How to plant onions before winter so that they do not rot and give a generous harvest? Autumn planting of onions before winter - how to get a good early harvest.

Winter in the vastness of our vast homeland is different - from the notorious frosts of Siberia to the subtropics of Crimea. From the region of your residence, from the softness or severity of the winter, it will depend on which variety of onions is best planted in the winter. Each region has its own local varieties, adapted to the weather and grown in the respective climate. Some restrictions, of course, exist - you should not plant southern, heat-loving onion varieties in winter if frosts in your area sometimes approach Siberian ones.

Why plant onions in winter

It is strange, but even 10-15 years ago it was not customary to plant onions in the winter. Even now, not everyone knows about this possibility. Meanwhile, this is a great way to get an early onion and feather. For winter planting, it is better to choose the smallest onion, up to 1 cm in diameter. These bulbs make an excellent onion turnip. And if you want to get an early onion for a feather, then opt for onions 1.5-3 cm in size. There will be no strong onions from them, but the feather will appear pretty quickly.

You can grow onion sets yourself, then you will definitely be sure of the quality of the selected variety. But he does not tolerate storage very well. The smallest seeds, which will produce good firm fruit, dry out first during storage. It is necessary to create special conditions for storing seed, monitor its condition, and regularly sort it out.

To grow sevka, you need black onion. This is not some special variety, this is the name of the small onion seeds from which the sets are grown. For getting good stuff(nigella) it is better to select the largest and healthiest bulbs from the selected variety. You can plant them as spring period, and before winter. In summer, flower stalks (arrows) will appear on plants among the greenery, on which umbrellas with small dark grains are formed. This is the blackberry.

Onions from black seeds germinate for a long time. A good head may not have time to form in one season, but for growing a set it is best option. Small onions planted in the winter will give a large, strong turnip.

To get really good material you have to try. In this way, it is better to grow seeds of some special variety, for example, with an unusual sweet taste or good ability to withstand the winter.

Much easier to buy local market a half-liter jar of sevka (for some reason it is always sold in such jars), and then sorted and sorted by size. There is only one drawback - as a rule, there is no question of any variety in this case. The set may include large and small seeds, red and yellow, round and long. If the variety is not fundamental, then such a purchase is quite profitable - all the bulbs are clearly grown in your area, have managed to get used to the climate and will not be afraid of frost.

Winter onions produce a crop at a time when other crops in the garden have not yet ripened. This will relieve the busy schedule of spring-summer work a little. And in place of the former onion beds, you can place other vegetables or herbs. Thus, from one site it will be possible to harvest twice a season.

Another undoubted plus of planting before winter is a significant time saving in the hot spring. Yes, you will have to look after the plants, but the loss of time will be incomparable.

Winter onion varieties

Better to choose winter cultivation hybrid varieties or a view designed for short and medium daylight hours. This means that the formation of the bulb will begin when the daylight hours are 12-14 hours. Sevok, intended for spring planting, it is better not to plant before winter. These varieties do not tolerate low temperatures, and after freezing, arrows begin to shoot early.

Must meet the following requirements:

• tolerate frost well;
• grow quickly and actively in spring;
• give maximum germination;
• form a healthy strong bulb.

Best planted before winter the following varieties:

• Arzamas;
• Danilovsky-301;
• Stuttgarten Riesen;
• Strigunovsky;
• spool;
• Ellan;
• Bessonovsky;
• Odinovets;
• Chalcedony;
• Carmen MS;
• Myagkovsky-300;
• Radar;
• Shakespeare;
• Kip Vel.

The last three varieties appeared relatively recently, these are specially bred winter species. All of these varieties are early maturing and quite resistant to the formation of arrows. If it is possible to plant several different varieties, it is better to do so. Then it will be possible to compare the results and select the type that will give the best results. Do not forget about the taste:

• bulbs with golden husks are harsh and bitter;
• purple and white vegetables have a sweeter and milder taste.

Sweet varieties include:

• Exhibition - lettuce variety, at good care can grow up to 1 kg;
• Globo - a late-ripening variety, the head grows up to 0.6-0.8 kg, resistant to diseases;
• Sterling F1 - Dutch hybrid, semi-sharp, resistant to root rot;
• Spanish 313 - late-ripening variety, head weighing up to 0.2 kg.

As a rule, before winter it is better to plant varieties with a sharp taste. Their sweeter counterparts love warmth and do not tolerate frost well. But in the southern regions, sweet onion varieties can also be successfully grown in the winter way.

Of great importance is the place of purchase of seeds. If you are purchasing finished material, then there is no guarantee that this variety is suitable for your garden. Sevok, bought in bulk at the local market, is definitely grown in your area, which means that it has already been acclimatized and will not freeze when severe frosts begin in winter.

In addition, it is important that the seeds are sized:

• onion diameter less than 1 cm is called "oatmeal";
• bulbs 1-1.5 cm in size belong to the first category;
• diameter 1.5-3 cm - the second category;
• the size is more than 3 cm - samples.

The best onion give the smallest seeds - "oatmeal" or 1 category. They are recommended to be planted in the winter, because most of the small seedlings do not survive until spring - they dry out during storage. As a rule, arrows are almost not formed from small onions planted in winter.

