Growing onions in open ground is a very common activity in our country. Not a single tasty dish can do without this spicy vegetable, and its juice is used for medicinal purposes. Like every plant, onions require some care and watering. Having an idea of this culture, you can grow a healthy vegetable. Let's figure it out, then plant the onion, and how to do it right.
Varieties of culture
In various climatic conditions suitable vegetables are grown. Before planting onions, you need to find out all the nuances of the temperature regime. Some cultures are designed for harsh terrain. Other plants grow well in arid climates. Amateur gardeners know some of the most popular varieties of onions. Photos confirm the differences in cultures even in their appearance.
Varieties of onions:
- Onion is one of the most famous species.
- Chives - used in many dishes. Frost-resistant variety, mainly grown in the North Caucasus. Leaves throw out new feathers very early; constant cutting is required for gardening.
- Multilevel - this variety stands out among the rest for its bactericidal properties. Withstands small frosts, has an interesting appearance. The leaves of the plant germinate in several rows.
- Onion-slime - this species got its name from the fact that a lot of mucus is released when a leaf is cut. The vegetable is very useful for people who suffer from anemia. It has a delicate taste and garlic odor.
- Leek - just like slime onions, has a weak taste, is rich in various vitamins.
- Shallot is a sweet and sour vegetable that, like other types of onions, contains a number of useful substances: ascorbic acid and volatile. They are very useful for the human body.
- Mongolian - the culture has healing properties. It has a beautiful flowering, grown on the windowsill. Doctors recommend consuming this type of vegetable for cancer.
Healing properties
All varieties of onions contain a number of useful substances - these are calcium and fluorine, iron and sulfur, essential oils and vitamins A, B, C, flavonoids. Since ancient times, vegetables have been used for colds and infectious diseases. Onion juice is instilled into the nose. Eating a spicy vegetable stimulates blood circulation and digestion.
Onions have a positive effect on people who suffer from diabetes and hemorrhoids, gastritis and hypertension. It also stimulates potency and helps get rid of the general weakness of the body.
In folk medicine, not only onion juice is used, but also gruel. Such a mass helps prevent hair loss, removes corns and tames itching with a mosquito bite.
Onions are also used for cosmetic purposes. Masks are made from it to cleanse and soften the skin.
Proper planting of onion sets
Each culture requires special care. To plant onions is not so difficult, you only need to have an idea about the technology of this process.
The vegetable is unpretentious to environmental conditions. But the crop and the size of the vegetable will depend on how we plant the onions correctly.
Spicy culture is grown in several ways. You can purchase onion seeds or sevocs. What is it? These are small bulbs that are grown from the seeds of the first year. This sowing practice is often used in central Russia.
So, plant the onion sets! Initially weeding a piece of land on which a spicy vegetable will grow. Then you need to make beds, the distance between them should be at least thirty centimeters. After that, you can safely plant onions . Do not forget that you need to adhere to a ten-centimeter distance between the onions. They should not be crammed into the ground, it is best to make small pits with a garden scoop and lower the planting material there to a depth of about 2 cm. The top of the onion should be left on the ground.
Preparation, disembarkation and care
It is necessary to properly store and process planting material. Sevka is planted as early as possible, this ensures rapid and high-quality development of the root system and leaf growth.
Onions are pre-inspected well, discarded by rotten and damaged planting material. Also cut off all the sore spots of the set and put it in water heated to 25-30 degrees. Planting material in the liquid should lie for about two days. When the roots appear, onion sets can be planted in open ground. After the end of this process, it would be nice to mulch the beds with humus.
The culture does not require frequent watering, in the first month of plant growth it needs to be watered twice. The depth of wetting of the soil should be up to ten centimeters. In the first two or three weeks of growth of onion sets, it is worth looking after him. If the culture is poorly developed, it is better to make a solution of bird droppings and feed the culture.
Soil preparation for turnip onions
The best land for a spicy vegetable is neutral. Acidic soil should be diluted with chalk or dolomite flour. Calculation: 250 grams of the mixture per square meter of beds. In the autumn, before the start of frost, it is better to shed the earth with water. In winter, the area on which the onion is planned to be cleared of snow. This approach contributes to better freezing of the soil, which will allow the earth to get rid of diseases and pests.
When spring comes, you need to make fertilizer on the site. After digging, the ground is leveled with a rake. It is also advisable to pour a solution of copper sulfate on it (1 teaspoon per 10 liters of water). This will help disinfect the soil. After preparation, the soil should be covered with oilcloth or film for a week.
Onion care
The sowing of the second year of planting already gives larger fruits. Such a bow is called a turnip. Already in the third year of planting, you can get inflorescences from the culture, and then seeds. Growing onion turnips does not take much effort and time. The main thing in this process is the possession of the necessary information. If you know after which to plant onions, how to care for the plant, then you can avoid harmful diseases and get a rich harvest.
Throughout the entire growth period, turnip onions need to be regularly watered, loosened, weeded, cultivated and fed soil. All season spicy vegetable requires proper care. In May and June (when it is especially very hot), the culture should be constantly watered (every seven days for 8-10 liters of water per square meter). In July, drier weather tends to occur. Therefore, the frequency of irrigation increases (twice in ten days, about five liters of water per square meter).
Processing and feeding
To grow a spicy vegetable, you need to constantly monitor its development. Usually for onion turnips spend two to three dressings. The first time enrichment with useful substances is done when they see the slow development of the plant, as well as if feathers break through poorly. A glass of bird droppings in ten liters of water is bred, and the soil is watered with this solution. The second time top dressing is carried out two weeks after the first. The solution is done as follows: two tablespoons of nitrophosphate are dissolved in ten liters of water. The third top dressing is carried out when the bulb reaches three to four centimeters in diameter. Solution: in ten liters of liquid, dilute two tablespoons of superphosphate.
Processing onion turnips is carried out so that the plant does not suffer from fungal infections. When a leaf of culture grows up to twenty centimeters, it is necessary to prevent treatment with a solution of copper sulfate and soap (spray the plant itself).
Then plant the onion
It has long been proven that in nature there is compatibility and incompatibility of cultures. Onions will grow better if you know about his "beloved" predecessors. In addition, you can plant "neighbors" who will drive away pests and diseases. So, then plant the onion? Favorable predecessors are parsley and dill, celery, potatoes and cabbage.
In the beds themselves, carrots will beneficially influence onion growth. They mutually protect each other from a harmful fly. Onions also accept the neighborhood with watercress and radishes, cucumbers and beets, wild strawberries and tomatoes.