Perennial onions and leeks

[Jeannine Anne]

Is anyone growing any of the various types. I don't mean shallots.

[ChiliPeppa]

I'm growing a white top setting onion. Just now starting to harvest the tops. Also some yellow potato onion, I'itoi and green mountain potato onion. Still getting the hang of it.

[ilex]

I grow "puerro de bulbo", a perennial leek.

[PNW_D]

I'm growing potato onions and walking onions ...... here is a great video on using walking onions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv2PPrJIvl0

and a pic of my walking onions - these are from one start last year - also my Caraflex cabbage

http://www.tomatoville.com/attachmen...1&d=1462295640

[Kensington]

I had never seen walking onions, until today. Our neighbour came over with a bunch. they are now quite happy in my garden.
Just joined this group today also, so quite excited to see this info. thanks for posting

[bower]

Originally Posted by Kensington

I had never seen walking onions, until today. Our neighbour came over with a bunch. they are now quite happy in my garden.
Just joined this group today also, so quite excited to see this info. thanks for posting

Kensington, welcome to T'ville.
Just wanted to say thanks as well to the folks who are making this thread so interesting and informative. I'll definitely be watching the unnamed 'perennial green onion' to see if it's a better divider than the Hardy Evergreen.
I have a topsetting onion too, which came to me as "Egyptian onion" - it's red skinned and it does sometimes make topsets on top of topsets, which is in descriptions I read somewhere. Last year I planted three patches and this spring I'm seeing a big difference in earliness by microclimate - my Mom's garden they're full size and ready to harvest already, while I have one patch half size and one just two inches through the ground (very early spring here as yet).

Last night I opened and examined my Dutch Yellow shallots, and I see mold on some of the wrappers. Now I'm concerned about introducing disease. Also wondered whether I should crack and plant the cloves separately, or put whole bulbs in.

[Jeannine Anne]

Thank you for the info so far. The reason I am asking is this.

4 or so years ago when my husband was still able to help me a bit I had a large community garden. I had been collecting perennial veggies of all sorts to make a perennial garden area and among them I had struggled and found several varieties of onions and leeks, it was still in it's infancy when my husband started to go downhill fast and I had to give up my community garden. I now have raised beds , pots and a greenhouse and able to start rebuilding my dream of a perennial veggie spot, the trouble is all my notes etc on where I found stuff and what varieties I had was all on my computer which died a few weeks ago and I am back to square one. I am hoping that by reading other folks info it will prompt me to remember .

I know I had Egyptian walking onions, I had I think 3 types of potato onions, I seem to remember a white, a yellow and a red.I had perennial leeks, ramsons, a few perennial brassicas which I still have , I had what was like a green onion but it went on forever.

It took me ages to research, find, wait for the right time, buy or swap,sow or plant and wait for things to grow and I have to start all over again.

I would appreciate any info you could give me.

Thank you

XX Jeannine

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by Jeannine Anne

... all my notes etc on where I found stuff and what varieties I had was all on my computer which died a few weeks ago and I am back to square one. ...

Jeannine,
It may be possible to retrieve your data, if you still have the computer and if there's info on it that's worth the trouble. Several years ago my computer died, and I didn't have time to deal with retrieval, but I donated my computers via freecycle and the person who wanted them was kind enough to extract the hard drive from that one as well as an even older one. Four years later, I mentioned it to a friend who knew just what to do (and it was both easy and cheap). I got most of my files, though a few are unreadable because the software was so old.

[Jeannine Anne]

Oops we just crossed

[ilex]

Also walking onions, potato onions and bunching onions

[Jeannine Anne]

I just did a search and found the original Perennial Garden topic I started some years ago and thankfully I mentioned quite a few things in it so that will help. I have bumped it up if anyone with onions wants to join in it.

Ilex, could you explain a bit more about your bunching onions, I have seen them slender like green salad onions but I have also seen them with fair sized bulbs on and am not sure if there are varieties.

Also how did you start with them

[rxkeith]

i have catawissa walking onions. top sets form during the summer, stalks bend over, and they walk to the next row of the garden if you let them. they multiply two ways, by top set, and they divide if you leave them in the ground. they form a small bulb bigger than a green onion, but not by much. i always have top sets in the fall. no soil attached, so canada should let them in if you want some in the fall, and don't find them on your side of the border.


keith

[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,

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.

[Jeannine Anne]

Yes.I have heard about that, actually I have the last two laptops for that reason, I should maybe take them into a shop and get it done. The laptop I am using now is about as much use as a chocolate fire guard, I have had it a month and it is useless so I really need to address the whole issue. As I am typing on this one I look up and there are no words there or there are missing letters, and I press the mouse to roll the page up and I wait and wait and wait. I would return to to Amazon but I am a bit nervous as I have used it for banking etc that someone may be able to retrieve info from it. I am probably wrong but it worries me. John always looked after those things for me so I never really needed to learn them. I think I will go in Costco and but another one before I start adding stuff to this one.

Thank you for the reminder, it has prompted me to get my act in gear.

XX Jeannine