All about onions

Only those gardeners who know everything about onions, the structure of the turnip and the type of bulb nutrition can call themselves advanced. In addition to describing the culture in general and what its parts look like, knowledge of practical characteristics is also useful. Along with this information and data on how onions reproduce, it is useful for curious farmers to understand the history of the origin of such a culture.

Onions are a species of the genus of onions belonging to the amaryllis family and belonging to the asparagus order. The international scientific name for the culture was given in 1753, and since then its botanical systematics has only been refined. Onions are a perennial herb that is widely used as a vegetable in various countries. The bulb looks like a small turnip, which is the reason for the specific name.

Outside scales are usually dry. They are usually colored yellow, sometimes white or purple. The scales located inside are fleshy. They are characterized by white, purple or light greenish color. An important characteristic of the appearance of onions is the bluish-green color of their tubular foliage.

This species can throw out a flower arrow up to 150 cm high. It is always hollow and slightly swollen. Such an arrow ends with an umbrella inflorescence, which includes many flowers. Each of these flowers rests on an elongated peduncle. Characterizing the constituent parts of the plant, it is worth mentioning the white-green perianth with a section of no more than 10 mm, which includes 6 leaves. The fruit of this plant is described as a capsule. It will contain up to 5-6 seeds. Each seed is colored black and covered with wrinkles. The seeds are relatively small. By the type of nutrition, like other plants, onions are autotrophic species.

Normally, flowering occurs in the first two-thirds of the summer. Fruit ripeness can be expected during August. Among the features of the root system, its weak general development should be mentioned. At first, the roots grow back like a string. Only then will they give more pronounced branches, which will be covered with hairs.

Even in a developed state, the key part of the roots is concentrated at a depth of 5 to 20 cm. As soon as the leaves die off, the roots will also begin to die. It should be noted that sometimes the plant blooms earlier than normal. To do this, it is necessary that the temperature is stable at least +18 degrees against the background of dry, clear weather. The difference in flowering time, both downward and upward, can be from 3 to 20 days.

It is impossible to establish exactly where the onion comes from. There are only suggestions that the homeland of its first cultivated forms is the land of present-day Iran and Afghanistan. This should not cause surprise, since there once existed highly developed agrarian communities by ancient standards. The date of domestication of onions is about 4000 years ago. Experts have found that he was widely known in ancient times to the Greeks, Hindus, and Egyptians.

In the era of slavery, a whole system of magical representations existed around the bow. The ancient Romans believed that it is a source of energy, strength and courage, therefore famous legions never did without onions. This culture is mentioned in both biblical texts and Sumerian cuneiform tablets. Later, during the period of feudalism, onions became a daily food in the countries of the western Mediterranean, including France. There, by the 10th century, it was comparable in importance with the today's role of cabbage.

In the XII-XIII centuries, this culture became known in our country. Over time, its culinary demand only grew. Later, with the advent of the era of great geographical discoveries, onions turned out to be very popular in the New World. It quickly became relevant in both North and South America.

But even the centuries-old experience of growing such a plant does not mean that all summer residents are aware of the peculiarities of its development. Sevok for planting in spring is obtained from seeds quite simply. The difficulty, however, is to keep it throughout the winter. It is not too easy to provide strictly verified indicators for temperature and humidity.

But then you need to carefully choose the set so that it looks good. If the storage went with the wrong temperature regime, peduncles will appear en masse during the growing season, that is, you cannot count on a decent turnip. It is best to prepare the planting material before planting, heating it for 2-3 weeks at +20 degrees. The planting itself is carried out when the earth warms up to +10 degrees, at a level of 10 cm. The ridge is prepared in advance, at least 14 days in advance, so that the soil subsides evenly.

Onions thrive on well-lit hills. But where precipitation and soil water are collected, he will have a hard time. Important: This crop does not deserve to be planted twice in the same place. Other types of onions and garlic are also bad precursors. But nightshades, cabbage, legumes and green manure herbs will prepare the soil in an optimal way. It should be noted that onions develop extremely poorly on earth with high acidity, if you do not lime it back in the fall.

Having missed such a measure, it remains only for digging to lay wood ash. Some farmers prefer to use dolomite flour. The soil on the site needs to be saturated with nutrients and thoroughly loosened. For 1 sq. m add at least 6 kg of mature humus. Its amount should be even greater if the soil is scarce.

The introduction of rotted sawdust helps to increase the looseness of the earth. Their use is also recommended on sand, since this technique increases the total moisture capacity. The planting procedure itself implies loosening with an interval of 20-25 cm. Furrows are shed with clean warm water and sowing is planted, making intervals from 10 to 12 cm. Turnips must be sprinkled with 2-3 cm of soil, and this is the end of the whole procedure.

