Potato Onion Series Part 2 Planting and Culture
Tips, Tricks
Part 2 of my series on Potato Onions. See full potato onion playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL60FnyEY-eJBDhVK5y8Qs7XRHIFmuzeFl I'm only really covering the Heirloom Yellow Potato Onion and Kelly Winterton's Green Mountain Multiplier. I haven't been impressed enough with the white potato onions to keep growing them. I'm sure they have their place and uses, but they are very different. Sometime on or after the winter solstice on Dec. 21st in the Northern Hemisphere, I plant the first round of potato onions. This is a good time to plant onion bulbs that don't look like they will make it through the winter in storage. Potato Onions are traditionally fall planted in some areas. I have not noticed any benefit to fall planting so far. On the contrary, they will often flower if planted in the fall or early winter. Onions planted extra early don't mature that much earlier, somewhat earlier, but not a lot. They get the signal to mature more by daylight than by time passed. Support me by using this link whenever you shop on Amazon. Free for you, a big help to me: http://amzn.to/296alqr Visit the SkillCult Website and Blog: www.skillcult.com Subscribe here: www.youtube.com/skillcult Potato Onions should be planted with part of the tip exposed. Normally about 1/2 to 2/3rds of the bulb should be buried, but If winter planting I will sometimes plant them up to the neck because frost heave will actually push them right out of the ground if the roots aren't deep enough. They grow roots almost immediately, but they have to be a couple inches long before the bulb is rooted really firmly. Spacing is around 8 to 12 inches. Too close and the onions will be small. I probably typically plant them about 10 inches on center in a grid pattern, meaning every onion is 10 inches from every other onion. If planting in rows, the onions can be put a little closer together as long as the rows themselves have adequate space between them, say something like 8 inches in the row and 16 to 18 inches between rows. All onions appreciate consistent water and these are no exception. Like other onions, they tend to like to feed heavily, so putting on food during the growing season every 3 to 5 weeks is a good idea. I top dress with manures or water with manure tea. Coffee grounds are excellent, as are wood ashes for lime and other minerals. I like urine best for onions and general fertilizing. It has a lot of nitrogen which seems generally beneficial for onions, plus all of the trace minerals. On top of that it is free and all the nutrients are soluble and already dissolved in solution. Dilute by about half or so, apply with a watering can, and water in immediately. It doesn't have to be aged or fresh. Guys can just pee on the beds if the neighbors aren't going to call the cops or health department on you. I don't have any neighbors :) To read more on using urine as a fertilizer and addressing some of the common fears and myths, read my amusing and informative blog post, Ten Yellow Terrors! http://skillcult.com/blog/2013/12/08/dissolving-myths-and-fears-about-using-urine-fertilizer That is about it I guess!
Comments
-
Appears you are well beyond a victory garden. :)
-
I will try them in the spring. Alaska is a ruff place to garden but I am getting better at it. Thanks for your vids I follow your stuff with great interest.
-
In SW Idaho, I plant these at Halloween along with the garlic. By Winter Solstice, the ground is frozen solid. I cover them up with a lot of straw to protect them since it gets colder here.
I had both my white and yellow potato onions flower this year, but got no seeds on the white ones, and very, very few on the yellow ones. I don't like the white ones much, and am thinking of just eating them all. -
How can I buy your seed potato onions? I moved to Tennessee from Missouri and mine sold with the house & property. My e-mail is bgdonna14@gmail.com
Donna Barkley
1202 Bair-Vette Ave.
Johnson City, TN 37604
Cell phone 660-626-4032 -
You asked for input on why some areas and cultures like to fall-plant. I have one new idea as to why. As I'm trying to develop and multiply-out deeper red varieties, I find that the redder mine are, the poorer the storage quality is. I have had so many promising and good-looking red varieties never make it through the winter storage process, I have begun fall-planting of my red varieties to ensure they survive the winter. After all, I can't take my poorer-storing Potato Onions out of my basement storage in January and plant them under 2 feet of snow! So, I have found that depending on whether you are growing types that store well, or types that don't store well, might influence whether you prefer fall-planting over spring-planting.
-
Do you amend your soil with anything while cultivating it and preparing the bed prior to planting?
-
good videos, man. no idea why you don't have more subs. really quality stuff. keep making them! and set up a patreon account.
-
That is nice you can plant in winter. I posted a video yesterday on one I was sent from Indiana. Her father in Law found them growing on his property in Kentucky a long time ago. They look a bit different than any you sent me. If you have time could you look and see if you think they may be the same. She said they only pick them when they need to use one. Otherwise they stay in the ground.
6m 35sLength in seconds