Onions are incredibly useful for flavouring so much of our year-round cooking.
There are many different types of onions or alliums, and they all require a longer growing season. Therefore, when starting them from seed, it’s important to sow them early.
If you are not set up to start your own seeds, there are a few options you may wish to consider.
Many growers are starting onion seeds now in order to have them ready in March or April for setting out as transplants in our gardens.
From scallions and shallots to the very popular Spanish onions and leeks, there are usually good selections available in garden stores from early to late spring.
You can also find starter onion sets as tiny bulbs that simply need to be planted out in your garden once the soil begins to warm up. Dutch sets, multipliers, Spanish sets and shallots are usually ready in late February or early March, and they will save you considerable growing time.
Although onions are cool-loving plants, it’s best to wait until we have consistent daytime temperatures of at least 10 degrees Celsius and we’re past nighttime frosts before planting them out. Spanish onions, in particular, need a long, cool growing period to achieve their best flavour and sweetness.
The Walla Walla variety is one of the most popular and versatile Spanish onions. Many folks plant them with their winter vegetables in late July to mid-August so that they are the earliest Spanish onions to harvest. It is one of the hardiest onions, often tolerating temperatures of -20 degrees Celsius. After having survived winter, they are usually ready to enjoy by early to mid-July.
Bundles of transplantable onions are also sold in spring in order to hasten their growing time. Traditionally, they are sold as starter plants and usually mature in late July or August. These have become very popular, but there were virtually none available last year because of the severe winter, especially in eastern Washington where they are grown.
Red and white Spanish onions are also popular because of their unique flavour. One of the best, both for production and for storing, are the Riverside Sweet Spanish, a golden oldie.
An excellent novelty onion, Kelsae holds the world record for size — often weighing 15 pounds each — and they have a wonderful flavour as well.
If you want to start a number of different onion varieties, seed stores and catalogues have a great selection now, and it’s a good time to begin seed germination.
Onions are some of our most productive and tastiest vegetables, so definitely save a spot in your garden for these culinary wonders.