Material of the 2nd category and samples are planted in winter to obtain early greenery. A small set also gives a feather, but it is small and weak. Large onions release tight tall greens almost immediately. But here, too, there is a catch. When the temperature rises, flower stalks appear among the greenery - arrows. You can fight them for a while, but great benefit it won't bring. When the arrows went up, the crop can be safely harvested.

Right time, right place

It is impossible to name the exact date for the start of onion planting before winter. Each region has its own deadlines. For the climate middle lane it is optimal to start work in early - mid-October, but in each case you need to focus only on local conditions. It is clear that planting in frozen ground does not make sense, but planting in early term can also bring problems - sevok can “wake up” ahead of time if the weather is too warm. If this happens, the greens will freeze and the entire future crop will die.

Planting too late will not give the bulbs a chance to take root, they will simply be stored in the ground until spring. As a result, you can forget about the early harvest, all the benefits of winter planting disappear. When choosing a time, it is recommended to build on the temperature of the soil. When the earth steadily keeps the temperature around + 5 ° C, it's time to plant winter onions.

Checking the temperature of the soil is quite simple. Make a small hole (5-10 cm) and lower an ordinary outdoor thermometer (not a medical thermometer!) into it. Repeat measurements several times during the day. The average measurement will be the stable temperature of the soil.

More than two years in a row in the same place the beds should not be done. Only four years later it will be possible to return to the previous site. Rotate crops to increase yields. Onions take root well after cereals, beets, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage. But potatoes, parsley, celery can transmit their diseases “by inheritance” through the soil. It is convenient to plant winter onions with a “second wave” after early varieties of radishes, carrots and beets.

Onion beds are located in an open, sunny, but protected from the wind, place. Suitable humus-sandy soil or loam. The selected area must be well drained, moisture stagnation can lead to decay. Weak root system will not be able to find nutrients in poor soil, so the kidney must be fertile. Before work, you need to loosen the soil well and add humus to it (5-6 kg per square meter) and mineral fertilizers (10-15 g of potassium salt and 20-25 g of superphosphate per square meter). Immediately before you start planting, sprinkle the ashes (about 10 g per sq. M).

We are preparing a garden

Regardless of the variety chosen, it is necessary to plant onions before winter in pre-dug and prepared soil. After digging, the earth should have time to settle and compact a little, only then you can start planting. The height of the beds should be about 18-20 cm. A low bed will not save you from frost in winter.

Let's get to work:

• For sowing up to 1 cm in size, we make grooves 4 cm deep (for light soil) or 2 cm (for heavy soil). We bury the smallest seeds no more than 2 cm. The distance between the furrows must be kept within 15-20 cm.
• We lower the sowing into the grooves so that the neck is 1.5-2 cm below ground level. The distance between plants in a row is 8-10 cm. Before planting, the onion is not soaked and the neck is not cut, as during spring planting.
• From above we cover with earth, then you can mulch with humus. This will reduce evaporation and protect the roots from freezing.
• At the next stage, it is recommended to additionally warm the onion for the winter with sawdust, dry leaves, spruce branches, which will need to be removed in the spring as the snow melts. In the process of harvesting, be careful not to hurt young shoots - they may not be visible under a layer of insulation.

After you have finished planting, you do not need to water the onion. If the weather is dry, you can moisten the soil a little in ten days. After the onset of frost, you can additionally cover the onion with dry branches, which will hold the insulation in place and trap snow in the winter months. If the winter is snowy enough, the snow itself will serve as additional shelter. In snowless, cold winters, it is worth additionally covering the top with plastic wrap.

Planting onions on greens is no different from the described process. The difference is only in the selected variety and the size of the set.

After winter, onion beds need to be opened. This is done when the soil has already warmed up. The film retains moisture, the seeds can get wet or rot, and the mulch will not allow the sprouts to develop freely. The film should be removed earlier, and the mulch removed about a week after that. When the land is freed, it is once again sprinkled with ashes and well loosened.

Useful tips for planting onions in the winter:

• The landing time is individual for each region, but on average it is the middle - the end of October (if the ground has not yet frozen).
• It is better to cover the planted onion (mulch) with peat or sawdust with a layer of 2-3 cm in order to save the sets from freezing. You can do this a little later, but be sure to before the onset of frost.
• In winter, you can additionally insulate with a layer of snow, at temperatures below -10 ° C, such protection will not hurt.
• For the same purpose, you can sketch grass, leaves, small twigs on top - they will hold the snow well.
• In the spring, remove the shelter and make sure that there are no puddles on the surface of the beds, the sevok can get wet and rot.

Onions planted in winter ripen earlier than spring planting, and gives, as a rule, a large, strong bulb, regardless of the variety chosen. Insects (onion fly) do not have time to spoil the plants, because by the period of their activity, the set acquires a good root system, inaccessible for laying fly eggs.

Winter onions are profitable and convenient, but it is far from always possible to grow a good crop. This may be the result of a gardener's error (too deep or early boarding, lack or lack of insulation, incorrectly selected variety) or the vagaries of the weather. In some regions, frosts in winter are so strong that no amount of insulation will help. In practice, to understand which varieties will give a good harvest in your garden, you can only by trial and error. Try to choose local varieties that are adapted to the weather and follow all the rules for planting and caring for onion beds.

