Spring Onion (White Lisbon Seed Tape)
One of the most popular spring onion varieties, much loved for it fast growing, succulent and deliciously mild tasting stems. These versatile spring onions can be used in salads, soups, stir-fries and all sorts of other savoury dishes. Quick and easy to grow, these seeds are pre-sown on a biodegradable seed tape, making sowing quick and efficient and reducing thinning out later on.
Growing Advice
Sow outdoors March to July. Make narrow trenches 1.5cm deep and spaced 15cm apart. Separate and unroll the seed tape and place in the trench. Place soil or a stone on one end and gently pull the tape straight, then carefully cover with fine soil. Keep the soil moist and weed free at all times. Seedlings should start to appear after approximately 14-21 days. If seedlings do happen to get overcrowded then thin the crop as it grows by taking plants evenly from the row. It is good practice to water well after thinning out, to wash any dislodged soil back around the roots of the remaining plants. Sow a new row every 2-3 weeks to extend your harvest period, ensuring there are always perfect, fresh onions available. Early sowings will benefit from cloche protection in cold weather.
Top Tips About Seeds
- Once the seed packet has been opened, the seed tapes can be stored in an airtight container until required for further sowings.
- These seeds are best used fresh and repeated sowing through the summer is highly recommended so they are unlikely to last more than one season.
Spring onions can quite easily be grown in large patio tubs or containers. Especially if just grown for young pencil thick stems. Be sure to keep the compost moist at all times.
Spring onions rarely suffer from any significant problems. Onion fly may possibly attack weak and unhealthy plants but regular watering and weeding should be more than enough to ensure a healthy crop.
Harvest from May to October. Spring onions can be picked and used at any stage of development, from seedlings to mature plants.
Ideas on how to use your Spring Onion
When thinning out just take alternate plants as they start to get overcrowded, allowing the remainder to grow on, these thinnings can be used in the same way as mature plants. It is well worth trimming and then freezing any surplus stems as spring onions keep very well in the freezer and can just be chopped up and used whenever they are required.
David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
Leave A Comment