Monday, 5 August 2024

Onions and leeks

I strayed into a plant fair last year and bought a couple of edible plants: a perpetual onion, and a perpetual leek.  I like the idea of veggies that just keep on producing without having to buy seeds or, for example, onions sets.   Apparently they are becoming fashionable again, and you can pay €10 for a single perpetual onion bulb if you buy it from a plant catalogue.

I kept the onion, once it had died back, over Winter in a fridge at about 9°C    It divided into two in storage, and I planted both bits in the Spring.   They then split into separate bulbs, like shallots do;  I harvested 6 bulbs.   I'm eating one to see what they're like, and keeping the rest to plant and multiply.   A seventh bulb is currently flowering so I don't expect that it will be worth eating but I will keep and plant the seeds to see what happens.


The perpetual leeks are less successful: the wet Spring led to an infection of rust.    They are all flowering and I expect they will die afterwards, though I'm not certain.  One flowered last year and seeds are producing what look to be viable plants.   I have yet to get anything edible out of them.


The onion sets (Sturon) yielded a good crop that is currently drying in the conservatory.


And we might have had the warmest Spring and early Summer on record according to the met office, but my tomatoes don't believe them.


1 comment:

  1. An interesting propagation idea. I look forward to see how the experimant progresses.

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