Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask as
ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that problem
before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh crates so the
air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as usual before
storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and the
Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our red
onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

Bob Hobden wrote:
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask as
ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that problem
before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh crates so the
air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as usual before
storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and the
Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our red
onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

Hmm, not noticed ours being any worse than normal, but that could be cos
last year was awful, so this may just be an improvement on that. I've had a
couple of mouldy ones, but no more than about 20-25% so far, and we always
use the dodgy looking ones first, so hopefully those left will be better.

Last year we got hit by white rot something terrible. :-(

wrote in message
...
Bob Hobden wrote:
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask
as
ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that
problem
before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh crates so
the
air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as usual before
storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and
the
Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our red
onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

Hmm, not noticed ours being any worse than normal, but that could be cos
last year was awful, so this may just be an improvement on that. I've had
a
couple of mouldy ones, but no more than about 20-25% so far, and we always
use the dodgy looking ones first, so hopefully those left will be better.

Last year we got hit by white rot something terrible. :-(



No problems here - I find the stringing or platting storage techniques give
the best results.
I would not consider plastic crates satisfactory for long term storage -
handy for transportation
and initial high temp drying only.

Regards
Pete
www.thecanalshop.com

Pete wrote:
No problems here - I find the stringing or platting storage techniques give
the best results.
I would not consider plastic crates satisfactory for long term storage -
handy for transportation
and initial high temp drying only.

Mine are all plaited or stringed. My neighbour swears by ladies' tights.

I've found I'm also an awful lot more likely to bother using them if they
are in view in the kitchen! Being in the vegetable drawer (which is now
empty as things either sprout or get forgotten about and turn to rock!) or
even worse, out in the summer house, it's just Too Much Effort. But if
they're right there and looking at me ... !

"Pete" wrote ...
wrote
Bob Hobden wrote:
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask
as
ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that
problem
before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh crates so
the
air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as usual before
storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and
the
Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our red
onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

Hmm, not noticed ours being any worse than normal, but that could be cos
last year was awful, so this may just be an improvement on that. I've
had a
couple of mouldy ones, but no more than about 20-25% so far, and we
always
use the dodgy looking ones first, so hopefully those left will be better.

Last year we got hit by white rot something terrible. :-(



No problems here - I find the stringing or platting storage techniques
give the best results.
I would not consider plastic crates satisfactory for long term storage -
handy for transportation
and initial high temp drying only.

Our problem with stringing or simply hanging them all up is the weight
pulling on the roof, we use a lot of onions, grow a lot of onions, they are
not small, and they normally last almost all year. This year they certainly
wont last until Christmas (only 11 weeks!).
--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...

Our problem with stringing or simply hanging them all up is the weight
pulling on the roof, we use a lot of onions, grow a lot of onions, they
are not small, and they normally last almost all year. This year they
certainly wont last until Christmas (only 11 weeks!).
--

Yes - ours are going fast too - mainly as support contents for home - made
soups.

You could avoid much of the stress on the roof, by suspending the strings
from wall fixtures.

This is the method I adopt, but I only perhaps have a relatively small
amount as compared with you.

Regards
Pete
www.thecanalshop.com

In article , says...

Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask as
ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that problem
before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh crates so the
air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as usual before
storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and the
Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our red
onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

Only just got round to storing mine properly, they been sitting on an
old sheet in the garage drying for the last several weeks!

Noticed that some look slightly brown round the root area, which is
unusual, will watch and see what happens.

I store them in old plastic (carrot i think) nets.

Roger T

"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask
as ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that
problem before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh
crates so the air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as
usual before storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and
the Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our red
onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

We've had a lot of problems with our onions from the allotment. They seemed
to develop a white mould, and even when left to dry in the sun many of them
have been going rotten. I often have to cut out large bits to find a good
bit when I'm cooking.

Worse still, our leeks on the allotment have failed for the first time ever.
Most of them have got a sort of rot which makes them basically inedible. We
have harvested a few small ones, but the rest get a brown streak and then
rot. It's not just us, it's everybody on our allotments. Must be some
virus or something going round.

