Harvest onions and leeks: when to harvest and how to store?

Growing onions is a pleasure. is he unpretentious, moderately frost-resistant, does not need excessive care.

Onions are well kept in winter with the right approach. Consider the basic rules for harvesting onions before storage.

Harvesting is a pleasant and responsible process. He fails results of the whole gardening season and compensates with all his efforts for his gifts.

Harvest time

According to the rules of onion harvesting from the garden should be made 90-130 days after landing. This time comes about from the beginning to the middle of August.

However, the rule is not always true. The main signal to start harvesting onions - onion feather falls on the ground, turns yellow. This means that the ripening is over and the cleaning is timely.

What if the deadline came up, and pen "stands on the rack" and does not turn yellow? Experienced gardeners resort to several tricks:

  • undermine the bulbs with a shovel, slightly tearing them off from the root system ingrown into the ground. This helps to stop the supply of bulbs of minerals from the soil, and they quickly go into a state of full maturation;
  • lift the bulbs with forks. The effect is the same as when digging with a shovel;
  • pruned feathers. This method is not the best. Thus, part of the valuable crop is lost.

Weather

Onion assembly need time before the first frost. Otherwise the onion will freeze and become unsuitable for storage and consumption. Perfect weather for cleaning - dry and sunny or windy. The advantages of this weather:

  • onions dug dry, easily cleaned from the ground;
  • easy to handle the harvest;
  • Immediately after harvest, you can start drying onions in the open sun.

Inventory and rules

How to clean a bow? The selection of equipment for harvesting onions from the garden depends on soil type:

  • if a the soil is soft, the bulbs can be easily removed by hands without the use of aids;
  • if a solid soil, the bulbs are dug with a shovel or pitchfork.
It is better to resort to the use of inventory, because when manually removing the bulb is pulled out without its Donets, damaged and rotting faster.

There are no secrets of digging onions. It is enough just to carefully undermine it with a shovel, and then pull it out manually. The main thing, do not damage the bulbs.

An expert gardener will share with you his tips on cleaning onions from the garden for storage with you in this video:

What to do with the onions after harvesting?

Drying

What to do after collecting onions? How to dry onions after scooping? To dry the harvest must be carefully and correctly. From drying rates depends on further storage of onions. Drying can be:

  • in open space under sunshine;
  • in open space under the influence of wind;
  • under a canopy with good ventilation;
  • in a room with low humidity and good ventilation.

The ideal option is to dry in the open sunny and windy weather.

For proper drying, the onions need to be laid out freely, in a thin layer, periodically tinker him. In this case, all the bulbs are dried evenly, from all sides.

If the onions are dried in the open, it is not recommended to leave it for the night. Nights are most often cool and wet. This will ruin the entire result and the harvest as a whole.

Onion dried from 5 to 10 days, after which it is ready for long-term storage.

Causes of decay

It happens that after harvesting a long time to rejoice is not necessary. Onions begin to rot and deteriorate. Why rots onions after harvesting? Possible reasons:

  • during digging the bulbs were damaged;
  • damage to the bulbs occurred during the "shaking off" the earth from them;
  • the onions were not sufficiently dried;
  • the tops were cut too close to the bulb.
Bow, located at the initial stage of rotting can be saved. To do this, remove the damaged husk. In its place, a healthy one will recover, and the onion can be stored further.

You can find out how to trim and dry onions for storage in the video:

On how to choose the right variety of onions for long-term storage, you can find on our website.

Storage

Storage of onions requires strict adherence to the rules. Regardless of the place and method of storage, they provide crop protection from rotting.

So that the onions do not rot and do not spoil:

  • provide good ventilation of the room;
  • do not allow high humidity;
  • observe temperature conditions;
  • use a suitable container.

Onions can be stored at home or in a cellar. Keeping onions at home is called warm way, and storage of onions in the cellar (basement) - cold.

Features of harvesting and storage of leeks

Leek: when to clean and how to store? Leek appeared in the life of Russian gardeners not so long ago. is he gained popularity due to its excellent taste and utility. Leek - a source of calcium, phosphorus and many other trace elements. In addition, it low calorie product.
Timing

When leek is harvested: harvest time? Harvest leek can the whole period of its maturation. The leaves are cut, and immediately ready to eat. However, for long-term storage in fresh form, they are not suitable. If the leek harvest is rich, you can harvest the leaves for the winter by freezing them. Is leek afraid of frost?

General rules for harvesting and storage

When should I remove a leek from the garden for the winter?

The final leek harvest should take place before the first strong frosts, since they are destructive to him.

Leek is dug out of the ground, trying don't hurt his bottom. There are no special secrets of cleaning. The main thing is to clean, rinse and dry the leek.

What to do with leek after harvesting? Storage leek is possible:

  • in a refrigerator;
  • in the cellar;
  • in the freezer.

Storage in the refrigerator and basement is possible for only a few weeks.

It is best to freeze the leek, so its shelf life will last for a long time, and useful properties will not be lost. Details in the article "Freezing onions for the winter at home."

To save space and convenience, it is better after cutting leek to cut it and put it into plastic bags.

After that freeze. So the product will be practically immediately ready for use.

About the features of storing leek in this video:

Interesting and useful information about the storage of onion sets, as well as ways to save the green feather onions, you can also find on our website.

Summary

Thus, harvesting onions for storage for the winter is a process on which crop safety. Onions must be harvested:

  • after the tops have lain on the ground;
  • before the onset of frost;
  • gently so as not to damage the bulbs.

Leek is harvested until frost and is best stored frozen. Storage of the crop in compliance with all the rules is not difficult and will provide onions for the whole winter.

Watch the video: How to Harvest and Store Leeks (May 2024).