How to grow... Spring Onion
Rocket Growing Guides
Quick-growing spring onions are a wonderful salad crop to plant in between rows of other slow-growing vegetables – use them to fill any gaps, or grow in window boxes or small pots.
- Spring Onion Growing Guide
How to Plant Spring Onions
- Choose a sunny, sheltered spot that doesn’t get too waterlogged.
- You can grow spring onions really well in a raised bed or traditional veg plot, and also in pots (you can plant multiple plants per pot)
- Plant 5-8cm apart.
- If there are multiple seedlings per plug, don’t worry, just plant them as normal – you don’t need to thin them out – but space out to 10cm
How to Grow Spring Onions
- During dry spells, water well to prevent the soil from drying out and to keep the soil a little cooler.
- Keep them weed-free as much as possible. Using an onion hoe for regular weeding is best as this allows you to get in amongst the plants without disturbing their roots.
Common Pests & Problems with Spring Onions
- Brown/orange spots on leaves – this is likely to be rust, a fungal disease that affects plants like leek, onion and garlic. If you do see it on onions, then it is best to harvest your crop before it worsens and cut off affected foliage before drying them out.
- Eaten through stem – this could be voles, slugs or cutworm
How to Harvest & Store Spring Onions
- You can expect to harvest your spring onions within a few weeks of planting during spring/summer months. Pull them up when they reach the desired size, just a bit thicker than a pencil. For autumn planted spring onions, expect to harvest them in the early days of spring.
- They will keep in the fridge for several days.
