onions & stem rot
 

I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.
What have I done wrong?I was really pleased by the onions I got but have
lost most of them, I would like to grow them next year as apart from this
found them a easy & enjoyable crop to grow.
Thanks Keith

onions & stem rot
 

"keith ;-)" wrote in message
...
I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.
What have I done wrong?I was really pleased by the onions I got but have
lost most of them, I would like to grow them next year as apart from this
found them a easy & enjoyable crop to grow.
Thanks Keith


Talking about onions...did anyone see the 16 1/2 pounder at the Harrogate
show this year....a beauty...a world record///////H

onions & stem rot
 

"keith ;-)" wrote in message
...
I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.
What have I done wrong?I was really pleased by the onions I got but have
lost most of them, I would like to grow them next year as apart from this
found them a easy & enjoyable crop to grow.
Thanks Keith


I would say leave them to fully dry off, ie until the stem leaves are brown
and crisp, before stringing them up.

Your shed may also be a bit on the damp side, sheds are like that. And you
have to keep checking them for any which are going soft or mouldy etc, as
they infect the rest. I'm assuming you didn't use any chemical
pesticides/fungicides on them, therefore they aren't pest/fungus proof.

Steve

onions & stem rot
 

keith ;-) wrote:
I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.

Already? I am incredibly lazy about dealing with onions, and leave some
in the ground for ages after I ought to take them up. Usually the ones
hidden under the foliage of other crops. Provided they are allowed to
ripen off in the sun I have never had a problem. And I just put the
bulbs in redundant hanging baskets to store in the garage.

The odd one I miss completely gets to flower the following year...

What have I done wrong?I was really pleased by the onions I got but have
lost most of them, I would like to grow them next year as apart from this
found them a easy & enjoyable crop to grow.

They should grow easily, and provided you let the bulbs ripen properly
in the sun keep for ages and ages (at least March-April). Unless you
have nasty onion white rot and then all bets are off.

Regards,
Martin Brown

onions & stem rot
 

"keith wrote
I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.
What have I done wrong?I was really pleased by the onions I got but have
lost most of them, I would like to grow them next year as apart from this
found them a easy & enjoyable crop to grow.

We do as you do except we always cut the stems off, like in the shops, so
the air can dry them out properly and store them in proper onion sacks. We
have never had any stems rot on ours other than when they have been eaten
into by Leek Moth.
White Rot in another matter!

--
Regards
Bob
In Runnymede, 17 miles West of London

onions & stem rot
 

"keith ;-)" wrote in message
...
I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem
rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems
over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to
dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping
them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.
What have I done wrong?
They weren't dry enough - we have a problem in late summer here in N.
Wales, it's usually too wet to dry them properly outdoors and to add
insult to injury our land is infected with White Rot as well so once
the onions have reached a useable size, at the first sign of impending
rain we lift them and lay them out on a low wall in the cold
greenhouse to finish ripening. We clean them up in odd moments during
that time and string them up after several weeks. That way we keep
them until about April when we usually run out of onions.

--
Rod

My real address is rodtheweedygardeneratmyweedyisp
Just remove the weedy bits
and transplant the appropriate symbol at.

onions & stem rot
 

"Rod Craddock" wrote in message
...
"keith ;-)" wrote in message
...
I have lost all but a few of my stuttgarter giant & red baron to stem
rot,
mould on top of onions were the stem is.I bent some of the stems
over &
others let die back on there own.Then left them on the surface to
dry for
week or so.After I tied them by there stems and have been keeping
them
hanging in the shed.But they have slowly deteriorated.
What have I done wrong?
They weren't dry enough - we have a problem in late summer here in N.
Wales, it's usually too wet to dry them properly outdoors and to add
insult to injury our land is infected with White Rot as well so once
the onions have reached a useable size, at the first sign of impending
rain we lift them and lay them out on a low wall in the cold
greenhouse to finish ripening. We clean them up in odd moments during
that time and string them up after several weeks. That way we keep
them until about April when we usually run out of onions.

--
Rod

My real address is rodtheweedygardeneratmyweedyisp
Just remove the weedy bits
and transplant the appropriate symbol at.

Thanks All for the advise,I will leave them to die back/dry for longer
next year before lifting .
Thanks Keith