Perennial onions and leeks

[Kazedwards]

Originally Posted by Jeannine Anne

Keith, that is very kind of you, I will try this side if I can but if I get stuck I may get back to you. I bought them in Canada when I was setting up the perennial patch before but they were very poor quality, I think I bought them at the wrong time of the year though so most didn't make it, but I got a couple. I believe they were red. I also got a white one, I forget the name something like Fleismans but they were even worse. There are so many places advertising in the US for all kinds of stuff I would like, I can usually get seeds but not tubers or bulbs. I do have a post office box across the border but I haven't used it for years as I no longer holiday over there but it is an idea for the fall. I think if I crossed the border with them it would be OK no different to grocery onions I guess but no one in the US will ship them here, at least I have not found anyone yet.

Thank you again,

Was the Fleismans perhaps Fleener's? If so I have been looking for those for a few years now. There were two listing in the SSE yearbook but they are not correct to type. I fairly certain that the SSE ones are McCullar's. Hope this might help.

Also I do have McCullar's White (the SSE Fleener's) growing right now if you would like some. The are a walking onion that gets perhaps 1" wide. I don't mind shipping to Canada.

[Jeannine Anne]

That would be great and you are right about the name. Are they all right to pull at this time though I was expecting to buy them in the fall.

[Kazedwards]

They are making topsets now so they will be ready late June to early July at the latest.


-Zach

[luigiwu]

I've been so intrigued by potato onions. And you can't talk about potato onions without mentioning kelly winterton.
https://turkeysong.wordpress.com/201...-potato-onion/
https://sites.google.com/site/kellys.../potato-onions
There are a scant few sources of his green mountain onions but all appear to be sold out.

Tormato, how long can Egyptian Walking Onions' bulbils last for? If they last for a while, I think I have some that I harvested at the end of fall. I could send those to you Jeannine Anne.

[Jeannine Anne]

Thank you Zach

[Tropicalgrower]

I am interested in maybe trying Walking Onions.All I see on Ebay are plants that have been dug and offered for sale.Many places only offer in the fall too.Can Walking Onions be propagated by planting bulblets,or do you have to plant a living plant?

Seeds of Diversity lists places to buy onions in Canada.

http://www.seeds.ca/diversity/seed-c...-index?psp=219

One example: Multiplier Onion (Potato Onion)
A'bunadh Seeds, Dominion Seed House (W.H.Perron), T & T Seeds Ltd., William Dam Seeds

Originally Posted by Jeannine Anne

I do have a post office box across the border

Point Roberts? So you just have to walk across the street to be in the States, instead
of waiting in a line of cars for an hour or more at the Peace Arch.

Do you have Eric Toensmeier's Perennial Vegetables?

[Kazedwards]

Originally Posted by Tropicalgrower

I am interested in maybe trying Walking Onions.All I see on Ebay are plants that have been dug and offered for sale.Many places only offer in the fall too.Can Walking Onions be propagated by planting bulblets,or do you have to plant a living plant?

Bulbils are living plants. Bulbils and the easiest way to propagate them but it is restricted to a certain time of the year. Most plants only die down in the winter if they do at all. So live plants can be available year round.

[Jeannine Anne]

Luigiwu, I am sorry I missed your earlier message, I am not sure how. At this point it would be great to get any type as I lost all of mine, I will PM you and we can figure out how to do it...thank you so much.

XX Jeannine

[Jeannine Anne]

LDiane.. re the border. I am right near the new bridge in Maple Ridge which takes me quite near the border.

No I don't have Erics Ts book, I have seen it and found many of the varieties were not suitable for our weather

I have William Dams Catalogue, it comes every year but the multipliers I believe are shallots which I don't want as I only like the French ones.

There seems to be a big confusion between shallots and potato onions so it is difficult to find someone who names them right.

XX Jeannine

[Tropicalgrower]

Originally Posted by Kazedwards

Bulbils are living plants. Bulbils and the easiest way to propagate them but it is restricted to a certain time of the year. Most plants only die down in the winter if they do at all. So live plants can be available year round.

Sorry if I was misleading.When I said live plants,I meant dug up plants with roots.(which is what I am seeing on Ebay).

I simply had not seen any bulbils offered for sale on the Bay,and wondered why that was.I realize most would have been planted log ago,but you never know what might show up on that site.

My apologies Jeannine Anne.I didn't mean to take your thread off-course.

[ilex]

Kelly's onions are way superior to anything else. He's got true seeds so you can develop your own. Those originally from seed are more inclined to flower. You can farther tweet them, or cross them with your favorite regular onion.

In fact, many normal onions are perennial. We just don't wait that long nor select for the trait. The biggest difference is in how much they divide after flowering, or even before as those that divide are usually culled.

[PhilaGardener]

Kelly's lines and seeds are all open pollinated hybrids and and contain a great deal of genetic diversity. Grown out, you get a mix of forms and bulb colors from which you can select individual bulbs to multiply. That was the basis for his Green Mountain selection (which is a very nice one). So if you want to grow Green Mountain, you must get bulbs of that variety. Seeds from Green Mountain unlock that diversity once again. Kelly describes all that on his website (accessible at the links given earlier in thread).