Yes, yes, this is how the children's riddle about onions begins: “Grandfather is sitting, dressed in a hundred fur coats, whoever undresses him sheds tears!” Have you ever wondered why we cry when we peel onions? I was surprised when I found out! It turns out everything is very simple. It contains a special volatile sulfur-containing substance. When the bulb is cut, it actively spreads in the air, inevitably falling on the mucous membrane of the eyes and nose.

And since an adult, as you know, 70-80% consists of water, and its content in the eye is much higher, water, combining with such a substance, forms sulfuric acid, H2SO4. Acid, in turn, begins to corrode the mucous membrane of the eye in the strongest way. The body, as a result, seeks to protect itself by secreting more and more tear fluid in order to reduce the concentration of acid and wash it off completely. This is how we cry!

And that “wonderful” substance that makes us do this is called “lachrymator” (from Latin word lacrima - tear). For the first time, the "lachrymator" was isolated by the American chemist Eric Block back in the early 1980s. Well, knowing why we cry, it is logical to want to know how not to do this when peeling onions. Or, at least, to reduce this phenomenon to a minimum. Of course, you will know about this. At the end of the article! Any housewife often has to clean the onion, because it is used in many recipes. For example, in . But in order to cut onions, at least you need to buy it, and as a maximum, grow it yourself. What we will do now, of course, together and with our own hands!

The best varieties for planting onion sets before winter

Before plant onions before winter, it would be nice to decide on the variety that is most suitable for this. Just like a night cream, we apply at night, and during the day during the day. So it is with onions, it is advisable to plant the variety that is adapted to endure winter frosts, actively and quickly starts growing in spring, gives maximum germination and a strong healthy bulb. Of course, southern varieties are not suitable for such purposes. Great risk of freezing.

So what kind of onions do we plant before winter? But this one: Ellan, Strigunovsky, Arzamassky, Myagkovsky-300, Bessonovsky, Odintsovets, Stuttgarten Riesen, Danilovsky-301, Chalcedony, these varieties are suitable. Special attention I advise you to turn to Bessonovsky and Strigunovsky. They are more resistant to shooting and belong to early ripe varieties, which means that at the end of June, July you can count on a full harvest. Stuttgarden also performs well in winter plantings. And Ellan can be said was born specifically for this purpose.

Depending on where you live and the prevalence of this or that variety, choose something for yourself. If there is an opportunity to plant several varieties, especially if you are doing this for the first time, be sure to do so. This will allow you to decide on the best variety for you in the future. Optimal in terms of winter hardiness, germination, care during growth and maturation. And of course by palatability. yellow varieties with golden husks are more bitter and sharp. White and purple are softer with sweetish notes. So with that what onions to plant before winter figured it out. Now let's get to the question when to plant onion sets before winter.

Time and conditions for planting onions before winter

the best temperature regime for planting is the period when the air temperature during the day ranges from 0 ͦ С to +5 ͦ С, and at night it drops to -3 ͦ С. This indicates that the soil temperature is about +3, +4 ͦ С. So it's time.

In Volgograd, this usually happens at the end of October at the beginning of November. But, of course, you need to follow the weather forecast. In principle, everyone knows the peculiarities of the climate of their area. Somewhere such a temperature is set already in September, and in November there is already snow and the thermometer is far beyond -10 ͦ C. Therefore, be careful, do not be late and do not rush. Because if you plant it early, it will have time to take root well and start growing in warm weather, and we don’t need this at all. Such a bow is unlikely to overwinter. And the work will be in vain. So the question is when we plant onions before winter, is very individual and the period ranges from mid-October to mid-November, and maybe even until the end of November, depending on the region.

Choose a sunny place for planting, without stagnant moisture. Winters, however, like springs are different. If at the landing site of your beam, there will always be a puddle, good harvest do not wait. And then you will be completely without it. If there is a risk of wetting, it is better to arrange a bed on a hill or make an artificial bulk bed 18-20 cm high. It is advisable to plant in a place where carrots grew before. It is believed that this reduces the likelihood of onion midge disease. Good after tomato, potatoes and cucumbers. Not desirable after the onion and cabbage itself. Most optimal size bulbs (sevka) - 1 cm, maximum 1.5 cm in diameter.

We plant correctly onion sets before winter

The technique for planting onion sets is simple. We make a bed 1 meter by 2 meters. I decided for myself on the size of the beds based on the needs of my family in onions. We use this onion in summer and early autumn for eating and preserving salad. For some, it will be a bed of 2 meters by 3 meters or more.

We dig up a plot, you can first scatter half a bucket of humus and a third of a bucket of sand. To make the earth lighter and richer in nutrients.

Smooth with a rake to small lumps. On the resulting plot, we make grooves 5 cm deep at a distance of 15-20 cm from each other. I plant at a distance of 15 cm. With a bed width of 1 meter, there are 6 grooves.

I make the distance between the bulbs in a row 15 cm.

