How to Plant Bulb Onions in the Vegetable Garden

Onion sets

Bulb onions are easy to grow and are a great crop to plant in the vegetable garden. These are the common round onions we are familiar from the grocery store as opposed to non-bulb onions like scallions or leeks. Bulb onions are tasty and healthy foods that do not take up a lot of space, yet keep reasonably well after harvesting. Here are some tips on how to plant bulb onions in the vegetable garden.

Instructions

1. Onions are usually planted in the autumn or the spring depending on how cold your climate gets in the winter. They are commonly started by one of three methods: seed, seedlings or sets.

2. 

   Seeds do best in an area with a long summer so they have time to form good sized onion bulbs. If you live in an area where the onion fly is not a major problem, growing onions from seed is the most inexpensive way to plant them. Plant them in rows and thin them to about one plant for each 4".

3. 

   If you buy young plants to transplant from pots or 6-packs, planting instructions are pretty much guided by the same rules as the seeds. Plant them about 4" apart in rows. Leave the long thin grass-like tops free of soil burying just the bottom root section. Autumn is the best time to plant transplants since you want them to be strong enough to over-winter and have a long season to grow. Mild frost or frost-free areas can plant them at any time during the cooler season. Colder climates must wait until the soil thaws in the spring to plant them.

4. 

   Planting from sets is probably the most universally easy and safe to grow dry bulb onions. You can buy the little bulbs (that were grown from seed already) from garden centers in autumn, winter and spring, depending on where you live. These, too, should be spaced in rows at 4" - 6" intervals. Just press the very bottom of the bulb into the soil: don't bury it.

5. There are different varieties for northern climates (that tend to have longer daylight hours) and southern climates, so buy the variety that is best for your area. There are red, yellow, white and extra sweet onion varieties. The standard yellow varieties will produce onions with the longest storage capabilities.

6. 

   Plant your bulb onions in rich soil and full sun and make sure they get regular water. Onions are easily grown and a great staple of the home vegetable garden. I like to inter-plant my onions with lettuce since the lettuce will be cropped by the time the weather starts to warm and the bulbs begin to swell. This way I get more growing out of a limited space.

7. For more information on how to plant and grow bulb onions, please check the Additional Resources listed below.

Resources

• More about planting onions and onions in general
• Planting dry bulb onions
• How to Grow Onions