Monty returns to Gardening at Longmeadow in an occasional series.
In January, I sow onions to give them the best possible season. This means they’ll need the protection of a greenhouse or coldframe for another few months, and then a period of hardening off before they can be planted out.
But I take huge encouragement from the fact that I’m creating new life in the depths of winter – with the promise of a summer harvest.
You can either grow onions from seed or sets. Sets – which are just small onions – take about 20 weeks to mature from planting. Another four weeks are needed to germinate the seed.
Monty Don, a UK-based garden expert shares his tips for picking onions in the summer. Pictured: onions left to dry on a rack
Although there are many more onion varieties available, sets of onions are easier to grow. I therefore always have some set of them (along with the seed).
Make sure you have a bag full of small bulbs. Prepare the soil to be fine and soft enough for your fingers to reach the soil. After that, place the pieces in a hole and bury them so that their tops stick out from the ground.
A scaffolding board is used as both an edge to line up the rows, and for kneeling on. This helps to prevent soil from compacting. It’s a good idea to make sure the sets are carefully sown in a grid as then you can hoe in both directions without clipping a bulb in passing.
Because onions are sensitive to competition from other weeds, hoeing and sometimes handweeding is essential.
HOW TO GROW CHILLIES
Pictured: Two red chilli peppers
- The growing season for chillies is long. A larger plant will produce more fruit, so you should start planting early. It is best to sow chilli seeds in the spring, and then a second one in March or February.
- Place seeds on a tray with peat-free compost. To germinate, place the seeds on a heating bench or on a windowill over a radiator.
- Chillies require heat and sunlight. They should be planted outdoors in a spot that is south-facing. They’re best watered every morning and not after about 5pm as they are prone to fungal diseases and so should not be damp at night.
- You will also need to ventilate them. A feed that’s high in potash will increase flower and fruit production. Weekly, I give them liquid seaweed or Comfrey.
- The peppers that are hotter will mature faster. Given heat and extra light, they’ll produce fruits all year round.
The best soil for onions is light but good quality. If the ground has too much manure or compost you’ll have lots of lush leaves but the onions will be a bit on the small side and more prone to fungal problems.
I believe shallots are as vital a vegetable than onions. They’re easier to grow than onions, can tolerate less soil and water, and they store better than onions.
The real difference is in the fact that every individual set of shallot seeds or will multiplie and create a small clump with around half a dozen bulbs.
The same method is used to harvest them. Once they are dried, I place ours in a wire container in my potting shed. These should be kept at room temperature and dried in the dark. They can then be stored well right up to the start of spring.
It’s essential that onions and shallots are as dry as possible before they are stored. And the more sun they have before harvesting, the better they’ll last. You should not cut any leaves, but let them dry completely before you remove the remaining material for storage.
Onions should be lifted carefully with a fork rather than yanked from the soil to avoid damaging the ‘collar’ of root above the bulb and reduce the risk of rot entering the bulb when stored.
Always harvest the fruit on a sunny, hot day. I then let them dry out on the ground until the next day. Then I put them on a wooden or greenhouse rack and let them dry for several weeks.
After they have dried to bone, I can either tie them with a string and hang them up on the wall or place them in baskets.
PARSLEY: YOUR KITCHEN GARDEN
The flat-leaved type is my preferred choice, as it has better flavor and texture. But, I also like the decorative and good-tasting curly-leaved varieties. However, the flat-leaved parsley is delicious when combined with vegetable stews, soups, and as part of salads.
Parsley grows easily and doesn’t require any extra skill. Parsley also grows quickly so it doesn’t require any special time. You should give it plenty of space.
Two to three sowings are made each year. The first is now and the second in May, followed by August. This allows for an unlimited supply of crops throughout the season.
Parsley does not thrive in Mediterranean soils. It can be grown in well-drained, fertile soil with lots of moisture. Parsley can tolerate some shade.
You can grow them yourself, and they will live for six to nine months. They will produce a bounty that is greater than what mass-produced plants will. You can guarantee happiness, good health, and substantial savings on your finances if you grow a lot of seedlings.
Extracted from Gardening At Longmeadow by Monty Don, BBC Books, £26. © Monty Don 2012.