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Many gardeners have learned from personal experience that winter onions planted in the fall grow larger and ripen faster than spring onions. Special cultivation technology makes it possible to obtain a decent harvest of winter vegetables even in difficult climatic conditions. For example, a cold winter is not scary for plants if onions are planted before winter in Siberia correctly and in a timely manner. About when and how plant onions in the fall in this region, and we’ll talk further in the section.
Advantages of the method
Pre-winter sowing of onions has become increasingly popular among gardeners over the years, because the technology truly demonstrates amazing yield results. Winter onions grow large and juicy, they are resistant to diseases and pests, require less attention and are easy to care for. It ripens 2-3 weeks earlier than the onion that was planted in the spring.
Sowing seeds before winter allows you to free up some time for spring sowing of other crops, which can be very important for the farmer. Having planted the seedlings in the ground, you don’t have to worry about storing “capricious” planting material until warmer days, and seeding in the fall costs much less than in the spring. Thus, pre-winter sowing of winter onions has a lot of advantages that every gardener can appreciate if desired.
Winter varieties
Onions are by nature a perennial plant that can successfully winter. But most varieties, after experiencing low temperatures, shoot and do not grow the bulb. That is why breeders offer a number of special varieties that are resistant to wintering. “Shakespeare”, “Radar”, “Stuttgarten Riesen” - these are the varieties that are distinguished by the best qualities and are more often used by gardeners for sowing before winter than others.
Of course, for the conditions of Siberia, it is recommended to choose special varieties of winter onions, but if necessary, each gardener can independently choose the appropriate variety, focusing on the following rules:
- Particularly spicy onion varieties overwinter best.
- The zoned varieties of seedlings are genetically adapted to the existing climatic conditions of the region.
- The most resistant to low temperatures are onion varieties with yellow colored skins.
- “Colored” and sweet onions tend to shoot more often after wintering.
- Early ripening onions have good resistance to freezing.
When choosing a variety for the conditions of Siberia, you should give preference to special winter onions, but if this is not possible, then you can choose a suitable winter-hardy variety of sets yourself, based on the points proposed above and personal preferences.
Optimal timing for planting onions in Siberia
Timely planting of winter onions is the most important condition for successful cultivation of vegetables. At the same time, it is not possible to name the exact timing of planting winter onions in Siberia, since from year to year the weather keeps showing its surprises. But still, it is necessary to highlight some guidelines for determining the optimal planting dates:
- Farmers recommend sowing onions in Siberia in late September - early October. But such terms are only recommendations. In reality, it is necessary to monitor the weather forecast and sow onions in the ground 30-40 days before the arrival of stable frosts.
- After planting onions, the daytime temperature in the region should not rise above +50C. Night temperatures should be at -5...00C. Such conditions will help the sets to take root and will not allow the bulbs to germinate.
Only by assessing the long-term weather forecast can you set the optimal date for planting the seedlings.
Preparing onions for planting
For winter sowing, it is important not only to choose a winter-hardy variety, but also to select the best planting material. Before sowing, the seedlings must be calibrated: large heads can only be sown on 
There should be no signs of damage or rot on the surface of the seeds. Selected onions must be processed three times:
- Soak the seeds in salted water for 20-30 minutes, then rinse with clean liquid to destroy any pests that may be hiding in the husk;
- additionally treat the sowing with a solution of potassium permanganate to reduce the likelihood of developing fungal and putrefactive diseases;
- soak the seeds in the Epin nutrient solution for several hours to activate the growth of the root system.
A set of all measures will help the onion to protect itself from the influence of harmful microflora and successfully take root before the onset of a harsh winter.
The process of processing seedlings is well demonstrated in the video:
The video also describes in detail planting and caring for winter onions.
Site selection and soil preparation
Onions love the sun and warmth; stagnant moisture poses a threat to them. You need to choose a site for growing crops on a well-lit hill or slope. The soil should be light and nutritious. It is preferable to plant seedlings on sandy loam or loam with the addition of organic and mineral fertilizers. If there is heavy soil, additional care should be taken to add sand.