You can also start onion seedlings. Before sowing seeds in containers, they are disinfected with permanganate and activated by boiling in hot water. The sowing itself is carried out in March, sometimes at the end of February, if favorable weather can be expected in early spring. Seedlings are systematically watered and fed, laying fertilizers 14 days after the emergence of shoots.

Now let's look at the features of caring for onion plantings.

Onions are hygrophilous. The land must be kept in a stable moist state throughout the growing season. Any weeds are categorically unacceptable. After each irrigation, carried out and dosed as needed, the soil should be mulched. If this is not done, the crust will disturb the uniformity of moisture distribution in the ground.

It is possible to loosen the beds only on the surface, and only in wide aisles. If the rows themselves are loosened, the deformed roots will disrupt the development of the bulb. Hilling is absolutely unacceptable. On the contrary, the turnips themselves should be opened. In combination with well-thought-out watering on time, this will ensure a good result.

For the first time, fertilizer is applied as soon as shoots are outlined. In this case, the feathers should reach a length of 10 cm. To enhance growth, during this period, special emphasis is placed on nitrogenous mixtures. Top dressing is determined by the condition of the soil, by how much it is initially saturated with useful substances. The second feeding is carried out about a month later, when the plant enters the second stage of its growing season.

At this moment, nitrogen is no longer needed. But it is required to help the culture by supplying it with phosphorus and potassium. A similar goal is achieved by diluting 0.02-0.03 kg of superphosphate and the same amount of sulfate in 10 liters of water. The third feeding is carried out at the moment when the bulb is finally formed and has reached 4 cm in diameter. Now the plant needs calcium, which allows the heads themselves to ripen.

In northern Russia, onions are mainly propagated vegetatively. This technique has been practiced for a long time. Planting material is selected very carefully. It is then stored at + 18-20 degrees. The optimum diameter of the bulb for planting is 2-3 cm.

If they are larger, then the turnips are cut before planting. But the disadvantage of this solution is that the cuts increase the risk of pest damage. It is necessary to plant onions vegetatively at the same time as the sevka or a little later, until May 20. The spaces between plants are 20-25 cm. Mulching is carried out with a layer of rotted manure, which will retain water and become an additional source of nutrition.

For onions, the onion fly is a danger. The traditional method of repelling this pest is planting carrots next to it. Salt watering is another protection measure. It is poured exclusively at the root. Salt concentration - 1%.

Such watering is carried out three times with an interval of 10 days. Some farmers use adhesive tapes or decoys. From available tools, the layout of pieces of fabric saturated with diluted birch tar helps. The nematoda affects the bow quite weakly, but you should not ignore it at all. It is capable of multiplying rapidly and affecting the entire vegetable garden.

Rapid lodging of seedlings may be associated with the invasion of winter moths. Mostly dangerous are the caterpillars of this pest. From the moth and its pupae, digging the earth in the fall to great depths and the regular extermination of weeds help the best.

To exclude the defeat of downy mildew, 30 days after planting, the beds must be sprayed with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid. If this preventive measure is neglected, it will take a very long time to fight the disease. Onion plantings can also suffer from a variety of rot. If signs of fusarium are found, the plants should be discarded immediately. Fighting aphids is no less relevant.

Also, the danger is:

• rust;
• peronosporosis;
• aspergillosis;
• mosaic disease;
• stemphiliosis;
• tobacco thrips;
• onion lurker.

Having successfully grown onions, having protected them from pests and diseases, it is also necessary to competently harvest the crop and save it. When landing in late spring in the middle lane, the approximate harvesting period is the last decade of July. There is no point in focusing on the lunar calendar, here you have to look at the plant itself. Ready to harvest is achieved when the feather is yellow and bent to the ground. If the neck dries up and the peeling of the peel begins at the bottom, it means that an urgent need to get down to business.

In different regions and in different weather conditions, readiness for harvesting is achieved at different times. You should start looking at the beds more often 65-70 days after disembarkation. It is worth choosing the driest weather so as not to waste time drying.

The harvest left for the winter for 2 or 3 weeks is brought out every day in the sun, rotating it on different sides. Turnips should be kept warm and dry at night. When placing onions in boxes, it is undesirable to pile a layer of more than 30 cm. The sides are certainly equipped with ventilation holes. The use of nets or canvas bags is allowed, even simple tying in suspended bundles will be relevant. In any case, the temperature should be at least 0 and not higher than +5 degrees.