I have a few bulb onions in the ground. It's the first year they might be successful after trying for two years. I have yet to see how they turn out. What I did was, in the Summer I planted them indoors, then in August I transplanted them outside. Some started to grow small Onion bulbs. I moved them to a more suitable spot that I felt would be good for them, and I'm seeing if they will survive the Winter.

I'm not sure if that's how you should be doing it in your climate. I'm just basically doing it the same way I do Garlic by overwintering them to harvest in the following Summer.

Are you planting seeds, onion plants, or onion sets? If seeds then yes, I start them indoors in December and transplant them to the garden as soon as the soil can be worked which is usually early to mid-February here. If I buy some plants I only buy short day varieties and plant them about the same time. The earlier the better.

If you haven't read through all the great growing onions info at the Dixondale Farms onion site it is well worth the time. They are recognized authorities.

Dave

I don't have much experience, but I will share what I have.
Two years ago, I put out some Onion Sets that I bought in the garden department of Wally World. I planted them in the late spring. Alot of them did poorly, a few did mediocre. None did well. They started rotting quickly after picking because I didn't know to cure them before storing.
This year, I bought Onion Starts from a local garden center and planted them very early in the spring. I mulched them lightly with straw. They did great! They bulbed up beautifully at the appropriate time and at the end of their life cycle the leaves started drying and falling over. I pulled them and cured them outside under the shade of a light cloth. They tasted wonderful-juicy and sweet!
So- I recommend onion starts over sets because they just seem to love life more. Make sure they get to live through the long days of summer to get the best bulb size. And curing and storing correctly to get the best storage life is a must. I didn't have a cool enough place to keep mine, so many started growing. I chopped and froze the remainders.
This next spring, I will start mine from seed. I can't wait to get them started.

Lynn

Onions are pretty easy. They require lots of water and nitrogen, but other than that are not very finicky. I concur with the others that plants are the easiest way to grow. I lived for many years in zone 6 southwest Virginia and grew Spanish types with great success. Here in Georgia I have to grow short day (Granex, Grano types) Don't know where you are in zone 6 but your summers should be cool enough for some long day Spanish types or day neutral types like Candy or red Candy Apple. If you wish to go with seeds, start them about 8 weeks before transplanting time. Just barely stick them into the soil, an onion won't bulb properly if the bulb is covered. Sets are good for green onions, but they are all long day storage onions with a great tendency to bolt.
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Onions are biennial plants. They produce seeds in their second year of life.

Onion sets are dormant onion bulbs which were harvested small. When you plant them they begin their second year of growth. Sets are useful for scallions but not for large onion bulbs.

For large onions, plant seedlings. You can buy seedlings or you can grow your own indoors from seed. Start early, say January. Little onion seedlings don't look like much. They sort of resemble blades of grass but they will grow into large plants after you set them out.

Jim

What do you call a third year onion?

I had this year, and I know which of mine were originally plants and sets, some that down with the potatoes and growing this spring so rather than throw them on the compost heap I replanted them.
Now they act differently from more normal onions as they do their thing slowly.
They were the first in and last ones I pulled, I cut the flowers off earlier and they were all multiples of two to three kinda-sorta bulbs.

They were very strong in flavour just the way I like them.

Onions need to be transplanted as soon in the spring as feasible...very important.

I find that my onions size up better in heavier soil. The red ones I have tried have not done or kept as well as white ones do.

To get onions like this:
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I grow them like this:
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Dixondale plants, pure aged horse manure, lots of water from drip lines, no weed competition with black plastic. No weeds is the most important.

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This onion was from 2007.

Adrock, many of we Zone 6-ers are having great luck with Japanese onions, sown in the fall and overwintered under row cover. They bulb in May and store until December, and add to onion diversity in a great way. Varieties include Bridger, TopKeeper, Desert Sunrise and a few others.

Also shallots from seed, started in January, rarely behave badly in the garden and the shallots store for a really long time.

Last year my favorite bulb onion, started from seed in early Feb, was White Star from Fedco. Milano, a top-shaped red from Johnny's, also did well in what was a pretty poor onion year.

I've planted both purchased seedlings and seedlings I start in January. The seedlings I start myself begin smaller but catch up rapidly.

For larger onions, I plant 6-8" apart. Lots of food and water.

I've always had good luck with yellow flat onion sets, which are the easiest for me to handle. Seeds don't grow enough to attain size by the end of the year for me, transplants also don't do as well. Sets are so easy because they just have to be planted--no thinning, the plants have the strength to compete with seedling weeds and are easy to tell apart.

I've planted ones from Wally World, but they usually didn't perform as well as sets I got from the farm supply store. I plant as early as I can, which is usually the first half of May--I can easily get them in the ground in late March, but cannot irrigate until early May so that sets my planting date.

The key has always been not to let them get too dry--a good irrigation once a week works well, 2 weeks is too long (I rarely get natural rainfall). I will typically get onions that are 2-5+ inches in diameter, typically 4".

I've always had good luck with yellow flat onion sets,

Yes those will work well in your zone 4 but not for those of us in zone 6 or more as sets are all long-day varieties.

Dave

I think you meant your lattitude, not your zone, since I am in zone 7 but can still do long day onions because I am at 38 or 39�, while Little Rock is at more like 34�... Which I know you know, just putting it out there for anyone else who doesn't yet know :)

Thank you for all the great responses. I had no idea that such an early start time (mid-jan) would be required, but I look forward to giving that a shot.

Garlic and bunching onions have worked well for me because they are overwintered. For that reason, I'm really interested in Japanese onions, I was really hoping overwintering was an option.

Thanks again everyone and happy new year! - Adam