Anyone else growing any Giant Onions this year ?

[vegmandan]

Hi,folks.

It's my annual attempt at growing a 10 lb onion....yet again !!

So far,so good and I've never had them so big at this time of the year.

The photo is them last week.

They are usually only this big in late June,so something will no doubt go wrong.

Are there any other idiots out there who try to grow the odd big onion like me or anything else out of the ordinary ?

P.S I'm trying to grow a 6 foot carrot this year.

Haven't got a clue,but I'm having a go.

It's just a laugh after all.

Please have a look at my attempts.

Cheers.

Allotment Vegetable Growing Blog Diary Veg : Giant Exhibition Onion Attempt Blog

[Llamas]

Woah. I'd love to try growing these, is it too late to try and get ahold of some for this year?

[Demeter]

omg those are ENORMOUS!!
I'm always impressed with myself if I get stuff I can eat, never mind the rest, so I am filled with admiration for this sort of thing!

[zazen999]

I will be next year, when I can put aside some space in the greenhouse for them.....I got some good results growing in really sandy soil over the winter, so I am trying that for my next batch of seedlings that were sown a few weeks back...trying to stop them getting so damp and attracting white rot.


Yours are looking very good, what happened to that one you had left from the bulblets?

[vegmandan]

The ones I grew...or KILLED from the "pips" didn't do well at all due to some really dodgy compost i planted them in.

This was the same compost I sowed my seed in too,which was literally just killing them off 'till I re-planted them into some decengt stuff.

I managed to salvage just one which I've got growing in a 10 gallon pot.

It's not as big as these but It's not far off.

[rana]

Hi Vegmandan, do you grow special varieties, or is it possible to grow on winter onoins (planted as sets in September) into giant bulbs ?

Please, please, please reveal your secrets..................

[pdblake]

I've sown some Robinson's Mammoth and Bunton's Exhibition, but TBH I'm not really trying, just looking to have something a bit bigger than normal

I'm just treating them the same as I usually treat the ailsa craigs.

[shirlthegirl43]

I am growing 'the Kelsae' but they are tiny compared to yours!! I sowed them either late December or early January and they now need planting out.

[gojiberry]

Having seen programmes on TV about people growing giant veg, I think I will give it a miss, just far to technical and involved for me, I do however admire people with that much dedication and good luck at your attempt vegmandan. However I would like to grow a nice sized onion on my plot but no matter what I do they just don't seem to get to the size of those plots around me.

Ian

[pete10]

The plants Dan has are a special strain that will grow to 15lbs or more.
I know he paid a fair bit for them , To be honest they look to be worth,
Every penny.

[Edwardo82]

WOW... they are incredible!!

Fair play Vegmandan, something to aspire to there mate, good work!!!

[baggyman]

what do you feed them with?
I've never grown a decent sized onion and would appreciate it if you could give me a few tips ....I'm suffering from onion envy, everyone's are bigger than mine!

[vegmandan]

There's no secret to the feeding.in fact over feeding can do more harm than good amazingly.
The main thing is to just get a Big variety.
To be honest,without spending a Bl@@dy fortune like me this year in getting a grown on strain from a North East Onion "God" I would suggest getting some plants from Mr Fothergills for next time.

No kidding...they will supply you with 40 or so "Kelsae" variety which you can easily grow to 2-3 lb outside and 5lb+ inside if you're lucky.And they're only about £6 for 6 inch plants delivered in mid April.

The last few years prior to 2008 I grew these and they did really well,It's only the last 2 years that I've gone bonkers and decided to go for a monster.

If you sow Kelsae or even Unwins Exhibition (that's what I grew from seed this year and they are doing very well) in Early January,and keep them at about 50f for the next 3 months then you should be able to get a decent sized onion.

Hence the reason I suggested buying the plants from Fothergills...OK I know It's not for the purist - sow your own seed brigade but to keep a greenhouse above 50f all winter costs a bloody fortune.

So why not let them pay the heating bill.

So basically if you want a big 'un you'll need to get a big variety,be it seed or plants.

Cheers,Dan

[Mchanen]

Hi Vegmandan, Hope you don't mid me asking- but out of intrest, what happens to all this giant veg you grow?

[bluemoon]

I attempt to grow large onions every year... it's this thing I have, a plot is just not a proper plot unless it has a mega onion or two on it. I haven't sown any this year though as I forgot to order the seeds. Yours look good, I have to say VMD.