When growing onions, it is important to know not only their requirements during growth, but also the methods of their storage. .
If you make mistakes during harvesting or storage, the onion will be devalued..
Therefore, learn when to harvest onions and how to store them..
The YouTube channel Production of fruits and vegetables advises how to do it.
Do you know when to harvest onions?
It is important for onions that you leave them in the ground long enough for the bulbs to absorb as much nutrients as possible and be able to last though the whole winter, but short enough for the bulbs to start rotting in the ground. .
The heads are harvested when they are well developed, wrapped in a dry protective layer..
The throat of the above-ground part should still be green.
Pay attention to store the onion immediately after harvesting. .
If it were left in the rain, it could start to rot.
In July, the red onion harvest begins. .
The onion growing season lasts about 65 – 85 days , depending on when we planted it and also on the conditions.
However, it should be borne in mind that the longer the ripened onion remains in the ground, the lower its quality or it may begin to rot.
There is no specific harvest date, you need to know the day of planting and onion maturity signs..
Choose the right summer day
Choose a sunny and dry day to harvest onions.
If the soil is very hard, use a suitable tool to remove the onion from the ground to remove it with the clove.
Damaged onions are not stored and are immediately set aside for processing.
The harvested onions are easily cleaned from the ground and placed in one layer for 1-2 days on a mat to dry.
The dry onion is cleaned from the excess skin and the upper part is cut off, leaving about 12-15 cm ‘neck’.
Many housewives still weave onion braids, like our grandmothers used to.They are hung in dry, cool and well-ventilated rooms.
Before storing onions, it is a good idea to sort and discard damaged pieces for earlier consumption.
Otherwise, they would start to rot and negatively affect the rest of the onion.
Don’t forget to dry it properly
Drying onions takes on average 1 – 5 days..
However, never dry onions in direct sunlight, but in a well-ventilated place in the shade. .
After that, it is enough to put the onions in suitable containers, such as a wicker basket or a wooden box.
Ideally, the container should be ventilated and certainly not plastic.
Care must be taken to ensure that moisture does not form inside when storing onions.
Store onions in a dry and dark place.
What do our ancestors advise?
Our ancestors knew that onions had to last them the whole year , since they had no other options to procure onions.Their methods worked great and we can still use them today.
Knitting into bundles
This procedure proved to be the best.The dried onion thus doesn’t take up space and also acts as a nice decoration..
Its scent was used by our grandmothers as a natural fly and mosquito repellent.In order to tie the onion, it must have a well-dried and firm root.
Carefully remove the top skin from the onion and tie it together.You can choose tying in tails or tying in bundles of about 10-15 pieces. Keep in a dry, cooler place..
You can find out more information in the attached video HERE.
Good luck!
