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Spring Planting vs. Fall Planting
One final subject that can play an important role in your onion harvest is the topic of when to plant.
Short Day onions (planted in southern and warmer locations) should always go into the ground in the fall. They can grow in the warmer winter and develop and be ready for late spring harvesting.
Long Day and Day Neutral onions on the other hand can go in the ground in the fall or spring. It is important to understand that a single season (spring to fall) of growing will produce smaller bulbs overall for harvesting – especially if you are growing from seed.
Seeds simply don’t have enough time to produce large bulbs when planted in the spring. Seedlings will give you a more sizable bulb with their head start with spring planting, but onion sets will give you by far the best chance at full-bodied onions.
Fall Planting of Onions
Many gardeners in northern climates prefer to start some or all of their onions in the fall to guarantee larger onions. When planted in the fall, onions need to have at least 4 to 6 weeks of warm weather to establish in the soil.
As winter approaches, they go dormant until spring. They then spring back to life to complete their 2-year growing cycle. You can plant seeds, seedlings or onion sets this way. With seeds, the seeds should be in the ground at least 8 to 10 weeks before your average first frost date to get them large enough to handle winter.
