The Stuttgarter Riesen onion is very popular among gardeners, as it compares favorably with many other varieties. Positive reviews about it are left not only by summer residents, but also by people who grow this vegetable on an industrial scale. Let's get acquainted with its characteristics and cultivation features.
Plant characteristics
The Stuttgarter Riesen onion was bred by German breeders and has excellent reviews from onion lovers. Description of the variety:
- universal;
- early ripening;
- good taste;
- large bulb size;
- excellent productivity;
- undemanding;
- cold resistance;
- excellent keeping quality.
The bulb grows up to 150 g, and in nutritious soil - up to 250 g. You can easily get 5-8 kg of bulbs from 1 m2 area. The period from planting seeds to harvesting is 65–70 days, and growing from seeds will take up to 110 days.
This vegetable has a slightly flattened shape, the shade of its husk varies from milky to yellow. When cut, the product is white in color, with an abundant amount of juice, a characteristic pungent odor, and a pungent taste. Each bulb contains a large amount of vitamin C and solids, which make this vegetable easy to freeze and dry. Additional types of processing are canning, cooking and frying. This variety is very tasty fresh, as part of salads.
Agricultural technology for planting onions on feathers
For growing onions take a turnip onion. The planting material itself may not be in perfect condition and may have some flaws.
Plant in prepared soil, which must be fertile and have good air permeability. The peculiarity of planting is the dense arrangement of bulbs. They are stuck in, and the upper part remains uncovered above the soil. Such a bed is very dependent on watering, therefore, in order to reduce moisture evaporation, you need to cover the area with plastic film.
It is advisable to feed the plants with nitrogen fertilizer - a solution of ammonia or urea.
After planting the bulbs, adhere to the correct temperature regime. It should be 12–15 °C at night, and up to 20 °C during the day. Acceptable temperature limits are not less than 10, but not more than 25 °C.
Lighting has a great influence on the bulbs. The duration of light intake should be about 12 hours.If there is not enough of it, the plants will be thin. Instead of a rich green color, a light green color is formed.
Harvest from seeds
Onions are sown this way in autumn or early spring. For ease of sowing, seed material is combined with a small amount of crushed chalk. On previously prepared and watered beds, furrows are formed, the depth of which should be no more than 2 cm, and the gap between the seeds should be up to 1.5 cm. The distance between two adjacent rows is 15–20 cm.
After sowing, the surface of the beds is slightly compacted, but not watered, so that a crust does not appear on the soil. When young plants emerge, they are thinned out. Then caring for the bulbous crop consists of removing weeds in a timely manner and loosening the soil between the rows of the bed.
The advantage of this method is the low cost of the seed compared to sets, as well as the absence of pests and diseases on the seeds.
Growing onions using sets
Before planting, the sets are sorted out and bulbs with various defects are discarded. The next stage of preparation will be to warm them up. A suitable temperature for this is 35–40 °C. Warm up the bulbs for an 8-hour period. This agricultural technique reduces the likelihood of forcing arrows in a bow.
After this procedure, the planting material must be disinfected from pathogenic microflora. They do it like this:
- Dilute potassium permanganate in warm water. Take a tenth of a gram of the substance per 1 bucket of liquid (so that the solution is light pink).
- Soak the bulbs for 24 hours.
- Take out the planting material and let it drain.
The seedlings are planted in furrows to a depth of 5 cm.The distance between the bulbs should be approximately 10 cm, and the row spacing from each other should be from 20 cm. If the planting material is small, then it is not very afraid of cool weather after planting. It can be done even in the fall.
Autumn planting has the following advantages:
- By spring, the plants already have a developed root system.
- The sprouts begin to grow at a very fast pace.
- Early ripening of the bulbs occurs.
When does the gardener plan plant onions larger size - it needs to wait for warming, otherwise the plant will bolt.
Features of onion care
Like all bulbous crops, if grown and provided with proper care, the Stuttgarter Riesen onion will respond with an increase in yield.
Good predecessors for this plant are cucumbers, peas or beans, and tomatoes, but planting after potatoes is not advisable. Prepare the soil in early spring. It should be loose and nutritious.
The acidity of the soil in which onions should be planted is important. The vegetable is provided with either warm or moderate temperature conditions.
Weeding is a very important stage in crop care. It is carried out by loosening the soil around the rows of onions. Weeding allows you to get rid of weeds and breaks the formed crust, and thus enriches the soil with oxygen.
Water the plants when the soil in the garden dries out. After irrigation, it is advisable to loosen the top layer, otherwise a crust will form, there will be stagnation of water, and the onion will not breathe. At the beginning of the growing season, the crop needs frequent watering. However, after the bulbs increase in size, the bed should be irrigated carefully so that the process of rotting does not begin in the plants. After the top of the onion dries out, watering is finally stopped.
It is rare that the cultivation of this crop can be done without applying fertilizers. Early in the season bulb onions requires nitrogen supply, so the first fertilizing is done from diluted urea. The color of its feathers can indicate nitrogen deficiency. If there is a lack of this substance, they will be light green.
The next feeding should consist of a solution of urea, potassium salt and superphosphate. Fresh manure cannot be used as fertilizer!
When to harvest and how to properly store varietal onions
Onions ripen in dry weather. The vegetable is also chosen in the absence of high humidity. It is grown and has already matured when its tops turn yellow and wither. The onion crop must be removed immediately, because after some time it will begin to grow again.
After digging vegetables from the soil, they need to be further sorted and dried. Less ripe onions begin to be eaten because they spoil quickly. The remaining fruits are placed in boxes with sand. Vegetable containers are stored in the basement. Onions of the Stuttgarter variety have a long shelf life.
The onion variety has many virtues and deserves to be raised. With adequate care, it will delight you with its harvest and juicy white pulp, which is eaten both in salads and fried, boiled and stewed in various dishes.
