Onion Sets. (irrigate, grow, manure, south)

[Dick13]

What is the best ground temperature for planting onion sets. I have tried to grow onions in the past and have not had a lot of luck. My soil is heavy clay improved with composted cow manure. Any suggestions are welcome.

[Cambium]

Originally Posted by Dick13

What is the best ground temperature for planting onion sets. I have tried to grow onions in the past and have not had a lot of luck. My soil is heavy clay improved with composted cow manure. Any suggestions are welcome.

I get mine in with soil temps ranging from 50-55 and they do fine.. As long as they get a lot of sun and good drainage they should be ok. They definitely are not a fan of clay soil. Throw some peat moss in there and mix.


Questions:

How many years have you tried and has one year been better then another?
When do you add the cow manure and compost to soil?
Have you done a soil test?
How much sun do they have and does it rain a lot?

[Dick13]

I tried 2 consecutive yrs. They just went to seed both yrs.
I add the composted manure in the fall.
No soil test on this plot.
They get lots of sun. The garden is in a semi arid part of the Southern Black Hills, S D. I now have the ability to irrigate as much as I want. The water is from a private well. It is filtered, but untreated.


Thank You

[Cambium]

Originally Posted by Dick13

I tried 2 consecutive yrs. They just went to seed both yrs.

Bad batch. They aren't supposed to go to seed obviously you knew.. Sounds like they were second year sets. Where did you buy them from? I usually get mine from Walmart or Lowes and never had a problem.

[Dick13]

Thanks, getting to Lowes or Walmart from where I live is a problem with the social distancing, but I can get to a different supplier.

[NewbieHere]

I don’t think they want to be fertilized, they grow well in bad soil, I grow them every year.