Originally Posted by Gopher

In message , uriel13
writes

Gopher;897320 Wrote:
Last November I resolved to make a real effort for our 2010 local flower

show (today) and produce some stonking onions. Just for fun. So I bought

Centurion sets - recommended "for the show bench" - planted a dozen in
large pots filled with a mixture of good loam topsoil, well rotted
manure and sharp sand. They received regular feeding and lots of TLC.
Well, they grew OK but no bigger or better than the rest of the packet
which prospered normally in my normal soil. Nothing spectacular. So I
have entered some Radar into the show. They grew beautifully having been

planted as usual and am waiting for the result right now (the show
doesn't open until 2.30pm). What surprised me when lifting the pot
planted Centurion was that, while the onions themselves were quite
reasonably sized (diameter c. 12 ins.) but not at all "special", the
root systems were enormous. Most had roots exceeding 18 ins long, a vast

system with many of the roots being extremely thick and well developed.

It seemed as if the plant concentrated on growing roots rather than
bulking up the bulb. Any thoughts on what I should do next year to
reverse the process - other than planting them upside down!?
--
Gopher .... I know my place!

Hi Gopher,

Both Onions and Pumpkin benefit from Micorrhizal Fungi, It is sold as
Rootgrow. These fungi attach themselves to the roots of the plant and
deliver much greater amounts of nutrient to the plant. In return the
fungi receive soluble carbon from the plant roots.

The system by which this works is known as symbiosis as in both fungi
and plant benefit from the association.

I have added two links, one to the purchase of Rootgrow and the other to
a site which specifies plants which are Micorrhizal.

I hope that this information helps and look forward to hearing that you
have won something!

'Mycorrhizal fungi, rootgrow, rootgrowprofessional, plantworks'
(Mycorrhizal fungi, rootgrow, rootgrowprofessional, plantworks)

'Plant List | Mycorrhizae: Soil fungi for your plant's root growth'
(Plant List | Mycorrhizae: Soil fungi for your plant's root growth)


Uriel 13


Thanks for this. I have used Rootgrow for a couple of years for shrubs
and other plants which have roots and have found it generally pretty
effective. However I have never tried it for vegetables. Onion sets
don't really have proper roots - just the rounded part at the blunt end
:-)). Have you tried Rootgrow on onion sets with success. I guess
there's no reason why it should not be effective on tray or root-trainer
grown seedlings when planting out, although it's rather an expensive
medium. Have you, or anyone else in the ng used Rootgrow on onion sets
or any vegetable crop with success? It would be very interesting to
know.

BTW, I won a couple of things (inc. for shallots) but nothing for my
onions (the Radar) which were quite big and beautifully shaped but would
not "golden up" in time as I lifted them too late. Next year will be
different!!! ..... ;-))
--
Gopher .... I know my place!