Spider wrote:

"michael" wrote in message
...
I have bought some Hative de Niort shallots this year and they
performed badly due to my very dry soil this year,and produced quite
small bulbs.They were very expensive(5 bulbs for ?5)so I would like to
see if I can grow them on to obtain some seed.Could someone tell me
how to achieve this?
Thanks,Michael


If they flowered, and you still have the flower heads, they will contain
seed .. or the seed will already have fallen on to the soil. If they
sprout, don't msitake them for grass (it's been done!) and pull them up; let
them grow on, either in situ or pot them up.

If there were no flowers, or the flowers have been composted, then you've
lost your chance for this year.

Shallots are usually propagated by just retaining and planting some of the
shallot bulbs. Each shallot grows and divides into 6-10 new bulbs, retain
the most vigorous bulbs clumps, divide and plant for next years harvest.
Consume the rest.

If you get some flowering, then there will likely be true seed in the
flower heads along with small "bulblets" (I don't know the techincal term)
that are not true seed, but are vegatitive and if grown on will be like
their "parent". If you sow the seed, then what you get depends on the
parents were - you are not guaranteed to get shallots like the parent that
produced the flower. If the only shallots around to pollinate were all
alike, then you should be ok, sort of.

Growing from seed or bulblets, takes an extra season to get reasonably
sized bulbs, which is why most people don't do it.

Garlic and Leeks are similar, producing seeds and "bulblets" on their
flower head. I've not found bulblets in Onion seed heads.