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Onion is a very useful culture known since antiquity. The history of culture has 6 thousand years. The following historical facts are known about her: the builders of the pyramids were fed with onions so that they remained healthy and strong. Ancient Greek athletes used the vegetable in their diet in preparation for the Olympic Games. In Our Country, it was grown in all areas, and it has been known for a long time.
The use of onions protects during colds, thanks to the phytoncides contained in it, essential oils and vitamin C. The vegetable cleanses the blood, stimulates appetite, and is widely used in cosmetology and in folk recipes. It is used everywhere in the preparation of various culinary dishes.
Every self-respecting gardener will surely provide himself and his family with a useful vegetable. Therefore, during the period of planting on a personal plot, this plant is never forgotten. The question of how to properly plant onions worries gardeners long before the start of the planting season.
When to plant onions
There is no exact answer to the question of when to plant onions in the spring. You should focus on the climatic conditions of your region. There is a warm and early spring, then it is quite possible to plant onions at the end of April. But natural disasters also occur in the form of snowfall at the end of April, which pushes back the onion planting dates.
Planted onions tolerate a drop in temperature well. The root system of the bulbs is developing, and the green part may slow down a little in growth. But among gardeners there is an opinion that too early spring planting of onions leads to the formation of arrows in the future. Such bulbs are poorly stored and they have an unsightly presentation.
If the soil warms up more, then the green part will grow rapidly to the detriment of the roots, which will not have the best effect on the future crop.
The motivation for winter planting is as follows: bulbs that are too small dry out over the winter and become unviable. And in this way they remain in the soil, in the spring they will not go to the arrow and will grow to a decent size.
Planting onions in the spring is a responsible matter, especially the choice of planting time should be taken very carefully. It is at first that good harvest indicators are laid.
Preparation of planting material
Most often, gardeners purchase planting material in the form of small bulbs so that large onion heads grow from them. This is the so-called onion set. You can get it yourself from seeds, but the process of planting and growing is quite complicated and laborious. Moreover, the resulting small bulbs still need to be able to save until the next planting season. Therefore, most people buy ready-made planting material.
Before planting, be sure to prepare the bulbs. At the beginning, they need to be sorted out, rotten, withered, deformed, damaged specimens removed.
The simplest action is to soak the onion in a cherry solution of potassium permanganate for 30-40 minutes or in a solution of copper sulfate (35 g per bucket of water). Both substances disinfect planting material. Some gardeners pre-soak the bulbs before planting in a saline solution (2 tablespoons of table salt per 2 liters of water) for 3 hours, then washed and soaked in potassium permanganate for 3 hours.
Another tip: soak the onions first in warm water (15 minutes), then cold water (15 minutes), and then in a mineral fertilizer solution for 5 hours before planting.
There are also modern preparations for processing planting material. These are all kinds of plant growth stimulants (Epin, Zircon, Amulet and others).
Preparatory measures are aimed at preventing damage to the bulbs by pests, returning to them the moisture lost during the storage period and, of course, increasing the future harvest.
Soil preparation
Soil preparation is the correct selection of the site. Onions grow well in sandy and loamy soils. That is, on fairly light in structure. Clay heavy soils are not suitable for the plant, as they contribute to stagnation of water, which the onion does not tolerate at all.
The site should be sunny and well ventilated. Low-lying areas are also not suitable. Stagnation of water leads to rotting of the bulbs. Onions do not grow on acidic soils.
An easy way to determine the acidity of the soil: spread some earth on glass or porcelain and water lightly with 9% vinegar. Look at the reaction. If a lot of foam has formed, then the soil is alkaline, if the foam is not abundant, then the soil is neutral, if there is no foam at all, then the soil is acidic.
You can adjust the acidity of the soil by adding slaked lime, wood ash, chalk, dolomite flour from autumn.
Another requirement in which onion planting gives a bountiful harvest is soil fertility. To increase it, manure or humus is introduced in the fall. The soil is prepared for planting in advance.
This will cause the feather to grow rapidly, and the underground part of the plant will not grow. So you can be left without a crop.
Observe crop rotation. It is undesirable for the culture to grow for several years in a row in one place; it grows best after:
- Early and cauliflower;
- Ogurtsov;
- Zucchini, pumpkins, squash;
- Early potatoes;
- Peas, beans, beans;
- Sideratov.
Bad predecessors for planting onions:
- Salad
- Carrot;
- spices;
- Turnip;
- Radish;
- Bow;
- Garlic.
