Need help with onions and garlic

[Trax]

I left a big purple onion and a garlic in a pan to see if they would sprout and they did. But I don't know how to grow onions or garlic. I'd really appreciate any advice I can get. Thanks!

 

[Randy]

I really never had much luck with onions. I managed to grow some, but they were all ready to harvest at the same time and most of them rotted before I could use them. I had good luck with garlic though by planting cloves in the fall and harvesting them when the tops died back in the summer.

 

[Kya D]

Trax I always start my onions from "sets", I have never had luck with growing big ones.
I, like Randy, grow garlic by planting cloves in the fall and harvesting the next summer.
My multiplier onions winter over here but other onions won't take the freezing temps over the winter.

 

[Flower4Yeshua]

here is a great page on the basic's for onions and garlic...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/basics/techniques/growfruitandveg_growingonions1.shtml .

 

[lynpenny]

since it is a large onion that sprouted I would put it in a pot. cover with some soil and watch it grow. I have missed some onions in the fall and had them sprout in the spring and make new onions. try it it could be fun. The garlic should be separated into cloves to plant but maybe if you don't want to try them in the big bulb. like with the onion put it in a pot..... have fun.

 

[Crabbergirl]

I grow both garlic and onions.Now I plant sets for onions and cloves for garlic. Plant in Sept and harvest in May. I have onions successfully grow in the compost from tops and bottoms as well as old onions I just threw out. But I have never purposefully planted them that way. Let us know how this goes for you Josh.Maybe include some pictures

 

[Randy]

Trax, there are some plants that take two years to seed and onions are one of them. You will probably get seeds from that onion if it makes it through your winter.

 

[Trax]

Wow! Thanks guyz! That's a ton of info and I'll def be planting them both tomorrow. I'll separate the garlic cloves too so I get more garlic! 2 years? That's a long time but I'll be trying it anyway. Here's what they look like tonight. The sprouts are getting really big!

Onion and garlic by Trax, on Flickr

 

[Kya D]

It isn't really 2 years...Plant them this fall, winter them over, dig them next fall.
Just remember to save one (or more) really nice heads, break them into cloves and replant the cloves for next year

 

[Crabbergirl]

Def plant the garlic now. It is ready. Break it into cloves , each clove will produce one bulb. Make sure they are in good soil with lots of drainage. They will rot if they get too wet. You can actually plant both in pots. But the garlic is ready to plant by the looks of your picture.