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Planting onions in the fall before winter in the Urals allows you to reduce spring work and ensure an early harvest of this crop. For planting onions in this region, frost-resistant varieties are used that can endure harsh winters.
Advantages and disadvantages of winter planting
Autumn planting of onions has the following advantages:
- it is quite difficult to keep planting material until spring, especially small sizes;
- planting work is reduced in the spring;
- getting an early harvest;
- the ability to use the beds freed from winter onions in the summer for greens or early ripening vegetables;
- winter crops are weeded less often, since the first shoots appear immediately after the snow, and the onion has time to grow before the active spread of weeds;
- obtaining large bulbs;
- until mid-May, soil is not watered, in which moisture remains for a long time.
Planting onions before winter has its drawbacks:
- lower yield than when planting bulbs in spring;
- storage may be difficult.
The decrease in the yield of winter onions is due to the fact that some bulbs do not withstand cold conditions. With temperature changes, high humidity and winter frosts, the culture may die. Therefore, it is especially necessary to carefully approach the choice of onion varieties for planting in the winter.
Variety choice
For planting in the Urals, frost-resistant varieties of onions are chosen that can withstand a significant drop in temperature. This includes hybrid varieties, the bulbs of which are able to develop with short and medium daylight hours. Seed material is divided into three groups:
- oatmeal with bulb sizes less than 1 cm;
- sevok with sizes from 1 to 3 cm;
- sample with larger bulbs.
When sowing a sample, you can get abundant greenery in the spring, but you should not count on large bulbs. If you want to get onions, then choose sets. Oatmeal gives medium-sized bulbs and feathers in spring. The following varieties of onions are planted in the Urals in winter:
- Shakespeare. One of the most common varieties suitable for transport planting. Its bulbs are large and round in shape. Due to the dense husk, the variety is able to withstand low temperatures. Onion Shakespeare ripens in 75 days.
- Radar. Another good winter variety that has excellent taste properties. Due to the high germination rate, Radar gives a large yield.
- Ellan. A variety of short daylight hours with rounded bulbs, golden husks and a sweetish aftertaste. Harvest is already in June.
- Sturon. It is distinguished by bulbs in the shape of an ellipse, which ripen in three months. You can store such onions for 8 months.
- Sense. An early maturing variety resistant to low temperatures. Bulbs rarely form arrows and are stored for a long time after harvest.
- Red Baron. Medium-early red onion variety, unpretentious to climatic conditions. It has a sharp taste and a long shelf life.
Terms of planting
Onions are planted in the Urals in September. Then the bulbs will have time to take root before the onset of cold weather, but the sprouts will not have time to take root. Landing is carried out at least a month before the onset of cold weather. Even in the Southern Urals, snow can fall in early October, so it’s better not to delay the planting work. The time when to plant onions before winter depends on the ambient temperature. If its value for several days is +5 degrees, then it’s time to start work. In any case, you need to focus on the weather conditions.
Early landing is not recommended. In warm weather, the bulbs will shoot arrows and will not be able to survive the frost. If you plant the onion later, then without rooting it will freeze in winter.
Preparation of planting material
Before planting in the ground, the bulbs are subjected to processing, which improves their germination. It is necessary to carry out the necessary measures 10 days before the start of planting work. Processing is carried out using one of the following solutions:
- Salt solution. You can use salt of any type: large or small fraction. One tablespoon of salt is enough for a liter of water. The bulbs are dipped in the resulting solution for 5 minutes.
- Copper vitriol. This substance has disinfectant properties and prevents the spread of fungal diseases. A tablespoon of copper sulfate is taken per liter of water. Onion holding time is 5 minutes.
- Potassium permanganate. On its basis, a solution of saturated pink color is prepared. It is allowed to process the material twice: first in a saline solution, then in potassium permanganate.
In addition to the options listed, onions are treated with Fitosporin before planting. This is a universal preparation intended for the prevention of plant diseases. A teaspoon of Fitosporin is dissolved in a liter of water, after which the bulbs are immersed in the solution for 15 minutes.
If the onion is grown on a turnip, then it is not necessary to cut off its neck. For planting onions before winter, 30% more material is taken than during spring work. The sevok should be dry, without any damage or signs of deterioration.
Selecting a landing site
A good crop of onions can be grown in sunny areas, but the culture tolerates shade well. The soil should be fertile, breathable, with a neutral reaction.