On a length of 2 meters, 12 onions are placed. You can plant more often with the expectation that if some do not sprout. But if all the bulbs sprout, I advise you to thin it out. Onions, like any plant, do not like thickening, they prefer freedom and ventilation. Therefore, I use a checkerboard landing pattern.

In addition, at such a distance, it is convenient to weed the onion and loosen the ground around. With a bed size of 1m x 2m, the number of planted bulbs is 72 pcs. (6 grooves x 12 onions in a row). After planting, the ground is slightly compacted, this can be done by hand. After the onset of the first real frosts, it is better to sprinkle the bed with sawdust so that the onions are warmer and throw dry branches. When the snow falls, do not be too lazy to throw it on the bed, and the twigs will help to hold it back. Snow creates a kind of blanket with air bubbles that protects plants from freezing.

How to water and fertilize onions planted before winter

As soon as our onion has risen, it is advisable to fertilize it. This is done in early spring. For these purposes, we use urea or superphosphate. Superphosphate 30-40 g/m2. We will introduce potassium chloride during the formation of the bulbs 10 g / m2. Water the onions in hot weather 2 times a week, 5-10 liters each. per 1 square meter. In rainy weather, do not water at all.

A sign of onion ripening is the yellowing of the feather and its lodging. As soon as the onion has signaled to us that it is ready, we stop watering it. After 10-14 days, we dig up the onion with a pitchfork, carefully free it from the ground by hand and leave it in this state in the garden for another 2 weeks until it dries completely. Then you can either tie the bow into braids or cut off the dried feather at a distance of 3-4 cm from the head. Such a bow should be stored at room temperature in a dry room.

And now that we have planted our onion, as I promised earlier, I will tell you in what ways you can reduce the number of tears when cleaning it. There are several ways, and all of them are aimed at reducing the amount of lachrymator released during cleaning and cutting onions.

Method 1. Wet the knife cold water during cleaning, as well as sprinkle the onion itself during cutting.

Method 2. Before cleaning, put the onion in the freezer for several minutes.

Method 3. Before cleaning, put the onion in the microwave for a few seconds.

I hope these simple tips help you. Stay healthy, good mood and good harvest!

More than a thousand years ago, onions began to be grown in Iran, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. The culture was planted on mountain slopes, which determined the depth of the root system. Due to the ability to survive on a small layer of earth, the onion has developed the ability to remain dormant with a lack of moisture. Dry scales protect it from damage and drying out.

At present, onions are widely distributed as a crop. It is considered capricious to grow. If the weather is dry, the bow begins to throw arrows, and if it is wet, it will rot. However, gardeners figured out how to grow it. Onions should be planted in winter.

Onion sets: how to choose

The size of the bulb determines the category: the first - the diameter of the bulb is 1-1.5 cm; the second - 1.5-3 cm; the third - more than 3 cm; oatmeal - the diameter is less than 1 cm. For sowing in the winter, it is better to use the sowing of the first category or oatmeal. Why? bulbs small size, as a rule, do not persist until spring, dry up. Therefore, it will be better if the winter onion is planted in the ground. Here it will winter well and will give a good harvest in July.

Sevok of the second and third categories, that is, large, it is better not to plant in the winter, it gives arrows. For growing winter onions special varieties and hybrids obtained by crossing, which are capable of forming bulbs and not producing shoots.

Popular varieties of winter onions

Each owner himself chooses what kind of onion he needs. The choice depends on the result that you expect from this culture. So know winter varieties onion sets are needed.

• Stuttgarter Riesen - this variety owes its popularity early ripening. The bulbs of the culture are flat-round, dense, large, have a sharp taste, are well preserved and give a high yield.
• Centurion is a high class variety. It shoots a little, is well preserved, does not get sick, has a high yield. For bulbs of the same size, the coverslip outer layer dry scales. In the root zone there is a bottom.
• Shakespeare - early variety, shoots a little, is well preserved, has large bulbs dark- yellow color. The pulp is white, juicy. The scales are very dense.
• Radar - this variety can only be consumed fresh. It is unsuitable for storage due to color.

• Baron is also great for winter planting. It ripens early and contains more vitamin C than other varieties. Is different big size bulbs and spicy taste. Especially good fresh.

How to properly prepare the soil for sowing

To plant a winter onion, choose a well-lit place with a runoff of rainwater so that the water does not stagnate even when the snow melts in the spring. They make a bed one meter wide and 20 cm high. They clean it from the vegetation that grew on it. It is better to plant onions in the place where cucumbers, tomatoes or potatoes grew.

Well disinfect the soil. Copper sulphate is suitable for this, while no more than 1 tbsp is placed on a bucket of water. spoons. Water the bed with this solution. In order for the onion sets to give large, strong bulbs, humus, peat, superphosphate must be added to the soil and the bed should be dug up along with fertilizers.

When to sow onions

Planting winter onions makes it possible to harvest from July to mid-August. Sowing date - October. The bulbs must be allowed to take root before a hard frost.

With early planting, the sevok sprouts before the onset of cold, such plants will not survive the winter, they will die. When to plant winter onions? You need to look at the weather, she will tell you the exact date sowing. It will probably be the middle of the month.

into the winter

All summer residents are looking forward to the time when you can plant winter onions. First you need to prepare planting material. It is sorted out. You can do it yourself in a simple way. Holes 1 cm in diameter are cut in thick cardboard and seeds are sifted through such a sieve. Those that went through the holes are good.

