Growing onions, at first glance, may seem like a simple and uncomplicated matter, but in reality the process requires compliance with the basic rules of gardening. You need to know how to water onions in open ground, how to process and feed them. The subtleties of agricultural technology allow you to grow a good and high-quality harvest. The vegetable needs a lot of moisture, but its excess leads to the development of fungi, so it is necessary to follow the rules of irrigation when growing onions.
When to start watering?
Watering onions in open ground is mandatory.After all, the plant quickly reacts to any changes in climate and, accordingly, soil. If the bulb is in dry and unmoistened soil for a long time, it simply stops growing greenery and begins to feed and grow the tuber itself.
For a vegetable, nutritious and moist soil is one of the main conditions for active growth.
It is necessary to water onions from the moment they are planted in the beds. An important condition is moderate irrigation, since the plant is easily susceptible to fungi that multiply in dampness and excess moisture.
In the spring, you should wait until the sun dries the soil after the winter period: as soon as greenery and herbs appear, you can water it.
Features of watering
Like any vegetable crop, onions require specific care. Irrigation plays an important role in this matter.
Experienced gardeners determine the time and amount of sprinkling based on the condition of the soil. Recommendations on how to properly water onions:
- The soil should be moderately moist.
- Avoid drying out and waterlogging the soil.
- In order to determine how moist the soil is, you will need a thin, dry wooden splinter. They stick it into the ground to a depth of at least 10 cm and then see whether soil particles remain on it or whether it is completely dry.
At the beginning of growth
At the first stage of cultivation, irrigation of the young plant should be timely and special. Its specificity is as follows:
- Water for irrigation at the beginning of growth should be warm and settled. There is no need to heat it up on purpose. If the days are sunny and warm, just fill a container with water and leave it in the sunlight. Possible precipitation will sink to the bottom, and the liquid itself will heat up to the required temperature.
- There are standard norms for how much water to pour into the beds at the initial stage of onion growth. For 1 m² of land use 10 liters of liquid. The number of waterings and their volumes depend on the weather and soil conditions.
- Growing onions for feathers has its own characteristics. When watering, it is important to ensure that water does not remain between the feathers. Otherwise, the greens will begin to deteriorate.
- To prevent the green mass from getting sunburned, irrigation is carried out in the morning or evening.
- Each vegetable grower’s irrigation system is different. If the grooves between the rows are filled with water, it is important to monitor the pressure from the hose and the initial soil moisture. Strong pressure can expose the bulbs and wash out the soil. Root crops will begin to disappear.
- The first watering is carried out immediately after planting. During irrigation, liquid fertilizers are applied, which allow the bulb to quickly take root and adapt to the soil.
When ripe
Gardeners recommend reducing the amount of watering at the ripening stage, which is about 2 months after planting. If this is not done, you can spoil the taste of the crop and its ability to be stored for a long time.
From this period the bulb can already be prepared for harvesting. If she has gained the required mass and is saturated with useful substances, her feathers will lie on the ground. If the green tops are dead, you need to reduce irrigation by half.
When fertilizing, you need to water the soil before and after adding preparations to the soil. This will allow nutrients to penetrate deeper and more evenly into the desired soil layers. Fertilizers are applied every week during watering. The culture responds well to nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
Before harvest
Most gardeners believe that they should stop frequently irrigating the beds before harvesting.At least 7-10 days in advance, the number of waterings is reduced to once a week. You can completely stop watering the onions a couple of days before harvesting them.
If you grow a vegetable for its greens, it is recommended to focus on the length of the feather. To harvest, the tops must reach 30-40 cm. Once the desired top parameters are reached, watering is completely stopped a couple of days before the greens are harvested. This is done to keep the feathers clean and dry.
When is watering not required?
Recommendations from gardeners when it is not necessary to water onion beds:
- At least a week before harvest. This is a must. The vegetable must be removed from the soil dry, then it will be stored longer. If the weather is rainy and there is a threat of crop loss, wet bulbs are dried in a dry and well-ventilated area.
- Opinions differ on whether onions should be watered in August. By this time, irrigation should be reduced, but it is not recommended to stop completely. Lack of moisture at the last stage of bulb ripening can affect the taste of the root crop.
- You need to keep an eye on upcoming weather forecasts. Bad weather can disrupt harvesting or fertilizing plans. It is worth fertilizing plants with mineral preparations several days before the expected rainy season. This way, the beneficial substances will have time to be absorbed by the root system and their concentration will correspond to the required norm.
- The crop does not require a lot of moisture in the soil, so watering should be special at all stages of the growing season. When planting, it is important to regularly irrigate the beds so that the bulb wakes up and grows actively. During the ripening period, it requires less moisture, so the amount of watering is reduced. Immediately before harvesting, stop moistening the soil completely.
If you adhere to the basic rules of watering, the harvest will be good and of high quality.
How and why to water onions with salt solution?
It is recommended to water the onions with a salty solution, because such a liquid helps in the fight against the main pest of the vegetable - the onion fly. The insect lays larvae in the ground, and small worms eat the bulb. In addition, the pest destroys the green mass. The plant dries up.
The benefits of salt water irrigation are not only fight against onion fly, but also a number of other pests that can cause damage to the crop.
The procedure is carried out in 3 stages:
- The first time you need to water the beds with the solution is when the length of the onion feather is 5-7 cm.
- 10 days after the first irrigation.
- The final watering is carried out 10 days after the second treatment.
For each stage, the salt solution is prepared in different concentrations: for the first, 30 g of salt is taken per 1 liter of water, for the second time - 40 g of salt, and for the third - 60 g.
If the pest damage is small, then all 3 irrigations can be carried out with a solution of 30 g of salt. It is important to water the beds from above with settled water after each moistening with the solution.
Caring for and growing onions is not a difficult or troublesome task. The main thing is to familiarize yourself with the specifics of agricultural technology in advance and adhere to the recommendations of gardeners.
