onion flowers

[annastasia76]

I had been told that I should remove the flowers from the onions before they bloom but havn't read much about that in the forums, actually havn't read anything about the flowers in the forums, so should I remove the flowers??

I had some onions growing last year that went to flower but the onions themselves didn't get very big (I was told that my problem was that I wasn't supposed to let them flower) so this year I just put them back in the ground instead of tossing them out, they have loads of greens coming up from each one, and now several of them are getting thick stems with flower buds at the top, should I just let them flower??

[annastasia76]

thank you for the link. It doesn't mention anything about the flowers but is the thick stem that the flowers are growing off of considered a thick neck??

this is from the site.

If any of your onions have developed thick 'necks' over the growing season, use these ones straight away as they will not store well and are prone to neck rot

[soil]

we always let a few go to flower for seed and to eat the blooms, they are very tasty.

[annastasia76]

ok I found info about the flowers on this site

https://www.vegetable-garden-guide.com/how-to-grow-onions.html

Cut off any flower stems that appear - you want all the plants energy going into swelling the bulb and not setting seed. Stop watering once the onions have swollen and begin to ripen.

[applestar]

Jal_ut mentions it in this post

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=177022#177022

[annastasia76]

I guess maybe that these will just be constantly wanting to bloom so maybe I should just let them bloom and collect the seeds.

[garden5]

Right, onions are biennial. So you will just want to start fresh with first-year sets/plants if you want good bulbs. Usually, big temperature fluctuations while they are growing can sometimes "trick" them into blooming.


Soil, I remember you posting about eating the blossoms before. How do you prepare them and what do they taste like?

[jal_ut]

Onions started from seed either as small transplants or direct seeded will seldom bloom the first year. If you plant little dry onions called sets, sometimes you will get some that want to bloom. If the sets are too large, the problem is worse. Once an onion sends up that bloom stalk, you may as well eat it as soon as you can because the bulb won't store well. The bulb won't get as large as those that don't bolt.

I can't say it does any good to cut the flowers off. The problem is that the flower stalk starts at root level and goes through the center of the onion. No matter what you do, this center area will rot rather quickly and you will lose the onion. You can let it bloom and collect the seed if you want to. You can probably get seed and still use the bulb. Some say eat the flowers. I have never tried that.

I just plant more than I need and always have plenty.

[annastasia76]

thank you. actually my onions did get blooms last year and they had been planted from seed. not sure what caused the blooms though.

[Bobberman]

I think the excess heat and dry conditions makes them go to seed quicker just like with so man other plants like radish! I let sever go to seeds to see the nice flowers especially on radish!

[HydroCura]

Hi
I have an onion plant since December. Does anyone know when it will be ready to harvest? There are more plants growing from the same plant. But I didn't see any flowers. Anyone knows? Or tips?
Thank you

[jal_ut]

Onions are edible at any time in their development. If that was a large onion when you planted it, it is probably going to go to seed. You can eat it now before it bolts. I doubt if it will make a large bulb. Search the forum for onion. This has been the subject of several discussions.