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Description
Heirloom White Sweet Spanish Onion Seeds (.5g)
A large-yielding heirloom variety that produces large sweet onions—sometimes weighing in excess of a pound each! A great hamburger onion.
100% heirloom White Sweet Spanish Onion seeds.
Ready in 115 days on average.
Heirloom White Sweet Spanish Onion Seeds Planting Instructions
Growing onions is a breeze with these easy-to-follow steps:
- Planting Options – You can direct seed, use transplants started indoors, or plant sets, which are small 1/2-inch bulbs grown from the previous season's seeds.
- Location – Select a well-drained, weed-free area. Raised beds are perfect. Don't plant where other onion family crops grew in the last 3 years.
- Direct Seeding – Best for shorter-season varieties or scallions. Do this in spring when the soil reaches 50°F. Seeds should be 1/2 an inch deep and 1/2 an inch apart, in rows 12 to 18 inches apart.
- Thinning – Thin to 4 inches apart for large bulbs, 2 inches for smaller bulbs, or 1 inch for scallions.
- Indoor Transplants – Start indoors 8 to 10 weeks before the last frost. Seed 1/2 an inch deep and 1/2 an inch apart in flats or cells. Trim tops to 3 inches if they droop. Transplant hardened seedlings 2 to 4 weeks before the last frost.
- Planting Sets – Choose sets no larger than 1/2 an inch in diameter. Plant sets 1 inch deep and 2 to 4 weeks before last frost.
- Spacing – 4 inches apart for large bulbs, 2 inches apart for smaller bulbs, or 1 inch apart for scallions.
- Watering & Weeding – Onions need consistent moisture and weed control. Water weekly in dry weather and mulch to retain moisture and suppress weeds.
Heirloom White Sweet Spanish Onion Seeds Harvesting Instructions
Follow these steps to harvest these onions:
- Signs of Readiness – Onions are ready to harvest when the leaves lose their color, weaken at the top of the bulb, and flop over.
- Waiting Period – Once 80% to 90% of onion tops have fallen over naturally, bend over the rest and leave the bulbs in the ground for an additional 10 to 14 days to fully mature.
- Harvest Time – Do not leave onions in the ground for more than 2 weeks after the tops die to prevent exposure to rot-causing organisms or potential regrowth.
- Harvest Day – If possible, pull your onions up on a sunny day.
- Drying Process – Leave onions in the sun for a day or so to dry and kill the root system (in hot climates this usually takes just a few hours). The roots will turn into brittle wires when they're dry.
- Best Harvest Conditions – Harvesting after rainy weather can lead to more moisture in onions and less effective drying. Choose a dry day for the best results.
Saving White Sweet Spanish Onion Seeds
Seed-producing onions are biennial. It will take 2 growing seasons to get onion seed. This article explains the seed-to-bulb-to-seed method:
Purchase onion seed and plant as you normally would in the spring. When purchasing seed, only buy open-pollinated or heirloom seeds. Hybrids and types of seeds are not true seed and your results may be mixed. You should order and grow enough onions so you have some for eating and some dedicated for seed saving.
Onions can cross, so it's best to start with one variety at a time. Plant your onion seed and do not pick or eat the ones you intend to harvest for seed.
At the end of the growing season when the onion tops are brown, drying, and bent over, harvest the onion bulbs. This should be done before the first frost.
Do NOT wash the onions, however you can shake the dirt off. Leave the tops on for braiding later. Choose only the best bulbs for seed saving. Discard or eat others that may not overwinter well.
Spread onions out in a dry location, not touching one another, onto a board or screen. If it looks like it will rain, you will have to move them to a location where they will not get rained on. Try to use a platform that allows air to circulate around the onions well. Avoid drying the bulbs in direct sunlight in temperatures that are above 75°F. This can cause the bulbs to spoil or sunburn.
Dry and cure the onions for 10 to 12 days before braiding. After curing, you can braid the tops so the onions hang one above the other (not in clumps) and then hang them in a dark, dry storage area until spring. A barn, potting shed, or greenhouse make good places to hang them.
Protect from the frost and do not store at room temperature. They should keep about 3 to 6 months and just begin sprouting come planting time in the spring. Sprouting times vary among different varieties. In spring, when it's time to plant onions again, remove each onion by untwisting the braid and removing the dead, dried up tops. You will probably notice small green sprouts starting at the tops of the bulbs. Plant the bulbs in your garden.
It is interesting to watch the large, tube-like seed stalks grow bigger every day. Then one day you will notice tiny white flowers have formed—the flower head. They are about the size of a softball and remind one of popcorn balls. They are quite dainty and beautiful.
When the seeds form, the onion plant begins to dry. The flower head will begin to darken, turning almost solid black. Then the seeds are dry and ready to harvest.
Using a brown paper bag, bend the onion stalk over and snip the entire flower head into the bag. Store in a dry area, out of direct sunlight, to finish the drying process. To completely remove the seeds from the flower head, you can shake the bag to allow the loose seeds to drop into bag.
Any remaining seeds can be removed by other techniques including threshing, using wire screens to rub them over, or stepping on the seed heads to break open the pods. Screen any debris from your onion seed using seed screens or other screens from home.
Place onion seed in a sealed glass canning jar or freeze in freezer bags to lengthen the life of the seed. If using the jar method, store in a dry, cool, and dark area without extreme temperature fluctuations.
