Beautiful golden onions - they're enough to make
you cry! Hi I'm Ben, and if you really want to know your onions this one's for you, because here
comes some top tips for growing fuss-free bulbs every time. The first tip is to give onions
exactly what they're after - that's a sunny position in moist but well-draining, fertile soil. Add
compost or well-rotted manure to the soil several weeks before planting, ideally the winter
before planting so it isn't too fresh. You can then add a general purpose organic fertilizer at
planting time to give plants an extra boost. Heavy clay soils aren't ideal, but growing onions
in raised beds should help the soil to drain a bit better, sidestepping the sorts of overly
wet conditions that could cause plants to rot. Onions can be started from sets (part-formed
bulbs that will give you a bit of a head start) using bunches of young plants or starts, or with seedlings that you've grown yourself. I
like to start my onions off in late winter, sowing into pots of a seed-starting
mix. They're then germinated indoors and then, once the seedlings are up, carefully
separated out and planted into plug trays. We're on the cusp of early autumn, which is the perfect time for planting overwintering or short day varieties, which is what I've sown here. Autumn
planted onions mature several weeks ahead of spring planted onions, so while they
don't store as well they will provide some very handy early bulbs - ideal for anyone
wanting to be as self-sufficient as possible. Whatever you're planting, getting the proper
spacing right is important, because it has a direct impact on the final size of your bulbs.
Spacing rows about a foot or 30 centimeters apart leaves plenty of space to get a hoe in between
plants to keep on top of weeds. A decision then has to be made on whether you want lots of
medium sized bulbs or fewer, but bigger, bulbs. Personally I prefer normal-size bulbs and more
of them, so my space the onions about 4 inches or 10 centimeters apart within the row, but if
it's real whoppers that you're after space them something more like 8 inches or 20 centimeters
apart ,or even more. Onions have long, thin leaves that don't shade the soil, which creates ideal
conditions for weeds to thrive. Turn your back for too long and weeds can quickly gain the upper
hand, competing for resources and compromising your chances of well-formed bulbs. Regular weeding is
essential to keep on top of things. Use a hoe to carefully weed in between rows earlier on in the
season while plants are still young, then hand weed once this gets tricky, or to hoik out weeds
sprouting within the row. Regular weeding will also reduce the seed bank in your soil, giving
cleaner conditions for the crops that follow. Bolting is when vegetables flower prematurely.
It's very common with onions and can lead to split or poorly formed bulbs that don't store nearly
as well. Two reasons behind bolting in onions is cold weather soon after planting, and hot, dry
summers as well. Onions are biennials, which means they flower in their second year, but a cold snap
soon after planting can trick plants into thinking that winter's arrived so that when it warms up
again they're then primed to flower. Spring planted onion sets are at a greater risk of bolting
as they are already one season old, so avoid planting sets too early in spring when hard frosts
are still likely. Keep them covered if it does turn cold, or start your own seedlings off from seed. Hot,
dry summers can also cause bolting. The solution is of course to water, which should also help keep
plants cooler in hot weather while supplying more moisture to swell those bulbs. If, despite your best
efforts, plants do bolt, cut off the flower stalk and use the onions as soon as possible. Your cue
to harvest are when the leaves start to yellow and flop over at the neck - that's where the leaves
join the bulbs. Now, these ones have got a touch of mildew, but they've still formed good sized bulbs
so I'm going to lift them up straight away and take them to the greenhouse where they can fully
dry out. Now, because these have got mildew I'm going to have to compost the foliage separately
from my main compost heap, and then limit the resulting compost for use only on ornamental
borders, well away from the future onions. All onions must be properly dried out or cured
before they're stored. It's an important step that helps them develop their protective outer skin so
they keep for longer. In fine weather you can just leave lifted bulbs on the soil surface to dry out,
but if it's in any way damp it's safer to bring them under cover. Lay bulbs out somewhere with good
air circulation. Racks are ideal for this purpose, or you could hang them upside down from staging
like this. They should take around two weeks to dry. Store them in a cool, dry place in boxes, nets, or
woven into beautiful onion strings. Right, I'll need to make sure that I plant next year's onions well
away from here, and that's because I don't want to pass the disease from one crop on to the next. And
that's actually one example of why for vegetables like onions, crop rotation is so important. Now are
you growing onions this year? Let me know in the comments below, and if you've enjoyed this video
why not return the favor by popping it a thumbs up and of course subscribing. And for more on
growing and storing onions, including how to make a really beautiful onion string, check out
this playlist. I'll catch you next time.
