Jray8
Full Member
Posts: 25
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2015 6:52 pm
Location: Arnold, Maryland USA

How Late in Year to Plant Onions & Garlic?

So my garlic and onions are sprouting and I couldn't be more proud. I am about to separate and transplant my onions from the pot I started them in to the garden.
A few things I'm not sure about are how late in the year can I keep planting garlic and onion and when do you know when they are ready?
Thanks again
Attachments
image.jpg
image.jpg

lexusnexus
Green Thumb
Posts: 358
Joined: Fri Mar 14, 2014 4:06 pm
Location: MD Suburbs of DC, 7a

Over in Silver Spring here. I thought garlic was planted late in the fall to winter over and bulb up the following year. What variety(ies) of onions are you growing? Be careful transplanting your onions. The root structure is very shallow and fragile. Ensure they get a good drink when transplanted. They are also heavy feeders trying to develop bulbs so make sure they have plenty of compost and/or fertilizer readily available for them.

User avatar
rainbowgardener
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 25279
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
Location: TN/GA 7b

Onions from seed and garlic cloves I would plant in the fall to over winter and be ready sometime the following spring. Onion sets I can plant in spring. Onions you need to have the right variety for your area - long day, short day or in my case day neutral.

Root and bulb crops are generally not easy to transplant. You can give it a try, but if you have more than you need, I would just thin some by culling.

You know when they are ready because the tops get yellow/brown and fall over.

User avatar
applestar
Mod
Posts: 30514
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

If you don't get bulbs, you can still eat both onions and garlic as onion greens/green onions and garlic greens so it's not a total loss.

Because garlic and onions bulb up and are harvested when the tops die down -- completely for onions and partially for garlic, and this happens mostly according to the angle and position of the sun (day length) -- in other words all at a similar schedule regardless of when they are planted, pay attention to other members in your area reporting that theirs are starting to deteriorate, signaling start of harvest watch, and decide if you will take the chance to see if yours will be worth letting die down or if you should harvest them for the greens.



Return to “Onion Gardening Forum”