After sowing, you need to level and compact the bed. Then, along its entire length, shallow grooves are made, five centimeters deep and at a distance of 15 cm from each other. Well-dried seeds are carefully sown in a groove at a distance of 3-4 cm. Seeds are planted to a depth of 2-3 cm, after which they are carefully covered with soil mixed with peat and humus. If the seeds are planted at a great depth, then the bulbs may not germinate and die. They just don't have the strength to do it. Planting winter onions takes a lot of time and patience.

How to protect sevok from freezing

In order for the sevok to endure the winter frosts well and give strong shoots in the spring, you need to cover the soil with peat or humus mulch. This will retain moisture, the seeds will take root well. With the onset severe frosts cover the bed with leaves and straw. And when it snows, hold it back. If you plant it correctly and cover the sevok in time, then in the second month of summer it will already be possible to eat winter onions.

In the spring, when the snow melts and the soil thaws, you need to remove the mulch from the garden. After the seedlings germinate and the first leaves appear, feed with a liquid solution of manure and bird droppings.

Onions in the winter: what care is needed

With the onset of spring, seedlings sprout and begin to grow rapidly. But not only them. Weeds are more unpretentious, there are always a lot of them, and they need to be fought. At this time, you need to loosen and weed the aisles.

Moisture is usually stored in the soil from autumn. It is enough for onion growth until harvest. But it happens that for more than a month there is intense heat and the soil dries up. Then you need to water it several times during the summer season. Winter onions need the same care as regular onions. If arrowheads appear, leave a few to collect seeds and discard the rest.

how to deal with them

Winter onions are damaged by the onion fly. This dangerous pest, if it gets to your plantings, it will destroy the entire crop. Larvae are a sign of its appearance. white color. They swarm in the bulbs, eating them. Adult insects are very similar to the common fly.

She appears in mid-May and gives offspring three times before the onset of cold weather. Only dry weather can reduce fertility. To prevent damage to onion crops, you can cover them with a net for protection. The smell of calendula and marigold repels the pest. Therefore, in the spring, plant a bed where winter onions grow with these flowers. You can spray the plants with an infusion of wormwood or tansy.

Onion diseases: the fight against them

Winter onions, the cultivation of which requires knowledge of agricultural technology, are affected by fungi.

• Rust is one of them. Small yellow spots on the leaves appear from mid-summer. The best environment for the development and spread of this disease is warm and humid weather.
• Gray rot often appears at harvest time. Let the onion dry well before storing. Raw will rot.
• Seeds and bulbs are infected powdery mildew, which remains in them all winter and is often false. If the weather is warm and humid, the infection can affect the entire onion plantation. This disease can be identified by elongated gray spots that increase in size until the plant dies completely.

To avoid fungal disease, you need to alternate planting garden crops on the site and ventilate the room well when storing onions.

Landing for the winter: what are the benefits

• No need to store onion sets in winter.
• Large bulbs grow from small planting material.
• Winter onions, the cultivation of which does not require care, do not shoot arrows.
• Onions ripen early and have a long shelf life.
• Bulbs grow healthy as diseased and weak crops freeze out in winter. In the photo, the winter onion is clearly visible.

• This crop is less susceptible to onion fly infection.
• Takes less time to land.
• The family budget wins - sets are cheaper in autumn.

What can cause failures in growing winter onions

• Water retention in the beds in the spring. This causes the bulbs to dry out.
• Deep placement of seeds into the soil.
• Early planting sevka. This leads to the germination of the bulbs before the onset of frost.
• The bad thing is that it leads to repeated thawing and freezing of the bulbs.

Planting dates for onions in the fall.

It has long been known that onions can be planted both in spring and autumn, but for some reason, planting onions in winter was not widespread until recently. Particularly wary was the planting of onions for the winter in cold regions - in Siberia, the Urals, and in the Moscow region, and in fact today there are many varieties of winter onions that winter well in the ground, but next year they give an early harvest. How to plant onions in the fall, when to plant winter onions, how to protect them from winter frosts - we will answer all these questions in this article.

According to the lunar calendar, the most auspicious days for planting onions in autumn 2018 - September 1, 8, 27–28, as well as 6, 7 and 25 October. Who did not have time on these dates, there are still November 2, 3, 21, 22, 29, 30.

The best time for planting onions in areas with not very cold winters is from late October to early November - 30-35 days before the onset of stable cold weather. Keep an eye on the outdoor thermometer: if the temperature drops to 5 ºC and lasts for several days, then it's time to plant onions.

When is it better not to plant onions?

In general, one should be guided by the weather: the onion should have time to grow roots before the onset of cold weather, but sprouts should not be allowed to appear. If you plant a bow ahead of time, it will go into the arrow and die from frost, with a late planting there is a risk that the roots will not have time to develop, and the seedling will freeze in the ground. Some gardeners believe that planting onions in the ground at the end of November is the best solution, but in this case the result depends only on luck.

Planting winter onions

After what crop to plant onions.

