How to Grow Onions
Instruction & Advice for Growing an Onion Patch
in Your Vegetable Garden
| Nutrition | Watering Instructions | Harvesting |
| Climate | Fertilizing Instructions | Storage |
| Soil | Challenges | Tips |
| Planting |
Onions make good companions for several garden vegetables. However, DO NOT plant onions with (or very near) peas or beans. For more information, review the companion planting guide.
Nutrition Information: (back to top)
Under optimal growing conditions, onions offer: Dietary Fiber, Chromium, Manganese, Vitamin C, B6, Folate, Potassium
Climate & Growing Conditions: (back to top)
Onions can be grown in virtually any climate. Plan your onion garden by which varieties coincide with your growing season. Onions are temperature sensitive and do not like beds that get too hot. Warm weather and direct sunlight will help them grow faster. Cool weather promotes top growth.
How to Prepare the Garden Soil: (back to top)
Onions prefer non-acidic soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. (Instructions for testing your garden soil pH level.) Prepare the garden bed in advance with large quantities of compost and/or well-rotted
manure.
How to Plant Onions: (back to top)
Onions come in three categories: early, mid-season, or late maturing. Plant early types in mid to late summer. Plant mid-season varieties in autumn. Plant late maturing varieties in late autumn/early winter.
Sow seeds directly in the ground or transplant seedlings from seed beds. Seedlings should be 5” tall when planted. Plant 3” apart in rows 1’ apart.
Gardening Advice Tip: Green onions/scallions do best when planted as onion sets, rather than seeds.
How to Water: (back to top)
Water regularly and evenly. Lack of water slows growth and causes bulbs to split.
How to Fertilize: (back to top)
Fertilize your onion garden soil before planting, and then again at mid-season. Animal manure or bone meal seems to provide the best success when gardening this vegetable. You can also use a complete fertilizer.
Note: too much fertilizer, expecially as the plant reaches maturity, causes excess leaf growth (rather than bulb growth).
Gardening Challenges: (back to top)
Onion maggots thrive in fresh organic material, so make sure any organic material (compost, manures) are well rotted before applying to your garden.
Your crop may expericence Onion Thrip (white spots on the leaves) or Downy Mildew.
Gardening Advice Tip: Practice good vegetable gardening by rotating your crops within your garden space with each new season. This will prevent many plant diseases.
How to Harvest Onions: (back to top)
When the growth of the bulbs is nearly complete (usually August), draw the soil away from the bulbs to expose them to the air and sunshine (to help ripen them).
When the leaves begin to turn yellow, bend them back so that one side of the row is clear from leaves.
Onions can take over 6 months to reach maturity. When the leaves have died, pull plant from the ground and leave in the sun to dry (in dry weather) for a few days.
How to freeze Onions (back to top)
Peel, chop or cut onion into rings. Wrap onion pieces in layers of plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag or plastic container. Label and freeze for up to 3 months. Small onions can be frozen as is (right in their skins).
Cold Storage: (back to top)
Store in your cold cellar in breathable or mesh bags (if possible). Examine periodically for (and remove) rotted onions.
How to Dehydrate / Dry Onions (back to top)
Remove outer layer, and dice or cut into ¼” slices. Dry at 100 degrees (F) for 20 hours or until brittle. To rehydrate, soak in hot water for 15 minutes and drain. No need to rehydrate if using in soups or stews. Make onion flakes and onion powder by grinding in a food mill or blender. For onion salt, mix onion podwer equally with salt. NOTE: Dehydrating onions makes the house smell very strongly of onions. You may consider dehydrating them outside or in a less used space.
Gardening Advice Tips (back to top)
Have a helpful gardening tip (or even a fun story) to share about your onion growing experience? Share it with us at: gardeningtips@howtogardenadvice.com
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