Onions

I was cutting the grass yesterday and when I went past this bed I could smell the onions. It was a very strong onion fragrance everytime I went by. Hope that means we will get nice onions by late summer.

I planted both yellow and red onions this year. I couldn't find any white onions locally so I only planted the red and yellow. People always ask me when you can tell that onions are ready to be harvested. In fact, people ask that question about all root veggies. Of course that is because they grown underground and you can't see them as they mature.

Most books and Internet gardening sites will tell you to wait until the green shoots of the onion turn brown and flop over. In my opinion, that might be waiting a little too long. I like to pick the onions when the onion starts to crown above the soil, but the shoots are still mostly green.

It is important to wipe off the soil from the onion and store it in a cool dry place. It is best to store onions flat in a single layer, preferably with the onions not touching to prevent softening. Don't worry if a few of the onions are soft. It is normal to lose a few onions in storage and you just have to resign yourself to that fact. But, if you catch the culprit soon enough, before the soft spot gets too large, you can use the onion right away and just cut out the soft spot.