Before planting onions, you should remember what crop grew in this place in the future. Thus, it is not recommended to sow sets in place of carrots, parsley, garlic or onions, since such precursors will negatively affect the sets. If there is a choice, it is preferable to sow onions in a place where tomatoes, legumes or cabbage previously grew.
The area for sowing should be prepared 2-3 weeks before sowing. Soil preparation consists of digging (loosening) the soil and applying fertilizers. Depending on the initial soil fertility, you can add 3-6 kg of humus and 20-25 g of double superphosphate per 1 m2 as fertilizer2 soil. Potassium salt in an amount of 10-15 g/m can be a potassium fertilizer for seedlings.2. You can replace chemical potassium-phosphorus fertilizer with wood ash. For onions, this natural fertilizer can be added in large quantities throughout the entire growing period.
It is necessary to form ridges from the prepared soil. Their height should be approximately 20 cm.Higher hills can provoke freezing of the seedlings, and on low ridges with the arrival of spring warmth the seedlings may freeze out.
The beds should stand empty for some time so that the soil on them is compacted and saturated with nutrients. That is why it is recommended to prepare them in advance of planting the sets.
How to plant onions before winter
With that when to plant onions Before winter, we figured it out, determined how to prepare the planting material and site, which means now is the time to understand exactly how to plant onions in the fall in Siberia.
At first glance, there is nothing difficult about planting seedlings in the ground, but failure to follow certain rules can lead to a significant reduction in yield, so it would be useful to recall the following nuances:
- In the beds you need to make grooves 5 cm deep. A larger layer of soil will not allow the seedlings to sprout in the spring; a layer of soil thinner than 4-5 cm will contribute to freezing of the planting material.
- The distances between the grooves should not be less than 15-20 cm.
- The distance between the bulbs in one row should be 5-7 cm.
It is the proposed dimensions for placing planting material that make it possible to obtain maximum crop yield while occupying a minimum area of land.
After planting, the seedlings need to be buried with soil. If there has been no rain over the past few days and the soil is dry, the crops must be watered. It is a sufficient level of moisture in the soil that guarantees successful rooting of the seedlings.
To prevent freezing, the beds with seedlings need to be mulched. Peat, straw, and dry leaves can be used as mulch. Sealed polyethylene cannot be used to cover beds. It does not allow moisture to pass through and promotes damping off of planting material.Only with the onset of severe frosts can black geotextiles be placed on top of the ridge, which will also prevent the sets from freezing. An artificial cap of snow on the garden bed can provide additional protection from the harsh Siberian frosts.
With the arrival of spring warmth, the shelter and mulch must be removed. As soon as the soil warms up, the green feathers of the set will break through the soil. At this time, you need to loosen the crops and sprinkle the soil with ashes. You can speed up the process of growing green feathers by spraying onions with a biological product, for example, “Shine-1”, “Epin”.
Sometimes, for various reasons, some winter onions may suffer in winter and not sprout. In this case, in the spring, empty areas of soil must be reseeded with fresh seedlings.
Caring for winter onions is quite simple: after the snow melts, the soil is saturated with moisture and does not require additional watering. Thanks to this, the onion quickly develops and grows the turnip from the first warm days. In the summer, you should not use a large amount of organic matter or nitrogen mineral fertilizers; for successful growth, seedlings, as a rule, only need those substances that were added to the soil in the fall.
Planting onions in the fall, as a rule, does not cause any difficulties for the farmer. A lot of free time allows you to correctly and timely prepare the soil, select and process planting material. Having sowed the seedlings and reliably covered the ridges from frost, you don’t have to think about its safety, since winter and frost-resistant varieties can successfully withstand temperatures down to -180C. Such conditions are unlikely to occur under thick mulch even in severe frost.Already with the arrival of the first warmth of spring, you can expect the appearance of greenery and enjoy a healthy, natural salad. By the end of summer, the winter onion harvest will be well ripened, which means the heads will be successfully stored. Thus, sowing onions before winter has many advantages that farmers, including those in Siberia, should definitely take advantage of.