Often, not knowing what to plant onions after, gardeners make mistakes that lead to low yields. good predecessors for onions, all grains are considered except oats, corn, beets, mustard, rapeseed, phacelia, peas, beans, vetch, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers and any cabbage. To avoid nematode infestation, do not plant onions after beans, potatoes, parsley, celery, alfalfa, and red clover. You can grow winter onions as a second crop after harvesting rapeseed, winter barley, beans, peas, radishes, carrots and table beets, if you managed to harvest the first crop before the third decade of July. The question is often asked whether it is possible to plant onions after onions. Onions can be grown in one place for no more than two years, the next time onions in this area, as well as in the area where garlic grew, can be planted no earlier than four years later.

Onions before planting - preparation.

Onion planting material is divided into oatmeal (bulbs with a diameter of less than 1 cm), sets (bulbs in diameter from 1 to 3 cm) or onion selection - bulbs larger than 3 cm. goes to the arrow, and a small set is planted to get a turnip bulb. Therefore, sort the seed before planting in the ground, separating the small set from a larger sample, do not cut the necks of the bulbs. Professionals recommend sevok and oatmeal just for winter planting because they are over time winter storage indoors can dry out, and if they are planted in the ground, then in next year they will produce large bulbs.

Ground for onions.

One of the components successful cultivation winter onion is right choice site. Where to plant onions to create optimal conditions for its growth and development? The soil for onions should be light - well-drained humus-sandy soils or humus loam on a southern or southwestern slope protected from the wind by tall plants are most suitable. Onions have a weak root system, so they need fertile soil. The most remarkable onion grows on silt deposits in the valleys of warm rivers. Before planting, the soil must be dug up in advance with humus (5-6 kg per m²) and mineral fertilizers at the rate of 10-15 g of potassium salt and 20-25 g of superphosphate per m². Instead of mineral fertilizers you can make ecofoska from the same calculation. Before planting, it is advisable to scatter ash over the area at the rate of 10 g per m².

Planting onion sets before winter.

How to plant an onion? Level and compact the surface of the site, make grooves in the soil about 5 cm deep at a distance of about 15-20 cm from each other. Spread dry small seedlings along the grooves after 5-7 cm, cover with dry earth and lightly tamp it down. It is not necessary to water winter onions after planting - moisten the site, if there is no rain, you can do it in ten days. When frosts come, mulch the area with winter onions with dry leaves, spruce branches, pine needles, and from above, press the shelter with branches so that it is not swept away by the wind. If a cold and snowless winter is expected, you can cover the area on top of the mulch with a film. You won't need a film in snowy winter.

Planting batun, which is grown exclusively for its greenery, is no different from planting onions, but for shallots, the necks are cut before planting and then the bulbs are kept for a day in water with a temperature of about 30 ºC.

Onion care after planting in the fall.

Planting and caring for onions in the open field are simple and easy. As soon as the soil begins to warm up in the spring, remove the film from the winter onion, and after a week remove the mulch, sprinkle the area with ash at the rate of 10 g per m², and loosen the soil. If you remove the cover too late, the onion can get wet under the film, and the mulch will delay the passage of sprouts through the thickness of the earth. It is advisable to loosen the soil after each rain or watering, while freeing the site from weeds. The formation of four leaves in the seedlings indicates that the bulb has begun to form, which means that it is time to make a second top dressing, but before that, thin out the onion if it grows too thick. Pulled plants can be eaten. As a second top dressing, 15-20 g of superphosphate and 10-15 g of potash fertilizer are applied per 1 m² of planting, and it is better to pre-dissolve superphosphate granules and ash in solution fermented herbs. Instead of mineral fertilizers, liquid chicken manure can be applied. If the spring is wet, the onions are watered infrequently, but if it is hot and dry, you will have to arrange watering twice a week. So that the onion fly does not ruin your crop, plant marigolds or calendula around the perimeter of the area with onions - this is guaranteed to save you from trouble. Winter onions ripen about a month earlier than those planted in spring.

In the photo: Growing onions in open field

Features of planting winter onions

Planting onions before winter in the Moscow region.

Planting onions in the Moscow region is almost no different from cultivating in Ukraine or other warm regions. Too much can be a problem Cold winter, but if the temperature does not drop below -15 ºC, and you cover the onion for the winter, then freezing does not threaten it. If the frosts are stronger, but there is a lot of snow, then it remains to be hoped that in this case everything will go well.

Planting onions before winter in the Urals.

Planting and caring for winter onions in the Urals are somewhat different from growing this crop in areas with temperate climate. For example, planting dates are shifted closer to the beginning of autumn - from late September to mid-October. Shelter for the winter in the Urals is mandatory, in addition, not every variety can be planted before winter in the Ural climate, but only those that have high winter hardiness.

In the photo: Young onion

Planting onions before winter in Siberia.

Unfortunately, severe Siberian frosts do not allow us to speak with confidence about the possibility of cultivating winter onions in this region. If you guess right with the planting dates, with the variety and with the winter weather, it is quite possible that your efforts will be crowned with success. But if you are unlucky, you can always sow onions in the spring.

Varieties of winter onions

We offer you an acquaintance with some varieties of winter onions, among which you can choose those that are suitable for growing in your area.

