Over the weekend , palisade by fragrant genus Allium bloom , I glean the last of last season ’s harvest — a mix of red , blanched , and chicken onions that I had grown from seed back in October .
I lie with the display of pompom - like flowers , even though onions are notsupposedto bolt . ( Why is that ? )
And out of the hundreds of onions I ’d plant , only a handful had bolted .
Which made me enquire … What causes some onion to flower while others do not ?
Understanding the life cycle of onions
onion plant are biennial plants . They do n’t fix seed until their second year of growth .
During the first year , the leave of absence gather get-up-and-go through photosynthesis and use the zip to develop the bulbs underground .
As fall seethe around , the leaves wither and the Allium cepa go dormant .
We usuallyharvest onions at the end of their first year , when their leaves take up to give way back .
But if left in the dry land , the bulb survive on the stored energy throughout winter , and newfangled leaves and root re - emerge in the saltation .
Having gone through the pure produce cycle , onions thensend up flower stalks ( a appendage called bolting)and produce seed in this second year .
Even if you ’re only grow onions for one season , all-inclusive temperature swings can deceive onions into completing their aliveness wheel untimely .
How the weather can trick an onion into flowering early
If the weather is quick during the other stages , Allium cepa seedlings will grow vigorously until stale weather slows their development .
If a stale child’s play suddenly occurs , the onions will have grown to sufficient size to substantiate flowering , and thus be pull into early dormancy .
As the weather warms again and then moves into wintertime , they may be confused into thinking they ’ve already expire through two develop season . Just like they ’re program to do in their second class of life , they gear up to set germ the following leap for the next generation of onions .
Timing is everything when it comes to planting onions
Young seedlings that are less than the diameter of a pencil by the fourth dimension temperature drop are n’t affect by their first wintertime . Their sizing is n’t important enough to understand the frigidness is upon them and they have to broach flower shuck production .
If you establish your Allium cepa in this sweet spot and the transition from summer to winter is gradual , your onions will evolve normally without flowers .
Because of this o.k. line between season , ascertain the right time to plant onion plant in your geographical zone is important . ( Use myplanting calendar — customise for your climate — to find your first and last frost dates and hump exactly when you should bestarting seedsor transplanting seedlings . )
Plant too soon , and your whole onion harvest could flower the following spring as the bulb will have spring up enough to think they ’ve completed their bicycle after wintertime .
imbed too late , and you could finish up with smaller lightbulb , if the delicate seedlings are strong enough to withstand winter at all .
All is not lost after an onion flowers
Once your onion bolt , their bulb stop growing and their memory mental ability diminishes .
crouch over or trend off the flower shuck wo n’t re - initiate bulb exploitation . The rigid still hunt penetrates the bulb , and after harvest , its former decomposition causes the entire onion plant to decay .
That said , onions that have flowered are still edible . in full developedonions should be cure , the leaf and flower chaff hit , and the bulb eaten within a couple of months .
Even if you find a few of your onion plant bolting , all is not lost . you’re able to harvest the blossoms to instill in olive oil colour or acetum ( the same elbow room you ’d impregnate an oil colour withchive blossoms ) , or use them as a pretty and tasty garnish on your dental plate .
The bloom ( as well as the prow ) have a mild onion nip similar to scallion or leeks . I sometimes clip a few stems to add up raw to my salads and sandwiches , or to make in my omelette and pasta when I want the faint aromatic of an Allium cepa . ( I usegreen garlic stemsthe same way . )
Related:11 Vegetables You Grow That You Did n’t sleep with You Could Eat
you could also relish the flush while they last and leave the onions in the ground tocollect seedfor next season — an unexpected benefit !
Disclosure : If you shop from my article or make a purchase through one of my links , I may get commissions on some of the product I recommend .
Recommended onion varieties
Short daylight onions(require 10 to 12 time of day of day to bulb )
Intermediate day onions(require 12 to 14 hours of daylight to bulb )
Long daytime onions(require 14 to 16 hour of daylight to bulb )
This spot updated from an clause that originally appeared on June 20 , 2011 .
