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Growing onions from sets has a lot of advantages, and getting planting material from seeds is not difficult at all. FROMThe most important thing is to keep the onion sets until next spring, because in winter a lot of trouble awaits them: from rotting and freezing to drying out and early germination. As you know, it is the improper storage of onion sets that leads to the shooting of adult plants and the loss of most of the crop.
This article will be devoted to how to store onion sets in a private house or city apartment. Here, different methods of storage will be considered, it will be told about the spring and autumn preparation of planting material.
How to prepare onion sets for winter storage
Seeds are harvested, usually at the end of August. The fact that the onion is fully ripe can be recognized by the state of the tops: the leaves should lie on the ground and turn yellow.
After the onion sets are harvested, they must be sorted and sorted. For planting in the spring, only whole, healthy bulbs are suitable, without signs of damage and rot. It must be remembered that even one infected bulb can lead to damage to the entire planting material.
The second important step is the drying of onion sets. It is recommended to dry the sevok in the sun, and a dry and well-ventilated room or a place under a canopy is also suitable.
How and where to store onion sets before planting
Only lattice containers or bags that allow air to pass through are suitable for storing sevka, because the onion must be constantly ventilated so as not to rot or become moldy.
Therefore, onion sets are most often stored in:
- bags;
- networks;
- wooden boxes;
- plastic containers;
- lotkah
- in bulk.
Storing onion sets in bulk does not mean that the heads are simply laid out on the floor. Planting material should be high above the ground, so it is customary to place it on shelves or in attics. In these cases, the onion is laid out in a 15-20 cm uniform layer. There must be good ventilation in the room with sevka, otherwise rot cannot be avoided.
How to store onion sets in a warm way at home
Most often, this method is used by those who live in an apartment or do not have their own basement.
You can store sevoc before sowing at home, but some rules should be followed:
- prevent overheating of onion sets, therefore, do not place storage near batteries and heaters (a pantry or a warm loggia is most suitable for storage);
- do not over-moisten the air near the onion sets, so do not lay it out near water sources (do not store seeds in the kitchen or bathroom);
- ensure regular airing of the bow;
- avoid direct sunlight;
- periodically sort out the sets to remove rotten or infected heads.
At home, onion sets are usually stored in cardboard boxes, small wooden or plastic boxes, or bags.
How to properly store onion sets before planting in the cellar
Residents of country houses usually do not have a question where to store onion sets until next spring. After all best suited for these purposes is a home basement or cellar, where a stable positive temperature is maintained throughout the winter.
The method of storing sets in the basement is called the cold method, and it gives better results compared to storing onions at home:
- fewer rotten heads;
- sevok does not dry out;
- no early germination;
- mature plants do not go to arrows;
- onion crop is large and stable.
In the cellar, onions are stored in any convenient container, these can be boxes, bags or boxes. Sevok is perfectly stored in the basement until spring, and it must be warmed up before planting. To do this, 2-3 weeks before planting, the heads are brought into the house, sorted out and laid out in a dry and warm place.
How to keep onions in the ground
There is another, very unusual way – onion sets are stored simply in the beds, that is, in the ground. To do this, the heads are planted in late autumn as they would be planted in the spring. During the period of low temperatures, the seedlings will freeze, and with the onset of heat, it will “wake up” and quickly grow.
This method has its advantages:
- heads do not dry out;
- in a frosty winter with stable temperatures, the onion will not begin to rot;
- the seedlings begin to germinate very early, so the crop will be harvested ahead of schedule;
- the owner does not have to take care of the container and storage space, provide the onion sets with the necessary conditions, sort it out and warm it up;
- in the spring you do not need to plant sevok, because he is already in the garden.
Storing onion sets in a bucket
This method is similar to the previous one – the onion will also be frozen. Only sevok in this case is not planted, but buried in the ground. For these purposes, it is convenient to use an old bucket.
A thick layer of dry sawdust is poured at the bottom of the bucket, onion sets are laid on top. Do not fill the container to the brim, because the seeds must “breathe”. From above, the planting material is covered with approximately the same layer of sawdust.
It remains to dig a hole and place a bucket of onion sets underground. Pre-cover the container with a lid. The layer of earth above the bucket should be 15-18 cm.
What mode is sevka needed for proper storage
Until the spring planting, most of the planting material should “survive” – this is the task of the gardener. Each of the storage methods requires certain conditions for keeping onion sets:
- With the cold method, that is, during the period of saving the heads in the basement, a stable temperature at the level of 2-8 degrees should be maintained in the room.
- If the onion is stored underground, it must be constantly frozen – this will ensure the temperature is below -3 degrees.
- For those seeds that are in the house, a positive temperature is needed – from 17 to 24 degrees.
- In any case, the relative humidity of the air should be 65-75%.
Whatever method the gardener chooses, he must know that onion sets cannot be stored for more than one season: from harvest to planting.
How to save a “sick” onion set
The onion is good, which until spring lay safe and sound, the heads remained dense, and the husk was dry. Growing a decent crop from such seeds is not a problem. What to do in the case when, during the next sorting, the gardener noticed rotting heads?
As you know, rot spreads very quickly, and if you do not take the right measures, you can lose all planting material in a matter of days. First, it is necessary to remove the affected heads from the common container as soon as possible. It is better to remove neighboring bulbs as well, because they may already be infected with rot, which is not yet visible.
When a large number of bulbs have turned black, there is only one option left: to “undress” the sets, that is, to clean the heads from the husks infected with rot. You can not be afraid and even remove all the husks from the onion, because this plant is unique – onion sets are able to “grow” their scales again.
Conclusion
Keeping your own garden is a tricky business. It will seem to many that storing sevka is a complicated process, and none of the methods gives one hundred percent result. Therefore, most gardeners and summer residents go every spring to buy planting material, and onion sets are quite expensive.
Practice shows that it is only necessary to find a way to store onion sets suitable for a particular region, and then it will be possible to significantly save on the purchase of planting material. This is especially important when growing vegetables on an industrial scale.
