Even beginner growers are learning how to grow onions since this crop is very versatile. In fact, onions are considered as one amongst the most popularly grown vegetables in home gardens.

It is convenient to learn how to plant onions because they're noted as one of the first few crops of spring. Even during the winter season, they can be easily stored for future use in a huge selection of culinary dishes - whether cooked or raw.

Before you can learn how to grow onions, you need to find a right location and to prepare it for a few weeks before you sow and plant on it. This is especially necessary if you plan to add composted organic matter or manure over it. Then, prior to sowing, you can gently treat the soil in order to make it firm.

When sowing, take note that onions need to be planted either from sets or from seed. Sets are small but partly grown onion bulbs. They're more expensive; however, they're considered as more reliable with their results. Furthermore, they only require less work. This means, you don't need to do any thinning or there's less onion fly risk involved.

If you prefer to sow from seed, you can sow it in drills to about 2 centimeters deep and with an inch between the seeds. If you'll be sowing from seed what you can do is to space the rows to 30 centimeters apart. Make sure the soil is moist before you start sowing. This means, you need to check on the soil a day before sowing. If the soils seem dry, water it.

When planting onion sets, the best time would be from mid to late March. If earlier than this time, you can use a polytunnel or cloche. Make sure they're spaced 30 centimeters apart and sow the sets about 10 centimeters apart (no thinning necessary). Dig a small hole for every set and then place the sets from the neck upwards.

As for scallions or spring onions, they can be sown starting the month of April. However, planting them should be done on a staggered basis (like every few weeks) to ensure continuous crop through the growing season.

One good thing to know when learning to grow onions is that they are frost resistant and they can easily grow in most climates. They can grow in almost any type of soil - whether they're heavy clay or sandy loans. For soils that are heavy, you may need to introduce manure or organic compost into it to help it develop moisture retaining properties. At the most, onions prefer to grow in slightly acidic soil. The good pH for onions is 5.5 to 6.5 pH.

To successfully grow onions, you also need to weed between them frequently. Only implement shallow hoeing. Since onions can't trap a lot of incoming light because of their sparse leaf forms, weeds tend to take advantage of available sunlight - making it harder for onions to grow.

For onions that have been sown from seed, you need to thin them once they reach 5 centimeters in height. You need to thin them in such a way that they're spaced 10 centimeters apart.

After the time spent on sowing and tending onions, it will soon be time to harvest them. The best time to harvest is a week after you see their tops starting to fall out and turn yellow. You can use a fork in order to lift the onions out. Make sure you don't damage their skins as this can invite decay organisms which can attack onion flesh.

In harvesting onions, after you've tended to grow them, should be on a sunny day. Clean them of soil that may have attached to them. Then, place them on top of the soil to dry out through the wind and the sun. Leave them for a few days until you notice their tops drying out.