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Post by paquebot on Jun 12, 2020 15:19:27 GMT -5
I almost challenged the claim of no Ebenezer seed until I looked for them. I remember them being available years ago but no longer. SSE still has both white and yellow but available only to members. If a person really wanted them, buy sets and plant the mature bulbs back the next year.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 15, 2020 14:04:44 GMT -5
Who else has bottle onion seedlings? If sown when suggested, all should have them. Mine look like at least 50% germination and going to be survival of the fittest.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jun 16, 2020 12:22:54 GMT -5
It's hard to tell what my germination rate is but I have at least 15 sprouts from the seeds that I planted a week ago. I'll provide another count next week.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 16, 2020 13:55:19 GMT -5
15 seeds isn't bad. That's about how many sets I started out with. The seed we are all working with is 2018 and from bulbs planted in fall of 2017. Considering the events of 2018, I was lucky to be able to save any seeds at all. Saving them just seemed to be a priority.
Forgot to mention that some that were planted from sets this spring are already showing sign of bulbing. These were started from the smallest sets that I have grown but certainly didn't slow them down.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jun 17, 2020 7:20:18 GMT -5
So when you're planting the bulbs for seeds, you plant in the fall, let them overwinter, and they go to seed in late spring?
Are the bottle onions the only thing that you let go to seed from the allium family? I also grow shallots & potato onions. Sometimes a few of them develop seed heads. I guess I'll need to cut them off when they occur.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 17, 2020 14:19:02 GMT -5
Onions are biennial by nature but many have been developed for sweetness. Those have less sulfur. Those won't store well and also won't winter over in cold zones. The bottle onions are not high in sulfur but will survive with a few inches of mulch. I've use that and also have used a bag of leaves.
Makõ was the only other onion that I have grown for seed. But since it is available commercially in Hungary, there was no urgency. All remaining seed was sown a week or so ago for potential sets. Some just energing today.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Jun 17, 2020 19:28:51 GMT -5
Mine took a little longer, but today I found the first sprouts after planting ten days ago.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 17, 2020 23:02:32 GMT -5
Mine took a little longer, but today I found the first sprouts after planting ten days ago. Could have been depth of planting, type of medium, or weather. You just came through a cold spell up there so that could explain the longer time. As long as you have a few, there is a chance that they will never be lost. I grew Montreal Melon in 2012. That variety was extinct in Canada, where it had come from. Seed was discovered in the USDA seed bank in 1998. Three seeds germinated and it was back. Martin The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Jun 18, 2020 5:00:21 GMT -5
Oh, for sure. Our weather has been so up-and-down, everything has taken longer to germinate that I've planted outside. I gave the garden a good drink yesterday with the hot summer day, so I expect a lot more sprouts this afternoon when I head out for a check-in.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jun 18, 2020 6:50:43 GMT -5
Oh, for sure. Our weather has been so up-and-down, everything has taken longer to germinate that I've planted outside. I gave the garden a good drink yesterday with the hot summer day, so I expect a lot more sprouts this afternoon when I head out for a check-in. Where do you have your seeds planted? I have mine in a large pot that is currently in partial shade so that the seedlings don't get burned by the hot sun we're getting.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Jun 20, 2020 17:26:59 GMT -5
Oh, for sure. Our weather has been so up-and-down, everything has taken longer to germinate that I've planted outside. I gave the garden a good drink yesterday with the hot summer day, so I expect a lot more sprouts this afternoon when I head out for a check-in. Where do you have your seeds planted? I have mine in a large pot that is currently in partial shade so that the seedlings don't get burned by the hot sun we're getting. Mine are in a raised bed that gets shade in the morning and at the end of the day. Should be a perfect spot for them to grow up.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 20, 2020 20:12:51 GMT -5
They will grow fast. Mine are quickly closing on 3". Most will only make 3 leaves. Mature bulbs will only have 4 or 5 leaves rather than 10 or so on a round bulb.
The sets planted this year were all under ¼". Most have reached their 5-leaf growth and showing at least an inch of bulb showing. They are not wanting for nitrogen so they are going to be bigger than average. Definitely a winner.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jun 22, 2020 7:14:52 GMT -5
Martin, was wondering where you planted your bottle onion seeds. Are they in full sun or do you have them in the shade? I have mine in the shade because I'm concerned about the 90 deg hot sun we've been getting will fry up the tiny seedlings.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 22, 2020 10:52:36 GMT -5
My seeds were sown in a 7-gallon pot. Medium base is 100% old horse manure. Top inch or so had Jiffy Mix and sand worked in. Seeds sown on top of that and ½" of Jiffy Mix and No Damp Off over them. Pots are in full sun and we never had any real hot days. Last year was hotter and I placed a window screen over them. That was enough shade to keep the soil cool enough for germination.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by spike on Jun 22, 2020 18:03:41 GMT -5
Mine took a little longer, but today I found the first sprouts after planting ten days ago.
