Bailey Van Tassel

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hand holding onion bulbs
22 Oct 2021
Gardening

How to Grow Onions: Starting with Bulbs aka Sets

There are four ways to grow onions: via bulbs (otherwise known as sets), via seed, via seedling, or from an onion that’s already been used but has roots and a bulb intact. The last method is most common with green onions, which regrow quite successfully.

Today we are talking about growing onions from bulbs, as that is what I am currently doing in the garden. It’s Fall, so bulbs are all the rage, and onion bulbs are easy to snag at the nursery. Being a zone 10 gardener, we can actually grow some form of onion year-round.

Onion bulbs are small tiny onions that look like “Honey, I Shrunk The Kids!” onion version. They’re very simple to plant and give you a leg up from starting onions via seed. This also allows for some cold-weather tolerance, great for more Northern hardiness zones.

I’m going to give you Cliff’s notes bullets, because that’s what we really need, right?

How to Grow Onions From Bulbs:

  • Start with well-draining and balanced soil (with about 3″ compost if possible).
  • Onions like full sun – 6 hours minimum
  • Plant your bulbs 1″ deep and fertilize with a nitrogen-rich fertilizer.
  • Leave your bulbs in their paper and plant roots down.
  • Plant about 4″ apart with rows that are double that
  • Water those top 3″ of soil and then daily for about 5 mins until established.
  • Keep your onion patch free of weeds

That’s it! The onion bulbs are what you’d get if you started seeds, before they shoot up greens, so it gives you a leg up, but produces a strong plant. I love them.

Harvesting Onions

From the time of planting your onion bulbs, it should take about 3-4 months to get to maturity. Once you’ve grown your onions, the fully mature bulb will start to pop up out of the soil, and the greens may yellow and flop over. That’s when you know they’re ready for harvest. Additionally, if the onions start to soften, they need to be pulled up.

Curing Onions

Once your harvest your onions, keep them in a warm and well-ventilated place for a couple of days to cure. Then they are ready to store – for up to a year!

With onions being such a staple to cook with, they are a garden staple too! I encourage you to try them this year and see what you think. There are few things as satisfying as pulling up those pretty onions!

TAGS:curing onionsgrowing onionsonion bulbsonion sets
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Hi I’m Bailey

Hi I’m Bailey

Teaching you how to grow veggies in any space while show you how to live a garden-inspired life.

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baileyvantassel
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Edible flowers are a garden staple for me. I’ll grow any and ALL of them.

Up first in this little series: flower ice cubes. As simple as putting flowers in the ice cube tray, filling it with water, and then freezing!

It’s making mocktail hour very festive around here!

Flower featured: dianthus. I grow it as a perennial and while I love it, the petals get separated when you destem them and they’re a bit fragile so I prefer to use them this way or fresh.

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A tiny pollinator garden! In the dead heat of summer ☀️

I planted a meter lemon (which, yes, will be great in this pot forever) and some fennel for the giant swallowtail butterflies. Then parsley which attract the black swallowtail butterfly, and Pentas which will give nectar to all the hummingbirds and bees and butterflies.

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