• Ruby- a variety of Donetsk selection. Early ripening onion growing season in 72-85 days with good keeping quality and yield of 3 kg/m². A round bulb weighing 50-80 g of light purple color with a silvery sheen.
• Siberian annual- an early ripening variety with a growing season of 60-70 days, strong foliage, semi-sharp taste, round-flat yellow bulb. A variety with good keeping quality and resistance to shooting. Yield 4 kg/m².
• Robin- has the most juicy red color of all red onions. This hybrid has a powerful root system, it tolerates drought well, and is productive. The bulb is in the shape of an amphora. A variety has been bred for cultivation in the southern regions.
• Mouzon- medium-early variety, ripening from sevka in 90-110 days. The bulbs are dense, round, white in color, weighing 100-120 g. Onions of this variety are stored for two months. Cold-resistant.
• Lugansk- late-ripening variety with a sharp taste and good keeping quality. The bulb is round - flat or oval, the integumentary scales are yellow or yellow-brown, the mass of the bulb is 70-145 g.
• Buran- a variety of Ukrainian breeding for universal use with a round dense bulb of intense yellow color weighing up to 100 g. Good keeping quality, stable yield, but affected by downy mildew.
• Tamara F1- mid-early hybrid with dense bulbs with yellow-brown scales and semi-sharp taste. It is stored for a long time, resistant to fusarium and pink rot, high-yielding.
• Black Prince- a mid-season variety of Russian selection of high keeping quality with a semi-sharp taste and dense rounded bulbs of a dark purple color.
• Stuttgarten riesen- German variety with flat and flat-round bulbs of golden brown color, spicy taste. The keeping quality is good, but it is affected by neck rot and powdery mildew.
• Panther F1- a variety of Japanese breeding with a bronze-brown bulb of a rounded shape and a thin neck. The variety is resistant to bolting and cold-resistant - can withstand -28 ºC.

Foreword

Everything more gardeners became interested in the question of when to plant onions before winter. And this is not surprising, since this method of planting has many advantages. In order for the onion to sprout in the spring and then please the harvest, it is necessary to choose the right time not only, but also the seed material.

Selection of seed material for planting in the winter

The main one, planted before winter - so that they are adapted to endure frosts, quickly and actively begin to grow in the spring, are characterized by maximum germination and give a healthy, strong bulb. First of all, almost any zoned (local) will do, preferably spicy varieties. Any southern species should be abandoned - there is a high risk of freezing.

The following varieties are traditionally used: Arzamas, Danilovsky-301, Stuttgarten Riesen, Strigunovsky, Bessonovsky, golden, Ellan, Myagkovsky-300, Odinovets, Chalcedony, Carmen MS. Of particular note Bessonovsky And Strigunovsky, because they are early maturing and most resistant to shooting. Well proven Stuttgarden And Ellan. Not so long ago, special winter onion varieties appeared: Radar, Shakespeare And Keep Well.

Guided natural features the region of residence and the prevalence there of certain varieties from the above, you can pick up something for planting in the winter on your site. If it is possible to plant several types of onions, especially when this is done for the first time, then you should definitely do just that. This will allow in the long term to determine the optimal variety, which is better than the others in terms of winter frost tolerance, germination, care during growth and maturation, and, of course, will be most to your taste.

Yellow varieties with golden husks are sharper and more bitter. Purple and white onions have a milder flavor with sweeter notes. Before planting onions, planting material must be sorted out. All damaged, dried and diseased bulbs should be discarded. It is also necessary to sort the onion sets by size. Purchased planting material, as a rule, should already be “calibrated”.

Onion sets, based on their size, are usually divided into the following categories:

• oatmeal - the diameter of the bulbs is less than 1 cm;
• the first category is bulbs with a diameter of 1–1.5 cm;
• the second - bulbs with a diameter of 1.5–3 cm;
• samples - bulbs more than 3 cm.

Usually the best onions grow from sevka of the 1st category or oatmeal. The latter species is generally recommended to be planted only before winter, because if you store it until spring, it will simply dry out. Samples and sets of the 2nd category are planted in the winter in order to get early green feather. They are not suitable for growing turnips.

We determine the landing time - October or November?

When choosing the time when to plant the onion, you should first of all be guided by the following points. The sevok should take root before the onset of frost, namely before the soil freezes, but do not have time to germinate - shoot a green arrow. Otherwise, the success of overwintering the bulbs and their active growth in the spring will be a big question. For reference, it should be at about the same time as winter garlic.

For central Russia favorable time planting is the period from October to early November. For a more accurate choice of terms for individual regions, one should focus on the available climatic conditions. The most important thing is to prevent planting sevka in warm soil, you have to wait until the first stable frosts come. So, the best period for planting onions for the winter in Leningrad region- the first decade of October, in the Moscow region - the second decade of October, in Western Siberia- the middle-end of the same month, and in Volgograd - from the 3rd decade of October to the first of November. You should also focus on the current weather and upcoming forecasts for it.

The optimal time for planting is the time when during the day the air temperature is in the range of 0–+5 ° C, and at night it drops to -3 ° C. During this period, soil indicators are around +3, +4 °C. This moment is the most favorable for planting a seedling in the winter, if, according to the forecast, warming is not expected. In each region, it will come at its own time. Somewhere such weather can be established already in September, and by the end of October-beginning of November there will be snow at a temperature outside the window of -10 ° C.