I was so afraid I did something wrong but I see 2 sprouts today finally!!
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Post by paquebot on Jun 22, 2020 20:04:10 GMT -5
Spike, judging from what came up in my very-controlled planting, you may be lucky to see 25%. I figure about 50% came up in mine. Onion seed life drops off quick after one year. These were from 2018 so less than optimal expectations. Makó onion seed from 3 years ago saw nothing come up.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2020 13:33:21 GMT -5
LOL,. the talk of bottle onions. The Italians apparently grow one like that, and I bought some seed last year. Planted it in a bucket as Martin does, waited and waited and nothing came up. At last I took the bucket out to the walking onion bed and stuck a couple of SETS, NOT WALKING ONIONS, in it. Forgot all about it and ignored the whole thing. Walking onions grew all around it and the bucket got overlooked.
This moring I was working in the area and noticed that there were three sets of BLOOMS, not walking onion tops. Lol, three onions gone to seed, and one mature Italian bottle onion in a dried up bucket. I will have to look and see what it was that went to seed. I hope at least one of them is a bottle onion but no telling what I will get out of that.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 27, 2020 17:51:10 GMT -5
If they are Italian, they are not bottle onions but torpedo onions. I don't think that any are hybrids so seeds should be true if no other onions blooming nearby. You'll be surprised at the variety of pollinators that will show up.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by spike on Jun 28, 2020 12:35:52 GMT -5
paquebot, paquebot, paquebot, OMG paquebot, Just when I had given up on the seeds, thinking I did something horribly wrong and was going to be a great disappointment to you . . . BOOM POW . . . I counted 23 little seedling pushing their little heads on up! I am doing the happy dance right now I am so excited!!
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Post by paquebot on Jun 28, 2020 13:15:30 GMT -5
An old German friend had a saying hanging on her living room wall. "Who plants a seed and waits believes there is a God". One can only wait and trust in some magnificent power to go to work.
Those seeds may have been just a fraction of an inch deeper or temperatures may not have been perfect. (Too warm is as bad as too cold.) I knew that the seed was good but could not guarantee percentage of germination. Now you officially are one of the keepers of that variety.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jun 29, 2020 7:57:14 GMT -5
What do people suggest for fertilizing the seedlings?
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Post by paquebot on Jun 29, 2020 9:49:27 GMT -5
Never heard of any suggestion for fertilizing set seedlings. Excess fertilizer could result in larger sets than desired. Mine are on old horse manure in pots which were not changed this year. Little was taken out of it last year so still plenty of nutrients available. Growing onions need a 2-1-1 ratio so that should also apply to seedlings.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jun 29, 2020 16:35:12 GMT -5
In a different thread, someone mentioned using a weak fertilizer for their onion seedlings and I thought maybe the same might apply here.
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Post by september on Jun 29, 2020 20:02:58 GMT -5
I planted my seeds a little later than most of you, and they are popping nicely now. I sowed them thinly in several pots that I could move into the shade on these hot days. I was afraid that between the heat, and associated watering they would wash away or dry up if I put them in the ground. I plan to use a weak liquid fertilizer every couple of weeks since my pot soil make up is not as good as Martin's.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 29, 2020 20:28:21 GMT -5
If the medium is one with at least a small amount of nutrients, nothing more should be needed. Remember that growth is only going to be for about 2 months. If grown for plants, then nutrients are needed to keep them growing until planting in the garden. Sets are a short and fast growth and only need enough nutrients to get to their maximum bulb size. Mine may be almost too rich as there are some with 6" leaves already. I'm not worried as it was the same pots and soil as last year and the sets turned out to be perfect size.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jul 9, 2020 6:25:47 GMT -5
I know when growing sets, you don't want your onions to be too big because they're likely to go to seed. But in this case, I do want seeds so maybe I could grow a set that will go to seed next year instead of the year after? Any disadvantage to this?
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Post by paquebot on Jul 9, 2020 11:10:32 GMT -5
Only possible disadvantage of saving seeds from an early-bolter could be genetics. +-.3-Since that is not a trait that one would want, it's not standard even in regular onions. But in the case of desperation, no problem.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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elkhound
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Posts: 63
Joined: July 2020
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Post by elkhound on Jul 14, 2020 8:06:25 GMT -5
best i can tell is i have 19 seedlings growing
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Post by paquebot on Jul 14, 2020 10:16:14 GMT -5
One thing about them is that the leaves don't grow straight. If seeds are sown thick they will look like a tangle.
Mine are doing even better than expected. Leaves are close to 8" so there will be some nice bulbs under them. Interesting to watch them follow the sun. With just a single leaf, it needs to line up just right to get the benefits.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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ponyexpress
Junior Member
Posts: 86
Zone:: 6b
Favorite Vegetable:: alliums
Joined: June 2020
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Post by ponyexpress on Jul 17, 2020 7:08:36 GMT -5
Here is a photo of mine taken a week ago. People on tomato junction have seen this already.
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