Description: Onions are very versatile and nutritious and are used worldwide as a seasoning, condiment, or as a dish in themselves. Sweet yet robust, they add a terrific flavor to all kinds of dishes. Onion varieties are classified as long, medium and short day. This refers to the regions where they grow best, according to the length of day during each particular variety's best growing season. Short day onions are grown in the winter in the South. Long day onions grow best in the Northern summer. Intermediate day varieties are generally grown in the middle of the country and can go either way. Very high in vitamin C, onions were often used by western settlers as a way to prevent scurvy. Curiously, the name Chicago comes from an old Algonquin word that means “onion place.” Long and intermediate day varieties store well in a cool dry place, while the sweeter short day varieties should be eaten within a few weeks of harvest. Nutrients: dietary fiber, vitamins C, B6, folate, manganese and calcium.

Guidelines: Growing: A frost tolerant biennial crop that is planted in the full sun in early spring, in the fall and over the winter in southern regions. Onions require evenly moist, well-drained soils and that weeds be kept to a minimum. Plant Seeds: 1/2" deep with 1" between seeds, in rows 12-15" apart, or in flats 4-6 weeks in advance of planting. Soil Temp: 50-90?F. Days to Emergence: 6-16. Thin To/Mature Plant Spacing: 3-6". Seeds/Oz: 7,000. Seed Wt./100' Row: 1/4oz. Average Yield/100' Row: 100lbs. Days to Harvest: 65-110. Seed Viability: 2-4years. Companions: Beet, Carrot, Leek, Lettuce, Parsnip, Spinach, Tomato.

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