How to prepare onions for storage?

[PeterW]

I had my best ever onion harvest last weekend – Red Baron sets, planted in late April.  Since then, the onions have been drying on slats outside.  Before I string them up, should I trim off the dry leaves, roots and rub off loose dry skin and soil?  Or do they keep best as they are?  There seem to be differing views on this subject.  Thanks

[PeterW]

…drying out

[charles]

Its a good harvest Peter!  Either approach is possible,  I have noticed little difference in storing quality either way. I trim off leaves, all soil and rub off the flakiest skin before putting them in shallow crates in the conservatory, where they keep well in the dry air. 

Incidentaly I would have harvested them a month ago, you were lucky its a dry season. Once half the tops are fallen I push the rest down, then pull them a week later (that was early August) because the bulbs barely swell after that point, and it gives a better chance of drying onions before winter, and there is then time to grow something else – I have beetroot and chicory where the onions were, interplanted in July, beets are tennis ball size now.

[PeterW]

Charles, thank you very much. I’ll bear the earlier harvesting in mind for next year. Incidentally the spring-planted sets did so much better than last year’s autumn-planted sets, which have gone off very quickly. I’m almost regretting having ordered autumn sets for this year.

[Author]

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