Also, when determining the time when to plant onions in winter, one should be guided by the recommendations of the lunar calendar. He will tell you the most favorable day in the selected period. It should not be planted on a full moon if the weather conditions allow the work to be rescheduled for a more suitable day. You can also find out from the lunar calendar when it is better to start fertilizing, which is done in advance, not on the same day as planting.

Tiered onions are also planted before winter. This is the name of varieties that are perennial frost-resistant branching plants that reproduce only vegetatively - aerial and basal bulb bulbs. The best time to plant a multi-tiered bow is the end of August. He then manages to take root, germinate, and also accumulate a supply of the necessary nutrients.

How to prepare the beds for winter onions?

The bed is prepared in advance about 2 weeks before planting the seedling, so that the soil on it settles a little. The place is selected sunny, well-lit, ventilated and dry. In addition, it should be noted that bulbous crops do not tolerate excess spring thaw moisture, and therefore the seedling should be planted where, at the end of winter, the snow melts together and early, and the water does not stagnate. And yet, for onions, it is better to establish a bed where cucumbers, potatoes, legumes or tomatoes were grown before it.

Before arranging the beds, it is advisable to check with lunar calendar to find out a favorable day for fertilization and work. When the celestial body takes a suitable position, on the same day you should carefully dig or loosen the soil - it depends on its type. Then the garden bed must be disinfected with some solution intended for this, for example, blue vitriol. Prepare it in the ratio: for 10 liters of water 1 tbsp. a spoonful of the mixture. After pouring the solution into a watering can, we evenly irrigate the garden bed with it. The consumption rate should be 2 liters per 1 m 2.

Then, at the rate of 1 m 2, 3 kg of humus and peat should be added, as well as 2 tbsp. spoons of superphosphate. First, everything must be mixed well. Instead, you can also add simple humus to the soil or compost mixed with wood ash. Then you need to properly mix the fertilizer with the soil. At the end, the surface of the beds is leveled and slightly compacted. Before planting the seedling, the soil should not only have time to settle, but also become a little denser. The bed should not be too low and not too high.

In the lowlands, the bulbs are likely to dry out when the thaw comes along with the accompanying spring flood. On overly high garden they may freeze during severe frosts. The optimal height is 18–20 cm.

How to plant onions - all the nuances of technology

Ovsyuzhka and sets of the 1st category should be planted at a depth of 2–3 cm. In the case of deeper planting, these small bulbs may not germinate, they simply do not have enough strength. This will lead to the death of the planting material. Samples and sets of the 2nd category should be planted to a depth of 4–6 cm. Onions planted in winter can be placed on the ridge not only in rows, but also in nests, dropping 3–4 pieces close to each other.

It is advisable not to cut the neck of the onions - it must be deepened into the ground by 1.5–2 cm. Rows are formed 15–20 cm relative to each other. Between individual plants usually leave 10 cm or less, most often 6-7 cm - this depends on the size of the set. Grooves or holes are made under the rows. Having laid the bulbs in the prepared recesses, they are covered with light soil. Onion is much inferior to garlic in terms of winter hardiness, and therefore its shallow planting can lead to freezing, especially when frosts come before the snow cover falls.

An easy way to secure and preserve the future crop is to mulch the beds with the planted seedling, that is, cover with straw, beans and beans, hay, dry leaves or stems of plants, for example, Jerusalem artichoke and similar materials of organic origin. plastic film and the like cannot be used. It is necessary to cover only when the first frost grabs the soil.

You should not do this before, because there is a risk of the bulbs aging. To prevent the mulch from being blown away by the wind, spruce branches or dry branches are placed on top of it. With the onset of spring, immediately after the snow melts, the shelter must be removed. Otherwise, the bed will warm up badly and slowly, and the first sprouts, like the future harvest, will appear later.

Benefits and reasons for possible failures

Autumn planting has the following advantages. In winter, you do not need to monitor the preservation of small sets and worry about it. In the spring, when there are already many different works on the site, you no longer need to plant onions and waste time on this. In autumn, planting material costs much less than in spring, that is, when buying it, tangible savings funds. As for the process of growing crops, here are the advantages:

• Onions planted in autumn ripen earlier than those sown in spring and store better.
• By the beginning of summer, a dense strand of roots is already forming at the bottom of the onion turnip, which interferes onion fly lay eggs. Due to this, the bulb is less damaged by this pest, which means that the harvest will be better.

• Grown onions are healthier, since sick and weak sets die off in winter - there is nothing to grow from for a defective crop.
• Bulbs grow from oatmeal, which are not inferior in size to those obtained from sevka of the 2nd category, which is planted in the spring.
• Oatmeal, planted in autumn, does not give arrows.

The reasons for the unsuccessful cultivation of onions, the seedling of which was planted in the fall, may be: the bulbs were planted too deep or soaked in the spring due to water retention in the beds; planting sevka too early - the bulbs managed to germinate before the onset of frost; poorly mulched sevok repeatedly froze and thawed due to a change weather conditions.