# Onions are Bolting!



## Rubberback (Sep 9, 2008)

Noticed a lot of my onions are bolting. I'm not gonna get many onions this year. I'm not a happy camper. Onions are one of my favorites out of the garden.


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## peckerwood (Jun 9, 2012)

I feel your pain buddy.I lost maybe 1/2 of mine to freeze.I always pinched the tops off the onions that were bolting.Don't know if it helps or not,just watched my Dad and Grandpa's do it all my life.


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## Rubberback (Sep 9, 2008)

peckerwood said:


> I feel your pain buddy.I lost maybe 1/2 of mine to freeze.I always pinched the tops off the onions that were bolting.Don't know if it helps or not,just watched my Dad and Grandpa's do it all my life.


I'm pinching thats for sure. My onions were looking good. My patch was hammered by the freeze & I lost some too.


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

I've kind of been expecting that to happen to mine also. A lot of winter plants like cabbage especially seem to bolt quickly when it warms after a freeze.

Always something. Its been a tough winter/spring.


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## B-1 83 (Sep 22, 2009)

Stress will cause it, and all the cold weather caused stress. It's an onion's way of saying "I'm dying!!!!! Time to reproduce!" I wouldn't recommend pinching the tops. If you pinch them totally off it can allow moisture to enter that hollow "stem" and cause a "rot ring" in the onion.


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## donaken (Nov 25, 2010)

*Onions...*

Same here....out of town 4 days....get home....got flowers...suxs
never considered that brown ring from water intrusion...good info...thanks
Shallots anyone :/


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## B-1 83 (Sep 22, 2009)

Just remember: We often think of the onion bulb as a root - it's not (the roots are the spindly things at the very bottom). It's a modified leaf. The green leafy tops are each one connected to one of the rings. Unintended damage to the green leaves can hurt the rings of the bulb.


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## Rubberback (Sep 9, 2008)

I'm bumed. There's no bulb & as mentioned chives anyone. I really look forward to having farm fresh onions every May.


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## whistech (Jul 25, 2005)

Rubberback, when did you plant your onions? Did you plant seeds or buy plants?


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## Mikeyhunts (Jun 4, 2007)

*boltin*

Its funny you mention bolting.
All that hot and cold weather made my broccoli head and bolt WAY early.
Before the plants even got to size.
Onion are still doing great so farâ€¦..knock on wood.


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## Rubberback (Sep 9, 2008)

whistech said:


> Rubberback, when did you plant your onions? Did you plant seeds or buy plants?


First of Dec. They were onion sets.


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## peckerwood (Jun 9, 2012)

I always pinch the blooms off and have never had an onion rot from it.Maybe up here in the far north,by the time they bolt,it doesn't rain anymore.As soon as the sun comes up,I gotta go turn on the soaker hoses.That sucks for this early in the year.


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

Agree, I always pinch also...and they have never rotted....but the bulb size is going to be reduced by the energy put into seeding.


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## redexpress (Apr 5, 2010)

I need a refresher in onion 101. I saw and bought 1015y short day onions the other day. They were 4-6 inches long and had bulbs up to 1/2 inch. When I was planting them I thought this just doesn't seem right. I thought we planted them in the fall when I was a kid, but that was a long time ago! Am I wasting time planting now?


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## whistech (Jul 25, 2005)

Rubberback, I had about half of my red creole onions bolt last year, but not this early. What kind of onions did you plant?


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

redexpress said:


> ... Am I wasting time planting now?


Keep an eye on them. They will be quick to bolt. Plants need to be set out Nov./Dec. and need to be less than 1/4 inch diameter when planted.

In this manner, they should go dormant until spring temps and then make a nice bulb. I learned from Dr. Sam's book that its important to start with sets that are less than 1/4 inch diameter, otherwise bolting is far more likely.


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## redexpress (Apr 5, 2010)

Thanks Meadowlark...it just didn't feel right.....


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## peckerwood (Jun 9, 2012)

Your so right Mr. Lark! I use to hunt for the biggest sets I could find and had he77 with them bolting.A cat on the radio up here named Neil Sperry told a caller one day his big sets would bolt early,so the next planting,I got smaller sets and had the biggest onions of my life.That was maybe 10 years ago,and have had very little bolting since,and those get pinched.


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## cva34 (Dec 22, 2008)

Just to clear up on my vocabulary..Of course This is just an (ole country boy) .I always plant nov/dec and I plant what come in a bundle green tops /straw size (maybe 100/150) price 2/3 Bucks ..What I call SETS are the little onion bulbs(little bigger than marble) (dry no green) usually sold by pound .I never planted them ( not sure when or )...As for Bolting Its a problem now and then ..As said Its this stupid weather pattern I think..Too dry/too cold /then too hot.Keep them Fert nitrogen 21-0-0 about cup per 20ft row down center of wide row with 2 rows of onions per row.Do it every 2/3 weeks tell about 3 weeks from harvest..They need water too


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