Highest Organic NPK rating ?

[PaulZone8b]

I have tried to stay with all organic and no synthetic fertilizers for a couple years now and just bought some onions from Dixondale. They say to put a 10-20-10 fertilizer and no organic fertilizer has that high a numbers. I am making my own compost and adding that and castings, but I dont think that is enough. Previous attempts at onions have been very small and not the big bulbs that others get....probably with "Miracle Grow" which I refuse to use that junk.

 

[Meadowlark]

I agree with you that Miracle Grow is junk. I use fish emulsion at 5-1-1 on my onions. They like the early Nitrogen and the water helps growth as well...



and get a lot of 6-inch diameter bulbs most years. But that isn't all that goes into growing big bulbs. They need a long growing season...I start from seed in Oct 15 and harvest the following late May early June. During the growing season, especially after they start bulbing in earnest in March, I like to loosen the dirt around the bulb and pull it back some to just where the roots are only covered, nut buried. Tedious, but helps grow out big bulbs. Any/all that bolt to seed become green onions for the table.

 

[PaulZone8b]

Thanks Meadowlark. Then I guess I wont worry too much about the higher NPK numbers (20s) Yikes thats a number from MGrow and the like. Steroids. I have fish emulsion and Agrothrive General Liquid Fert (3-3-2) and use finished compost and castings too. Bone Meal is a high root aid and Blood Meal for the Nitrogen, so I will add that into the mix as well. OK, I will get these onion starts in the ground today with the fertilizer furrow in the middle of the 2 rows of onions as they suggested.

 

[Meadowlark]

... OK, I will get these onion starts in the ground today with the fertilizer furrow in the middle of the 2 rows of onions as they suggested.

Just a tip...to help minimize bolting and help growing big bulbs consider fall planting next year in your area. My onions have tolerated temps as low as 10 deg F while growing roots all winter.

 

[PaulZone8b]

I have garlic and some bunching onions in the ground since Oct/Nov and doing fine. The onions were from seed. Do you direct sow seeds in fall ?

 

[Meadowlark]

I have garlic and some bunching onions in the ground since Oct/Nov and doing fine. The onions were from seed. Do you direct sow seeds in fall ?

Yes. Oct. 15

 

[PaulZone8b]

OK, great. I will add that date to my calendar and direct sow some onion seeds. Thank you sir !

 

[Oliver Buckle]

Interesting, climates differ, I plant seed at about the same time, late Autumn, but I put them in a plastic tray that has 12 x 13 little holes about an inch square and two deep, slightly tapered, I only use part of it now there are only two of us at home, but I have done all 156 plugs, and dropped a seed in each, I got a lot of failures, but I got a lot of onions
Sometimes I do just plant in a tray for ease, you need to get the separating and planting on right though to not disturb the root.
They stand in the South end of the cold greenhouse now I have one, but they went in an improvised cold frame before I had one. They come out early, and get planted out early, but a full English winter is a bit much for a little seedling without a little help.
It does make me think though, I have quite a bit of old greenhouse glass, a bit of 6" board around the edge and I could cover the whole row , might try that next year.

 

[Meadowlark]

@PaulZone8b ...FYI my onions started from seed Oct. 15 and now rapidly bulbing out. Potato row to the right. Needs watering

 

[PaulZone8b]

Wow ! Those looks great ML ! Thanks for the pic. What variety? I dont see any compost...so does that mean you dont mess with top layering compost on your plants (dont see that on onions or potatoes) ?
Also, please tell me what you do for fertilizing from Oct to May/June. You already said you do "spoon" around the bulbs to pull back soil (when is that?)

 

[Meadowlark]

Those are all Texas Super Sweet 1015 onions...mostly yellow but a few reds mixed in also. All direct seeded on 1015 Oct. 15. The bed which is essentially a double raised row was prepared well in advance of planting with green manure amendments, chop and drop amendments, as well as several inches of composted cow manure amendments and tested out "No N, P, K required".

I don't use mulch on onions or potatoes and don't generally need to add anything to the soil during the growing season until harvest...exception being fish emulsion which I use on onions. One of the advantages of using organics as opposed to synthetics is that they break down slowly providing plant nutrients over much longer period of time. Another advantage is that you see very few if any weeds.

The cover crops which I use continuously pretty much eliminate weeds and their seeds. To the right of the potato row is where I planted and harvested my winter garden, and it is now sprouting buckwheat and garbanzo seeds as a cover crop which will grow until summer when I will plant Sunn Hemp in all of that including the onion and potato rows harvested.

I generally start spooning the onions now when they are bulbing in earnest. One advantage of direct seeding is that the thinnings provide delicious green onions for the table for several months before bulb harvest in late May. This is a process I have developed over several years and yields great tasting sweet onions many of which will reach 6 inches diameter and will store for several months.

 

[PaulZone8b]

Again, thanks for all that info ML. You are a big help!

 

[gary350]

Onions need 21-0-0 plant food for 6 weeks then 0-20-20 plant food for 6 weeks. Low NPK Organic is worthless for onions. Onions need to be planted according to your geographical location. Plant long day onions above 34° latitude, short day onions below 34° latitude, intermediate onions near 34° latitude. Soil needs to be soft I add, saw dust and ground up tree leaves to my soil. I plant onions 4" apart, 7 rows 4" between rows. Our last frost is April 20. I plant 350 onion sets March 1st harvest is June 15. Onions like lots of water. I put a levee around my onions so water can not escape to the walk area or other locations. My 350 onions get 10 gallons of water every day. My location is Murfreesboro TN. We start having 98° to 100° weather about June 15. 2½" to 3" onions are easy to grow if its done the correct way.

If you want onions to have a very good onion flavor use 21-0-0 and not some other type nitrogen. If you like onions with low onion flavor use a different nitrogen like 46-0-0. I use an empty food can from the kitchen as my fertilizer measure, sprinkle 1 can of fertilizer on all the onions then return 1 week later and do it again. Any empty kitchen can works, beans, corn, peas, carrots, etc.

 

[PaulZone8b]

Gary...how are you getting "21-0-0 plant food for 6 weeks then 0-20-20" numbers from non-synthetic chemicals ? Those numbers are from things like Miracle Grow, which I refuse to use anywhere near my property. I understand some folks don't think these chemicals are bad....but how did the gardeners grow onions hundreds of years ago without these crazy high fertilizer steroids ? No offense (honest) I am asking a real question....

 

[gary350]

Gary...how are you getting "21-0-0 plant food for 6 weeks then 0-20-20" numbers from non-synthetic chemicals ? Those numbers are from things like Miracle Grow, which I refuse to use anywhere near my property. I understand some folks don't think these chemicals are bad....but how did the gardeners grow onions hundreds of years ago without these crazy high fertilizer steroids ? No offense (honest) I am asking a real question....

NPK is NPK no matter where or how you make NPK. City sewage from many large cities like, Chicago, LA, Huston, Atlanta, St Louis, Phoenix, becomes Organic Plant Food watch the YouTube video it shows how it is done. Millions of people flush 1000s of tons of medication down the toilet every day.

Fertilizer that people call synthetic is made from rock. P & K are both mines rock that is ground into small sizes pieces then sold as plant food and fertilizer. N is made from methane gas sold as plant food and fertilizer. I posted the YouTube videos a few days ago.

I trust synthetic fertilizer more than city sewage. See the Attach photos.