Planting a family onion before winter

The name “family bow” causes tenderness and misunderstanding for many. This onion culture outwardly resembles an ordinary onion vegetable, but at the same time it has a unique taste and usefulness. A family or simply a family is called shallots, the heads of which are slightly smaller than the usual onions. They quickly give dense greens and ripen. In the process of growth, such an onion does not form arrows, and the harvested vegetables can be stored for 2 years without loss of quality. Another feature of the culture is resistance to freezing, in connection with which many farmers are interested in whether it is possible to plant family onions before winter. But indeed, by planting a plant in the fall, it will be possible to speed up the process of obtaining green feathers and turnips next year, and thereby protect the culture from parasitism of the onion fly. However, it is very important to choose the right time for landing and observe some features of the event.

Planting a family onion before winter

Interesting! One planted unit of shallots in the process of growth forms a whole family of 10-30 new onions. Such a tendency to divide and allowed the common people to call culture a “family onion”.

It’s time to sow onions

In autumn, after harvesting, the gardener has free time that can be spent on sowing onions. Planting before winter allows you to get the first green feathers for lettuce in early spring and increase the yield of the crop as a whole. The thing is that during the period of spring snowmelt, onions store moisture in the soil and rationally distribute nutrients. As a result of such an impact, the yield of family onions increases by 15-20% due to an increase in the mass of each vegetable.

The maturation period of a family onion is only 50-60 days, but the plant, before activating its growth after planting, is in a calm phase for a long time. Therefore, it is possible to grow two crops of this crop in one season only if it is planted in autumn before winter.

Important! It is possible to collect two full-fledged onion crops in one season only in the southern regions with a long summer period. 

Planting a family onion before winter  

It is recommended to plant family onions in autumn 40-50 days before the onset of stable frosts. During this period, daytime temperatures can vary from 0 to +50C, at night there may be a slight “minus”. With such indicators, the soil temperature will be positive and the onion will have time to take root. When planting in autumn, the most important condition is that the family onion is highly resistant to freezing, only if there is a developed root system.

Important! The best time to sow family onion seeds is at the end of August.

Selection of planting material

For planting family onions before winter, you can use seeds or sets. Seeds must meet the expiration date. With proper storage, small grains will give the first shoots in the middle of autumn, take root well and successfully overwinter. You have to choose sevok more carefully:

  • Large bulbs with a diameter of 5-7 cm often shoot and form a nest of many small bulbs, which are of low commercial quality.
  • Bulb, 1-2 cm in diameter, is the most suitable planting material, which will give 10 large, full-fledged bulbs next year.

Planting material must be healthy. On its surface, signs of parasitism of pests and diseases should not be observed.

Planting a family onion before winter

Not all varieties of family onions are suitable for winter planting. Some of them shoot with the advent of spring. To prevent this from happening, you need to grow varieties and hybrids “Sprint”, “Earring”, “Garant”, “Debut”, “Krepysh”.

Soil preparation

It is recommended to grow family onions in sunny areas of the earth, without excess moisture. It is necessary to plow the soil and fertilize it a month before the autumn planting. For every 1 m2 soil, you need to add 5-6 kg of humus and 60-80 g of double superphosphate. Wood ash can be used as a source of phosphorus and potassium. Fertilizers should be applied to the entire area of ​​uXNUMXbuXNUMXbthe site so that the root system can independently supply itself with minerals in the development process. With a lack of fertilizers, nutrients can be laid by the nesting method, which is less effective in this case.

Planting a family onion before winter

In autumn, it is important to maintain a high level of soil moisture. If necessary, the soil should be irrigated before and after onion sowing until frost occurs. A sufficient amount of moisture will allow the family to build up a powerful root system and successfully overwinter.

Two ways to plant onions in the fall

The method of growing family onions depends on the choice of planting material, so we will consider work on the autumn planting of sets and seeds separately.

The sevka shawl

Before planting, the seedlings are recommended to be treated with a light solution of potassium permanganate, and then with a growth stimulator. The use of these drugs will disinfect the surface of the bulbs and speed up the process of its germination by an average of 2 weeks. Under the influence of humic substances, onion resistance to diseases and pests also increases.

Important! Planting material can be disinfected by heating to 400C for 8 hours.

Planting a family onion before winter

It is recommended to plant family onions in rows, the distance between which should be at least 25 cm. The depth of planting material should be 3-4 cm. You should not place sets close to each other in one row, since each bulb forms large nests. The optimal distance is 25-30 cm between the bulbs in one row.

You can create the best conditions for wintering onions with the help of straw and humus mulch. In the northern regions, with the appearance of snow, it is recommended to create additional protection against freezing by throwing a cap of snow. Next year, with the advent of heat, the mulch should be removed from the ridge so that the soil warms up faster.

Important! To accumulate a snow cap, you can install shields that will hold the snow in the garden and prevent the onions from freezing.

Shallot from seeds

Before sowing, onion seeds must be soaked in water with the addition of growth stimulants. Sow seeds, like sowing, in rows located at a distance of 20 cm from each other. Onion seeds should be deepened by 1-1,5 cm. When sowing, you should try to carefully place the planting material in the furrows at a distance of 15-20 cm. After sowing, the soil on the ridges should be compacted and mulched. When sowing seeds at the end of August, by mid-September it will be possible to observe the appearance of onion greens. At this time, the seeds form the same set, which will naturally take root, successfully overwinter and give a good harvest next year.

Planting a family onion before winter

Important! Excessive deepening of the planting material leads to deformation of the onion heads.

Many gardeners from year to year fail to grow family onions on their plot. The most common reason for this is too tight a fit. Closely spaced heads interfere with each other, trying to get more sunlight, moisture, and nutrients. As a result of such cultivation, the owner will receive a meager crop of poor quality.

Planting a family onion before winter

Conclusion

More interesting and important information about the winter planting of family onions can be found in the video:

Planting onions in autumn

The specialist will give advice that will allow you to choose the right planting material and successfully plant onions in the winter period. A visual demonstration of the planting process will help each gardener cope with the agricultural task of growing the most useful and productive onions.

Family onions are very useful and fruitful. For the season from each 1 m2 land can collect up to 10 kg of this vegetable. However, such amazing results can only be achieved if the rules of planting and growing are followed. We tried to tell as much as possible about the planting of the family before winter. We hope that following our recommendations will be an excellent start on the way to a rich harvest of good vegetables.

Leave a Reply