Can I plant my candy onion seeds now in the garden?

[raindrops27]

I asked someone here. I thought, would help me. Obviously they are to busy to answer my pm. So, I am asking all of you. Would it be ok, if planted out my candy onion seed now in the garden. To be able to harvest in October. The seed packet says 85 days. But, it also says sow in spring. For fall winter crop only in the South. I am in 6A. Do you think, I may get onion bulbs in October. Or should I just wait until next spring. Thank you kindly for your help

[fortyonenorth]

A very quick Google says Candy is day-neutral. That said, my guess is that you'll get scallion sized bulbs this fall and (maybe) larger bulbs in the spring - that is, if Candy over-winters successfully and doesn't bolt prematurely. Not all onions perform well in this regard. If you have the space and the time, I say go for it and see what you get.

[raindrops27]

Ok, I will start a patch, just to see what happens. I have no idea what I am doing. But will try. Thank you so very much for your answer.

[tjg911]

i don't see how they'd bulb as bulbing is triggered by the longest days of the year and we passed that a full month plus ago. i doubt it would over winter what with the ground freezing, i would expect the base to rot especially if there is a small bulb. keep us posted i'd be curious to know.

tom

[b54red]

I don't think they will have time to make nor will they bulb so quickly. I have grown that variety several times and it seems to take a little longer than Bermuda to bulb for me.

We can start onion seed in the ground down here in late October through early December but it is a lot of trouble to overwinter the small onion plants. The advantage to overwintering is they will make larger onions. I now start all of my onion seed in the fall in the greenhouse and don't plant out until January or February.

[whistler]

How do you plant your onion seed in the greenhouse - that is, how many in how big of a pot or tray? How big are they when you do plant out in the spring? Thanks.

[b54red]

I just sprinkle them liberally on my wet potting soil then cover them with about a 1/4 inch of potting soil and wet it well then cover with plastic wrap til the first sprouts start popping up. I use deep trays or shallow wide pots. Sometimes onion seed don't germinate so well and that is why I plant them liberally. It is always easier to thin if necessary. I usually make two plantings a couple of weeks apart.

My greenhouse is unheated so the seedlings can grow rather slowly if the winter is cold. As soon as they get about 3 or 4 inches tall I start leaving them outside as long as the temps stay above freezing. I don't have a specific time to plant them in the late winter and just wait til they are large enough to handle easily anywhere from 1/8 inch thick to the size of a pencil. I then cut the tops off leaving them about 5 or 6 inches tall while still in the pots and fertilize them. A week later I plant them. The reason I cut the tops off is to make it easier to stand them upright when planting. After I plant them I immediately mulch them well with bark fines. The mulch serves several purposes. The most important for me is stopping splash back from rain. It also keeps the soil moist and soft. I wait about a month to get good root growth established and then fertilize with Miracle Grow every 3 or 4 weeks.

[Marymcp]

b54red, what zone are you in? I'm in Phoenix and plan to grow some of these onions for the first time next season. Wonder if I can follow your lead? I'm in zone 9a. Thanks. (ps: I have family in Huntsville and in Harvest)

[b54red]

Mary I'm in zone 8 right on the borderline of a and b. I don't know how fast your spring develops or how cold your winters are. I assume from your zone you might need to start a bit sooner than me at least on the plant out. I seem to have the best luck with sets the size of about half the thickness of a pencil if they are set out early enough.

[Marymcp]

Thanks b54 - our winters can be mild or severe - last winter we lost lots of trees, shrubs and plants due to overnight freezing temps. And you just never know how spring is going to come on....everything seems to be changing. But you have given me good guidelines to go by. Thanks so much.

[NisiNJ]

Bumping to ask how your Candy onion seeds did. Did you get bulbs? Are you wintering them over?

Some seed sellers say Candy matures in 89 days, but others say it takes about 110 days for spring sown and 290 if summer sown and wintered over. Could the 89 days be for sets instead of seeds?

[raindrops27]

NisNj, I never tried them. Will try them this spring. Maybe I will start seeds the next time I have a free minute. Wish me luck..I will need it.

[Marymcp]

The seeds never sprouted. My backup was some small transplants I ordered on-line. I planted 18-20 tiny plants and many of them have green sprouts above ground. These plants need lots of feeding.....which is time consuming. I hope they continue to do well in my garden. They are the red candy onion.

Thanks for bumping the thread.