Other names
spring onion, Welsh onion
Botanical name
Allium fistulosum
Plant category
Leek vegetables
General
Spring onions are actually perennial and form clumps over time.
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You should divide these every 3 to 4 years.
Facts and figures
Light requirements
Sun / partial shade
Nutrient requirements
Light feeder
Difficulty level
Easy
Culture (according to Gertrud Franck)
B - early, B - late, C - low growth, short growing period
Row spacing
20 cm
Plant spacing
10 cm
Growth height
30 - 80 cm
Sowing depth
1 cm
Germination temperature (minimum)
3 °C
Germination temperature (optimal)
18 - 25 °C
Germination type
Light and dark
Times
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Direct sowing
Harvest
Harvest (next year)
Direct sowing from Early March to Late May. Harvest begins around Early April and continues until Late December next year.
Neighbourhood
Very good neighbours
Good neighbours
Bad neighbours
Crop rotation
Good predecessors
Bad predecessors
Very bad predecessors
Good successors
Bad successors
Very bad successors
Harvest and processing
You can grow spring onions as annuals — in that case, you pull the whole plant out of the ground.
Or you leave the perennial plant in place and just cut the green shoots, much like you would with chives. This way, you can start harvesting shortly after the first new growth appears.