OTOH, the apples have been fantastic, we're making about 200 gallons of
cider in our local cider group, plus here at home I have 8 gallons of
different wines on the go - apple, grape, and elderberry.

What a year - and my loquat tree (planted from a seed) is flowering for the
second time ever.

"someone" wrote
"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask
as ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had that
problem before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in plastic mesh
crates so the air can circulate around them and they seemed as dry as
usual before storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away and
the Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot of our
red onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting internally.

We've had a lot of problems with our onions from the allotment. They
seemed to develop a white mould, and even when left to dry in the sun many
of them have been going rotten. I often have to cut out large bits to
find a good bit when I'm cooking.

Worse still, our leeks on the allotment have failed for the first time
ever. Most of them have got a sort of rot which makes them basically
inedible. We have harvested a few small ones, but the rest get a brown
streak and then rot. It's not just us, it's everybody on our allotments.
Must be some virus or something going round.

OTOH, the apples have been fantastic, we're making about 200 gallons of
cider in our local cider group, plus here at home I have 8 gallons of
different wines on the go - apple, grape, and elderberry.

What a year - and my loquat tree (planted from a seed) is flowering for
the second time ever.
Sound like you have White Rot in your ground. In which case you will have it
for ever unless you use drastic measures. (Sterilise the soil)
We also have it but because we plant our onions 9 inches apart it tends to
be restricted to one or two in a row, it does not spread through the row.
The onions also grow bigger BTW. Might also be Downy Mildew so have a look
on Google and see.
Leeks, could be Leek Moth especially as all on the site are affected.
Important to pull up all unused plants and get rid of them as I understand
the moth overwinter on old leeks. They usually grow through an attack
though. I have known them also attacked by White Rot but they usually don't
suffer as much as onions but then again you usually plant them further
apart.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

In message , Bob Hobden
writes


"someone" wrote
"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask
as ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had
that problem before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in
plastic mesh crates so the air can circulate around them and they
seemed as dry as usual before storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown away
and the Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly. A lot
of our red onions have had mould growing on them as well as rotting
internally.

We've had a lot of problems with our onions from the allotment. They
seemed to develop a white mould, and even when left to dry in the sun
many of them have been going rotten. I often have to cut out large
bits to find a good bit when I'm cooking.

Worse still, our leeks on the allotment have failed for the first
time ever. Most of them have got a sort of rot which makes them
basically inedible. We have harvested a few small ones, but the rest
get a brown streak and then rot. It's not just us, it's everybody on
our allotments. Must be some virus or something going round.

OTOH, the apples have been fantastic, we're making about 200 gallons
of cider in our local cider group, plus here at home I have 8 gallons
of different wines on the go - apple, grape, and elderberry.

What a year - and my loquat tree (planted from a seed) is flowering
for the second time ever.
Sound like you have White Rot in your ground. In which case you will
have it for ever unless you use drastic measures. (Sterilise the soil)
We also have it but because we plant our onions 9 inches apart it tends
to be restricted to one or two in a row, it does not spread through the
row. The onions also grow bigger BTW. Might also be Downy Mildew so
have a look on Google and see.
Leeks, could be Leek Moth especially as all on the site are affected.
Important to pull up all unused plants and get rid of them as I
understand the moth overwinter on old leeks. They usually grow through
an attack though. I have known them also attacked by White Rot but they
usually don't suffer as much as onions but then again you usually plant
them further apart.

I returned from a week's hols l2 weeks ago to find my leeks cut down to
ground level. No leaves or foliage left. Then I got a call from the girl
who had looked after our garden while we were absent. She told me she
felt awful but she had cut down the leeks but they had been hit by Leek
Moth. I had noticed a slight rusty tinge before we left but didn't think
too much of it. Anyway, the leeks are still growing and doing so
beautifully. It seems that the grubs hadn't got right down inside so our
crop seems assured - if slightly more stunted than anticipated. However,
we will probably lift them earlier than normal and give the ground a
thorough digging to expose any eggs laid in the soil to the frost.

