Onions for your vegetable garden

Have you ever tried to grow onions in your vegetable garden. You can have a bumper crop of onions by following a few easy steps.

Onions can be started from seed inside, or you can purchase onion sets and plant when the weather warms. CLICK HERE for a zone by zone planting guide. For best results, they need full sun, should be kept moist, and benefit from a raised planting bed. For more information on raised planting beds, see the bottom of this post.

Onions are edible at any stage of their growth, and are ripe and ready for storage when 1/4 to 1/2 of the tops have fallen over and the bulbs have a papery skin. Let the onions cure in a warm, well ventilated area out of the weather for a week or so, then store them in a cool and dry place. Ideal temperature for storing is 32 degrees, but don't allow them to freeze.

For more detailed information on onions, CLICK HERE.

Raised Beds
A raised bed is useful for any vegetable that grows underground, such as potatoes, carrots, and radishes. A raised bed can be accomplished very easily by raking soil from either side of the row to form a raised area, leaving a trench on either side. It's best to add organic matter such as compost to the soil (ratio of 1/2 soil to 1/2 compost). The bed should be approximately 6 to 8 inches high, and a foot or so wide, depending on what you are planting. For example, for my onion plants, I made my raised bed 1 foot wide, and planted 3 rows of onions across the bed. The loosened soil of a raised bed makes it easier for the plants to grow, and will warm sooner, allowing an earlier planting time.