How to Uproot Perennial Onions

There are several different varieties of perennial onions. Perennial means that these kind of onions will keep returning year after year. They can be grown in your backyard in the ground or in a large container (like an old bathtub) in your yard.Two popular varieties are the Egyptian Walking Onion (also called a Tree Onion in the UK) and the Yellow Potato Onion, both the bulb and the top greens can be eaten.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

How To Uproot Perennial Onions

1. Observe the onions. Perennial onions come out in a smaller bunch than "normal" onions.

2. Examine its course roots. You'll find that they have no feeder roots on them.

3. Slowly start to pull and uproot.

4. Maintain the integrity of the root ball; be careful not to tear the fine feeder roots (otherwise they will be too shocked to survive). Large clumps are a good sign the plants will survive well.

5. Set them in a container so they'll be soiled and make it easy to keep roots wet.

6. Keep the plants tucked tight and close together (you want to avoid too much air and keep them hydrated)

Tips & Warnings

• There is not a lot of published information about growing them, so it’s all a bit of trial and error. Experiment with spring or fall planting, mulching, etc. Once they become established, the plants are much stronger.
• This type of onion is disease resistant. They are a member of the Allium family, so consider that for crop rotation when growing similar plants like normal onions or garlic. Crop rotation is less important if you are only growing perennial onions.
• Any time you lift these kind of plantings, get as much of the roots as you can, in as big of a clump of it as you can at a time. These onions are pretty deep in the ground and they don't have a lot of roots when you get them out of there.
• At the beginning the plants themselves are pretty small and fragile. They don’t tolerate mulch well.
• Do not use a weed burner around these plants because they are too fragile.

Resources

• Video of How to Uproot Perennial Onions