We've never had a problem other than with White butterflies caterpillars
but this year we also got hit with Cabbage Root Fly. I blame Gordon
Brown!

Moral is ...... have someone who knows what they're doing look after
your garden when you go on holiday!
--
Gopher .... I know my place!

In message , Gopher
writes
In message , Bob Hobden
writes


"someone" wrote
"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
Anyone else having a problem with their onions in store this year? I ask
as ours are going rotten at an alarming rate and we have never had
that problem before, ever. They are being stored as usual, in
plastic mesh crates so the air can circulate around them and they
seemed as dry as usual before storage.
The Stuttgarter Giants we grew have almost all had to be thrown
away and the Sturons are also suffering but nowhere near as badly.
A lot of our red onions have had mould growing on them as well as
rotting internally.

We've had a lot of problems with our onions from the allotment. They
seemed to develop a white mould, and even when left to dry in the sun
many of them have been going rotten. I often have to cut out large
bits to find a good bit when I'm cooking.

Worse still, our leeks on the allotment have failed for the first
time ever. Most of them have got a sort of rot which makes them
basically inedible. We have harvested a few small ones, but the
rest get a brown streak and then rot. It's not just us, it's
everybody on our allotments. Must be some virus or something going round.

OTOH, the apples have been fantastic, we're making about 200 gallons
of cider in our local cider group, plus here at home I have 8
gallons of different wines on the go - apple, grape, and elderberry.

What a year - and my loquat tree (planted from a seed) is flowering
for the second time ever.
Sound like you have White Rot in your ground. In which case you will
have it for ever unless you use drastic measures. (Sterilise the soil)
We also have it but because we plant our onions 9 inches apart it
tends to be restricted to one or two in a row, it does not spread
through the row. The onions also grow bigger BTW. Might also be Downy
Mildew so have a look on Google and see.
Leeks, could be Leek Moth especially as all on the site are affected.
Important to pull up all unused plants and get rid of them as I
understand the moth overwinter on old leeks. They usually grow through
an attack though. I have known them also attacked by White Rot but
they usually don't suffer as much as onions but then again you usually
plant them further apart.

I returned from a week's hols l2 weeks ago to find my leeks cut down to
ground level. No leaves or foliage left. Then I got a call from the
girl who had looked after our garden while we were absent. She told me
she felt awful but she had cut down the leeks but they had been hit by
Leek Moth. I had noticed a slight rusty tinge before we left but didn't
think too much of it. Anyway, the leeks are still growing and doing so
beautifully. It seems that the grubs hadn't got right down inside so
our crop seems assured - if slightly more stunted than anticipated.
However, we will probably lift them earlier than normal and give the
ground a thorough digging to expose any eggs laid in the soil to the frost.

We've never had a problem other than with White butterflies
caterpillars but this year we also got hit with Cabbage Root Fly. I
blame Gordon Brown!

Moral is ...... have someone who knows what they're doing look after
your garden when you go on holiday!


Apologies .... I returned 2 weeks ago, not 12!
--
Gopher .... I know my place!

Gopher wrote:
In message , Bob Hobden
writes
[...]
Leeks, could be Leek Moth especially as all on the site are affected.
Important to pull up all unused plants and get rid of them as I
understand the moth overwinter on old leeks. They usually grow
through an attack though. I have known them also attacked by White
Rot but they usually don't suffer as much as onions but then again
you usually plant them further apart.

I returned from a week's hols l2 weeks ago to find my leeks cut down
to ground level. No leaves or foliage left. Then I got a call from
the girl who had looked after our garden while we were absent. She
told me she felt awful but she had cut down the leeks but they had
been hit by Leek Moth. I had noticed a slight rusty tinge before we
left but didn't think too much of it. Anyway, the leeks are still
growing and doing so beautifully. It seems that the grubs hadn't got
right down inside so our crop seems assured - if slightly more
stunted than anticipated. However, we will probably lift them earlier
than normal and give the ground a thorough digging to expose any eggs
laid in the soil to the frost.
[...]

