Salad onions are a versatile veg. Less intense in flavour than your typical onion, they work well raw or as a subtle addition to dishes. Use them whole in salads, or cut to garnish soups and stir fries.
Best of the bunch
We’ve chosen a popular, traditional Japanese type of onion called Ishikura, to sow this year. It can be harvested from June right through to October. Because this variety has such a long picking period, there is rarely any waste. These bunching onions never produce bulbs, and always remain tender.
Little and often
We’ve nurtured 4,000 seedlings in our propagation tunnel, which we’ll sow in regular batches to ensure a continual supply for our organic veg box scheme throughout summer and autumn. They handle stress exceptionally well (even if transplanted to other beds) and if left alone, they can grow as big as leeks!
Mulch on
Salad onions need damp conditions to stay happy. We mulch ours to conserve moisture and improve soil fertility. This has the added bonus of keeping weeds at bay too. The plants need plenty of light and air around them to avoid fungal diseases such as onion downy mildew.
Waste not, want not
Both the whites and greens of salad onions can be used for cooking, the greens are also great raw. However, if the greens have become tough they may be best reserved for the stockpot.