The best predecessors for onions are cereals, cabbage, corn, cucumbers, tomatoes. After onions, you can plant almost any vegetable crop. Re-planting onions in the garden is made only after 3 years. To avoid the spread of pests and diseases, onions are not planted after legumes, potatoes, celery and clover.
Next to the onion beds, you can plant cabbage, beets, carrots, tomatoes and greens. But it is better to refuse planting peas and beans in close proximity to the onion.
Soil Preparation
Timely application of fertilizers helps to improve the quality and structure of the soil. However, first you need to disinfect the soil with a solution of copper sulfate. For 10 liters of water, a tablespoon of the drug is taken. The consumption of the product is 2 liters per square meter.
Then they move on to fertilization. For one square meter of beds, you need to prepare a nutrient mixture. It includes:
- humus – 3 kg;
- peat – 5 kg;
- potassium salt – 15 g;
- superphosphate – 20 g.
After harvesting the previous crop, the beds need to be dug to a depth of 10 cm. Then a deeper digging is carried out with the application of fertilizers. When the onion planting dates approach, ash is scattered on the garden bed (up to 10 g per square meter). The beds are equipped with a height of up to 15 cm. The optimal length of the beds is 1 m, and the width is 0,5 m. Preparations begin a couple of weeks before planting, so that the soil has time to settle.
If the soil is heavy enough, then the creation of beds is a mandatory step. This provides warming of the soil and improved air exchange. If the soil is light enough and warms up quickly, then you can make low beds or abandon their equipment. Soil with high acidity is subjected to liming. Up to 0,7 kg of lime is required for each square meter. After the procedure, onions are planted only after two years.
Landing order
The procedure required for planting winter onions varies depending on the purpose of its cultivation. If you need to get a large turnip, then you need to follow the following sequence of operations:
- Furrows 5 cm deep are made on the prepared beds. A distance of 15 cm is left between them.
- Dry bulbs are placed in grooves every 4 cm.
- Planting material is covered with peat and humus. Landings are not watered.
- After a cold snap, the bed is mulched with sawdust, humus, fallen leaves.
When landing a bow on a feather, the order of operations changes slightly:
- Similarly, furrows 5 cm deep are made in the ground. 15 cm are left between rows.
- The bulbs are placed closely so that in the spring the plant directs its forces to the growth of greenery.
- Landings are covered with peat and humus.
- Sawdust, tree leaves, tops of harvested crops are used as a mulching layer.
Family onions have small bulbs, but they are valued for their early maturity and high taste. Since this variety produces small sets, its planting is carried out using seeds. Family onions are planted in August or September. The order of work is as follows:
- First, the seeds are placed for 3 days in water, which is changed three times a day.
- Furrows 1 cm deep are made on the beds. Up to 20 cm are left between rows.
- Seeds are lowered into the furrows, after which the soil is compacted.
- By the onset of frost, a rosette appears, which is left for the winter.
Mulching plantings is a mandatory procedure that will help the culture survive the harsh Ural winters. It is not recommended to use polyethylene film as a mulch, since it does not provide air and moisture exchange. Usually a lot of snow falls in the Urals in winter, which is an additional protection against freezing of the soil. To keep the snow cover longer on the bed, you can make another layer of spruce branches or branches.
Onion care after planting
In autumn, after planting and sheltering, the beds do not require additional care. In the spring, after the snow melts, the mulch layer is removed to ensure that the soil warms up. When growing onions on a turnip in spring, seedlings are thinned out. Between the bulbs leave about 5 cm.
In the process of culture growth, additional thinning is performed. So that the plants do not interfere with each other, up to 15 cm are left between them, depending on the variety.
In the spring, it is better to refuse top dressing, otherwise the active growth of greenery will begin, and the turnip will remain small. Further onion care consists in weeding, loosening and watering. The soil should not dry out, it is left moderately moistened.
When growing onions on a feather in the spring, it is actively fed. For irrigation, fertilizer is prepared based on mullein or preparations containing nitrogen. This procedure ensures the formation of green mass.
The use of agro-cloth helps to protect seedlings from spring frosts. This material allows the sun’s rays and oxygen to pass through, while retaining heat.
Conclusion
The process of planting onions includes several stages, which include processing the bulbs, arranging beds and fertilizing. The deadlines for the work must be observed so that the bulbs have time to adapt and prepare for the winter. After planting, the onion does not require care, it is enough to apply a mulch layer when it gets cold. In the spring, it is removed and the crop is taken care of in the usual way: watered, loosened the soil and eliminated weeds.