Would it be worth protecting leeks with fleece or Flowerdew's
jumble-sale net curtains?

--
Mike.

On 8 Oct, 10:17, "Mike Lyle"
wrote:
Gopher wrote:
In message , Bob Hobden
writes
[...]
Leeks, could be Leek Moth especially as all on the site are affected.
Important to pull up all unused plants and get rid of them as I
understand the moth overwinter on old leeks. They usually grow
through an attack though. I have known them also attacked by White
Rot but they usually don't suffer as much as onions but then again
you usually plant them further apart.

I returned from a week's hols l2 weeks ago to find my leeks cut down
to ground level. No leaves or foliage left. Then I got a call from
the girl who had looked after our garden while we were absent. She
told me she felt awful but she had cut down the leeks but they had
been hit by Leek Moth. I had noticed a slight rusty tinge before we
left but didn't think too much of it. Anyway, the leeks are still
growing and doing so beautifully. It seems that the grubs hadn't got
right down inside so our crop seems assured - if slightly more
stunted than anticipated. However, we will probably lift them earlier
than normal and give the ground a thorough digging to expose any eggs
laid in the soil to the frost.

[...]

Would it be worth protecting leeks with fleece or Flowerdew's
jumble-sale net curtains?

--
Mike.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

2nd try at posting this, first posted 2 days ago but it was bounced.

Sounds very like Onion neck rot which used to be the scurge of British
Onion growers, and was why you seldom saw a british onion in the shops
much after Feb. after that it was almost all Spanish Onions,
With a lot of reserch and the development of new onion varieties,
changes in cultural methods and new chemicals it has almost
dissapeared from commercial onion growing in the UK.
Have a look at http://plant-disease.ippc.orst.edu/d...m?RecordID=753

"Mike Lyle" wrote
Gopher wrote:
Bob Hobden writes
[...]
Leeks, could be Leek Moth especially as all on the site are affected.
Important to pull up all unused plants and get rid of them as I
understand the moth overwinter on old leeks. They usually grow
through an attack though. I have known them also attacked by White
Rot but they usually don't suffer as much as onions but then again
you usually plant them further apart.

I returned from a week's hols l2 weeks ago to find my leeks cut down
to ground level. No leaves or foliage left. Then I got a call from
the girl who had looked after our garden while we were absent. She
told me she felt awful but she had cut down the leeks but they had
been hit by Leek Moth. I had noticed a slight rusty tinge before we
left but didn't think too much of it. Anyway, the leeks are still
growing and doing so beautifully. It seems that the grubs hadn't got
right down inside so our crop seems assured - if slightly more
stunted than anticipated. However, we will probably lift them earlier
than normal and give the ground a thorough digging to expose any eggs
laid in the soil to the frost.
[...]

Would it be worth protecting leeks with fleece or Flowerdew's jumble-sale
net curtains?

In a garden, maybe, but out on an allotment I've found fleece not so useful.
Animals (foxes) rip it to shreds, it gets blown away....
I'm convinced that Derris works on Leek Moth if sprayed right down into the
plants.
--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

"Martin" wrote ...
"Bob Hobden" wrote:
In a garden, maybe, but out on an allotment I've found fleece not so
useful.
Animals (foxes) rip it to shreds, it gets blown away....

On the plus side a fox eats wabbits and other veg eaters.

We have a fox that sleeps in the sun on one of the black sheets of plastic
covering an unused allotment.

Don't get me wrong, I wish we had foxes on our site, instead we have a
serious rabbit problem. I also wish the locals were cat lovers not dog
lovers then we would not have the mice/rat problem either. It's the two
things about our old allotment I miss, however I do not miss the mindless
vandalism on that site.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK