Allium cepa
InformationOnions grow well in Dunedin, and its possible to grow a year's supply is a relatively small space (at least it is for me because we don't eat many). The long keeper varieties do, indeed, keep long and we've had some last a while year - so you can have garden grown onions all year round.
In 2010 I ran an experiment leaving Kings Seed's Italian Long Keeper onions in the soil over winter. They survived fine and doubled up over summer, but all went to seed. Don't let your onions do this. The bulb hollows out and your're left with an empty shell with a thick stalk in the middle - the almost all ended up on the compost heap! Onions (as food) are an annual.
PlantPlant In trays, scatter seeds over the top if a dish of potting mix and cover with just enough additional potting mix to hide. According to the Tui NZ Vegetable Garden book plant February - July. I've normally planted way later (September / October) and gotten smaller onions. That way you don't need to keep half an onion in the fridge.
Germination 7 days
Harvest 110 days VarietiesKings Seeds Borettana Italian Long Keeper Musona White Round Purplette Red Amposta Red Brunswick Red Wing F1 Ringmaster Shallot F1 Stuttgart Long Keeper Yellow Sweet Spanish
Yates Hunter River White Odourless Pukekohe Longkeeper Sweet Red
Koanga Gardens California Red Onion Egyptian Tree Onion: Gerald De Koning Egyptian Tree Onions Richard Watson Potato Onion Brown Pukekohe Long Keeper (pre 1966)
Egmont Seeds Californian Red Cocktail Barletta Perfect Keeper F1 Hybrid Pukekohe Long Keeper Shallot Ambition F1 Hybrid Spring Bunching Spring Crimson Forest Spring Galloper F1 Hybrid Spring Long White Yellow Sweet Spanish My Experiments 2011 | Variety | Sowed | Germinated | Planted-Out | Expected Harvest | Harvest | | Italian Longkeeper | 25 Jan 2011 | 1 Feb 2011 | 1 March 2011 | 15 May 2011 | | | Red Wing F1 | 25 Jan 2011 | 2 Feb 2011 | 1 March 2011 | 15 May 2011 | |
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