Fertilizers are applied in autumn. In spring, the soil is dug up for planting onions, freed from weeds, and leveled.
How to plant an onion
Onions are planted on long, narrow beds, so that later it is convenient to care for. The height of the beds is made depending on the type of soil. If the soils are light, then the height is small, about 6 cm. If the soils are heavy, then the beds for planting are made higher so that the soils are well warmed up and ventilated from excess moisture.
They make a groove in the garden, spill it with water if the soil has dried out, and begin to plant onions. Planting pattern: 10 cm between bulbs, 20 cm between rows. Bulbs are placed in furrows to a depth of 2 cm, only slightly sinking them. Then roll the soil around.
You can plant more often if, in the process of growth, it is planned to plant onions, thin them out, pulling them out onto the greens. If you pre-arrange the onion in size, then the distance between the bulbs can also be varied.
How to plant onions, look at the video:
If you decide to grow onions from seeds, then sow on beds with very loose soil. It is better to sow with an interval of 1,5 cm. The time when onions can be planted with seeds is the same as with bulbs.
How to plant onions with seeds, look at the video:
Care for onions
Regular onion care:
- Watering is necessary for planting onions, especially in the first half of the growing season, once a week, depending on weather conditions, before harvesting, watering the plants should be stopped 3 weeks in advance;
- Removing weeds prevents the development of fungal diseases in plantings, since in the presence of weeds, increased humidity is created;
- Loosening the soil after watering and weeding is mandatory, do not allow the formation of a dense crust on the soil surface. Loosening improves the flow of oxygen to the roots of plantings;
- Feeding plantings with urea when the feather reaches 10 cm.
As a rule, additional dressings are not required. But, if the feather began to turn yellow, and it is still far from harvesting, then the plants can be fed with the following composition of mineral fertilizers: dilute ammonium nitrate (10 g) and potassium salt (10 g) in a bucket of water (15 l). Onions also respond well to fertilizing with slurry (1:10) and bird droppings (1:15).
Regular maintenance is easy.
Diseases and pests
There are about 50 onion diseases. Most common:
- Powdery mildew is manifested in the fact that a grayish coating forms on the feathers of the culture, they turn yellow and die, the bulb is deformed. Control measures: the use of potassium-phosphorus fertilizers, do not thicken the plantings, weed them in time;
- Fusarium is manifested in the rot of the bottom of the bulb and the death of the root. Control measures: treatment of plants with ash infusion, purchase of high-quality planting material and its preparation before planting.
If you correctly observe the agricultural technology of cultivation, then diseases will not occur.
Plant pests are no less dangerous:
- The onion fly lays its eggs in the soil near the plant and in its upper scales, the larvae penetrate the bulb. She stops growing, rots. Control measures: do not plant the crop in the same place, shed the soil around the plantings with a solution of common salt (300 g per bucket of water), repeat the treatment of the plants in a week;
- The onion moth is a small brown butterfly. Lays eggs on feathers, the larvae gnaw through them and descend into the bulbs. Plants begin to rot and die. Control measures: loosening the soil, weeding, removal of plant residues in the fall.
The appearance of plant pests and diseases is much easier to prevent than to deal with them. Buy quality planting material and be sure to decontaminate it before planting.
Cleaning and storage
In late July and early August, harvesting begins. The signal for this is yellowing and lodging of feathers. The bulbs become dry and yellow. Do not delay harvesting, as the plants will accumulate excess moisture, which can cause the bulbs to rot.
For 2 weeks stop watering for the same reasons. Harvesting is carried out in dry sunny weather so that the bulbs dry out. This is where the bulbs are trimmed. Without fanaticism, leaving the neck not too short, otherwise the vegetable will be stored worse.
Then the grown crop is placed in a cool shaded place for further drying, which will last at least 2 weeks. During this time, the bulbs will need to be turned several times.
Storage requires a dry cool dark place. Such conditions are difficult to comply with, most of us store crops in a city apartment. Use boxes, crates, or baskets for storage. The main thing is that the container is breathable. Regularly inspect the bulbs for rot, one specimen can very quickly hit others nearby.
Conclusion
Onions are one of the most useful crops, without which almost no dish can be prepared. And no matter how much you grow this healthy vegetable, it is always in short supply. Onion planting and cultivation is simple, economically profitable, grown at minimal cost, and onions can be planted in various ways.