crows pull out corn plants to eat the seed. crows are curious and smart but i'd assume they would leave onions alone.

what about a vole or mole? i doubt they'd pick on just 6 out of 270 but i wonder if they'd push them out due to the smell. does it look like something pushed the soil up from below?

this is a good one and i'd be curious to know what is happening. are you sure there are no foot prints?

maybe other bird? the damned finches peck the crap out of my broccoli heads. they started this 3 seasons ago and never touched it prior to that. it is so bad i have to cover the plants to stop them. i made a pcv cage and drape bird netting over it. it is a pain but it works.

tom

Good thoughts Tom! I don't see any visible signs of animals, either below ground or above, but I have to believe they are somehow involved (either that or onions can fly!). If it is small animals like birds, squirrels, chipmonks etc, then I probably would not see the footprints, even in this fresh bed. What is perplexing is the lack of damage to the onion plants - why pull them out and not take a nibble?

I'll keep a close eye. It's raining today, so tomorrow I'll carefully inspect.

Thanks,

TomNJ

Just checked my onions after a full day of heavy rain, and no escape attempts! Apparently rain is not a factor. At least no one is touching my beautiful garlic plants - that would be suicide!

TomNJ

squirrels are sobs. they dig in the shredded leaves used in the garlic bed as mulch. i had to put chicken wire on the bed to stop them from digging in it last fall. i removed it about 3/9 and no lie in an hour the sobs were digging in the mulch! they stopped when the wire was there but they saw the change and immediately went back to digging in it. so i had to put it back until the plants emerged. it is off for a few weeks and now if they return i go outside and yell at them and they leave. it's odd they seldom bother the mulch now after i went out clapping my hands and yelling from 80' away about 5 times. now the plants are 6" tall and maybe that is why they have not been back for a week.

i know that does not help you but shows how clever they are. i wouldn't put it past a squirrel to pull out onions tho they never have bothered mine. small, light no foot prints.

tom

Hmmmm...and I've been hand feeding nuts to the little buggers. I'll keep my eyes peeled.

BTW, I was short on hay for mulching one of my garlic beds last fall, so I used 2-3" chopped leaves plus 1" of hay. When I noticed only half in this bed were up through the mulch last week, I began digging and found the other half - growing sideways or twisted, unable to poke through the leaves. I cleared them a path and they have all recovered, but no more chopped leaves for me.

I've used leaves successfully before - perhaps these were not chopped enough - but hay always works.

TomNJ

Tomnj or Tom at what size were your transplants.Mine are about size of toothpick and was wondering if i should just plant-or my concern is hard rains like we had yesterday.Thanks for reply if you see this you both have been helpfull.

My plants were about 5-6" long and pencil thickness when I put them out a week ago. Toothpick size sounds a bit delicate and you may want to wait until after a heavy rain, if one is in the immediate forecast. But I wouldn't wait beyond about mid April.

TomNJ

mine are an 1/8" in diameter and just trimmed back to 2.5" from 4". you need to start them early enough so that they are good sized at plant out time. i consider mine a good size now but i'll wait as i need to rototill and it's rained every day for a week with a dry day. today was dry but very cold, no drying. i start mine 2/15 and put out 4/20, you should be a good week ahead of me maybe 2 weeks.

tom

====>I was short on hay for mulching one of my garlic beds last fall, so I used 2-3" chopped leaves plus 1" of hay. When I noticed only half in this bed were up through the mulch last week, I began digging and found the other half - growing sideways or twisted, unable to poke through the leaves.

you have to use finely shredded leaves like tiny pieces not a leaf that is quartered and forget whole leaves, i had the same problem last year with whole leaves.

mine has come thru salt marsh hay (2") and shredded leaves (6").

tom

Tom nj More than likly night crawlers are pulling your onions out of the ground. Are some of them up side down with their roots sticking up drug part way down a worm hole? I have had this problem before. Once they take root the crawlers can't pull them out. YOPPER

Wow Yopper - I think you nailed it! One plant was actually upside down with roots up and green partially underground. I have MANY worms after so many years of using compost. That also explains the lack of damage to the plants and perhaps the greater activity after rains.

Thanks!

Tom

Concur, I have experienced the same problems with night crawlers. Especially when the onion leaves have brown tips, They will grab the tip and try to pull them into the ground, pulling up the seedling in the process. No real cure except time, as soon they take hold and start growing, they won't bother them further.

Now that I solved your up side down onion problem could you send me some warm weather I still have 4 inches of snow on my garden YOPPER

wow! i never would have guessed night crawlers! so ordinary earthworms are too small to do this? it is only night crawlers?

yopper it snowed most of the day here but the ground is too warm for it to stick. i am surprised you have so much snow still. from the picture you sent me a couple of years ago, your garden appears to be out in full sun - no shade from trees. is that true? or is the snow in an area that is shaded by bare tree branches or evergreens?

tom

Yopper - I just placed the order to ship warm weather to the U.P. It should be arriving shortly! If not, just let me know and I'll send the tracking number ;-)

TomNJ

Tom Ct. We got snow in Nov. and the ground has been white sence then. No shade just a long winter! Tom Nj. The weather guesser said your shippment should be here by the weekend. THANKS YOPPER

===>We got snow in Nov. and the ground has been white sence then.

wow, now that's WINTER! i envy you but is your growing season long enough for tomatoes? i sent some seeds to the minnesota, michigan, wisconsin areas and some people had poor results as their summer was too short or too cold. do you know the latitude you are at? if not what is the closest town if you do not wish to tell your town. i'd like to check your latitude.

tom

Tom I'am about 15 miles south of Sault St. Marie Mi. on Neebish Island in the st. marys river. Yes I can grow tomatos. I grow them on black plastic, it lasts 4 or 5 yrs.when it gets old and falls apart I take it up and put a big load of manure on,till it in,put down new plastic,poke holes in it and I,am good to go for another 4or 5 yrs.Earl [Earl's faux] from south east Ohio sent me a bunch of seed a few yrs.ago that were open pollenated and mostly early.I plant mostly MOSCOVICH. The EARL'S FAUX does good on a good year,not so good in a bad year,but are worth the gamble as you can't beat them for taste. YOPPER

yopper,

if anyone asks you, now you can tell them that you are located at 46.48°N 84.37°W.

46.48° north is pretty far north! fort kent maine is at 47.25°N and iirc that's the most northern point in maine and maine extends north much more than vermont or new hampshire. so you really are far north. i'm surprised you can grow tomatoes because i'd think your growing season is so short and nights even in summer are probably pretty cool. i wonder if being on an island in the middle of a river moderates your temperatures? lakes are huge heat sinks and can raise the local temperature when it's colder in the area.

when i say grow tomatoes i mean get good tasting tomatoes. cold nights and days ruin the taste of tomatoes. earl's faux is an outstanding tomato, i also got seeds from earl and after a few years not growing it i am again this year.

i have found several tomatoes that are on par or better than earl's faux and that's not a put down of earl's faux as it is 1 of my top rated tomatoes! are you big into tomatoes or just so so, most any garden tomato is good? i don't recall seeing you at the various tomato bulletin boards.

tom

Tom I plant about 6 doz.tomatos.I plant 2or3 new ones every yr. trying to find some thing better.The wife cans a lot of tomatos.The summers seem to be getting longer and hotter on the average. Good gardening to ya YOPPER