must be allowed to reach the seedlings that are starting to grow. After the emergence of shoots, when the earth has already warmed up, it is advisable to mulch the bed in order to maintain sufficient heat and moisture, to protect it from overheating.

Early shoots can be sheltered from frost with an agricultural canvas - it keeps heat well, but lets in light, it does not need to be removed during the day and laid overnight like plastic wrap. It is recommended to feed with a highly diluted mullein, nitrogen fertilizers along with watering. The first time this is done immediately after the emergence of shoots, the second - after 2 weeks.

Experienced gardeners say that underfeeding is better than overfeeding. Caring for growing onions consists in timely watering (very careful, it is better to under-water, but not dry out), loosening the soil (it should be light enough and let air through to the roots), and combating weeds and pests. After watering and loosening, it would be good to mulch the land - this will reduce further labor costs.

Growing time

It is believed that winter onions grow in spring, and spend the winter at rest, this is not always the case, planting timing determines the growth time. Early planting is carried out in August-September, if the land is dry, then it needs to be watered, at such times the onions are planted in important land, because growth will begin even before winter. Before frost, 5-6 leaves will have time to grow, which must be covered with a special covering material or at least with branches and leaves. This is how onions are grown, in the spring it will sooner grow a turnip, but the leaves may well overwinter without suffering from frost.

The most common planting dates are September-October. The bed has long been cleaned and prepared, it's good if she rested for a month (well, at least a week), the ground has settled down. At this time, the planting is not watered, it does not matter if it rains, but you should not specially moisten the soil - otherwise the onion can rot.

Late plantings are carried out a month before the arrival of frost. It may be October – November, and even later in the southern regions. Here you really need to be guided by the weather conditions of your region. A well-dried seed is planted in dry ground, the plantings must be mulched, covered with special material for the winter.

Ripening of onions takes place in accordance with the weather, care and plans for each variety separately. Winter always ripens earlier than planted in spring. They remove it before the neck dries.

Video "In detail about the technology of growing winter onions"

In this video you can hear all the details about growing winter onions.

Pest control

Whatever happens to onions - diseases, pests - you need to remember that onions grown on a feather cannot be treated with pesticides.After potatoes, parsley, celery, alfalfa and clover, you should not plant onions - you can get a nematode. It is best if in the garden, which was planned for winter onions, the following crops used to grow: tomatoes, cabbage, peas, beans, radishes, carrots, beets. But after them, the land should rest for 1-4 weeks before planting winter onions.

A dangerous pest for all varieties of onions is the onion fly. She appears in the garden in mid-May to lay eggs on the onion and the ground next to it. Over the summer, at least 2 generations of flies are disgraceful in the garden. Their larvae enter the bulbs, causing decay.

Against them, onions are treated with organophosphate fertilizers (imide, tiaktoprid). You can add granular preparations (basudin, phosphamide) to the soil on the onion bed. Crop rotation will prevent onion fly larvae from accumulating in the soil, at least, so you should adhere to its rules.

If the plants are struck by peronosporosis, they will lag behind in growth, their leaves will dry out in dry weather, and in wet weather they will be covered with a gray-purple bloom. In order to prevent this disease, they are treated once every 12-14 days with contact fungicides (copper oxychloride, oxych). In rainy seasons, this interval is reduced to 7-8 days. If the disease cannot be avoided, systemic fungicides will have to be used (Acrobat MC, Ridomil MC), then they will need to be alternated. Winter onions have no more pests and diseases than those planted in spring, the fight against them is the same.

Video "Planting winter onions"

From this video you can find out the details of planting winter onions.