Shallots: To thin or not to thin?

[Neilfrazerm]

Hi Folks, Am growing shallots for the first time and they look more like a tuft of grass than an Allium! Each clump has upwards of 30 stalks.
2 Questions therefore arise:
Is this normal?
Do they require thinning?

Comments Please
Thanks
Neil, South London, silt, allotment

[Stringfellow]

Hi Neil. From seed or sets?

[Neilfrazerm]

Hi Stringfellow, … Sets planted in October last year

[Stringfellow]

Ok. Are they in reasonably fertile soil (how long have you been applying compost), open position, what spacing?

All of these will influence any thinning required. Thirty stems from one set sounds extraordinary! I usually grow from seed but grew from sets a few years back, but I didn’t have that many stems appear.

[Sandra]

Stringfellow/anyone who may be able to advise, I use a lot onions/shallots here and I am wondering whether to grow from seed instead of sets next year. They would be taking a fair bit of space up for a longer time I believe, so I just wondered whether you could advise whether you think that seed is worth the extra effort and space?

[Stringfellow]

Hi Sandra, I suppose it depends how much you would use and enjoy shallots? Great thing about a pack of seed is you can enjoy huge harvests from just the one pack. Multi sowing saves propagation space and compost etc. so quite a lot going for it really. Maybe try a few next year and see how you find them. It all takes time but it’s an enjoyable journey. HTH

[Author]

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