Onion Seed Prices and a Detailed Guide to Planting Methods
Onion, also known as ball onion, round onion, jade onion, etc., is a biennial herbaceous plant of the genus Allium in the lily family. It originated in Central or Western Asia, and there are now many different varieties. It is very widely distributed in China, cultivated in both north and south, with main producing areas including Fujian, Shandong, Gansu, Inner Mongolia, ** and other places. Now let us take a look at onion seed prices and planting methods!
How much is a jin of onion seeds?
The price of onion seeds is about 80-120 yuan per jin, but it varies with seed quality, variety, place of origin and market. There are many varieties of onion, and different bulb shapes are related to early or late maturity; generally, the flatter the bulb, the earlier its maturity. Different varieties also differ greatly in yield. Early-maturing flat varieties generally yield about 4,500-5,500 kg per mu, while mid-to-late-maturing varieties generally yield 5,000-5,500 kg per mu. The economic benefit of planting is between 3,000-6,000 yuan per mu.
What varieties of onion are there?
1. Red-skinned: The outer skin of the bulb is purple-red, the fleshy scales are slightly red, and the shape is flat-round or round. It is tolerant of storage and transport, has a relatively short dormancy period, sprouts earlier, and shows early to mid maturity, harvested from late May to early June. Representative varieties include Shanghai Red-skinned and others.
2. Yellow-skinned: The bulb is brass-colored to light yellow, the scales are slightly yellow and soft, and the shape is flat-round. It is relatively tolerant of storage and transport, early to mid maturing, with lower yield than red-skinned types but better quality. Representative varieties include Lianyungang 84-1, DK Yellow, OP Yellow, Dabao, Laixuan 13 and others.
3. White-skinned: The bulb is white, the scales are white, and the shape is flat-round; some are tall-round and spindle-shaped. The quality is excellent, but the yield is relatively low and disease resistance is weak. In the Yangtze River Basin, sowing too early in autumn makes it prone to premature bolting. Representative varieties include Hami White-skinned and others.
Growing conditions for onion
1. Temperature: Onion has strong adaptability to temperature. Seeds and bulbs can germinate slowly at 3-5°C. The suitable temperature for seedling growth is 12-20°C, for leaves 18-20°C, and for bulbs 20-26°C. Vigorous seedlings can withstand low temperatures of -6 to -7°C.
2. Light: Onion is a long-day crop. During bulb expansion and bolting-flowering stages, it needs more than 14 hours of long daylight. Under high temperature and short daylight, it only grows leaves and cannot form bulbs. The suitable light intensity is 20,000-40,000 lux.
3. Water: Onion should be supplied with sufficient water during the germination stage, the peak seedling growth stage and the bulb expansion stage, but water must be controlled during the seedling stage and before overwintering to prevent excessive seedling growth and freezing damage. Irrigation should be controlled 12 weeks before harvest.
4. Soil: Onion has strong adaptability to soil. Fertile, loose, well-aerated neutral loam is suitable. Sandy loam easily achieves high yield, but clay loam produces plump bulbs, good color and good storage quality. The root system has weak fertilizer uptake capacity, so high yield requires sufficient nutrient conditions.
Sowing methods for onion
1. Sowing time: Choosing the suitable sowing period for onion is the key to raising strong seedlings. If sown too early, the seedlings are large and prone to bolting after overwintering; if sown late, the seedlings are weak, have poor cold resistance, and produce small bulbs and low yield. Taking the Huang-Huai River Basin as an example, the best sowing period is early to mid-September.
2. Sowing quantity: Under normal conditions, the sowing rate for onion seedling beds is 4-5 kg per mu. Considering the need to discard and thin out 20% weak and inferior seedlings, the cultivation area should be 15 times that of the sowing seedling bed. If the germination rate is below 70%, the sowing rate should be increased as appropriate.
3. Bed preparation and fertilization: For onion planting, the bed height is 1.4-1.5 m and the bed width is 27 cm. After leveling the bed surface, apply 15 kg of superphosphate per mu, and use 4 cubic meters per mu of well-decomposed organic farmyard manure as base fertilizer. After emergence, broadcast quick-acting nitrogen fertilizer together with watering, applying 10 kg of urea per mu.
4. Sowing method: After leveling the onion planting bed surface, water first, then sow evenly by broadcasting. Then cover with 0.8 cm of nutrient soil to ensure uniform emergence. After sowing, if the soil moisture cannot meet the requirements for emergence, water with a watering can to promote emergence. It can also be sown by broadcasting after germination.
5. Emergence management: After onion emergence, attention should be paid to the prevention and control of mildew and damping-off. The method is to use 150 g of 50% carbendazim or 40% chlorothalonil per mu, mixed with 30-40 kg of water, and spray evenly.
Planting methods for onion
1. Timely watering: Onion enters the seedling recovery stage 20 days after transplanting. At this time, it cannot be watered heavily, but it also cannot lack water. Therefore, watering should be frequent but with a small amount each time. The principle is not to let the seedlings wilt and not to let the ground dry out, so as to promote rapid rooting of the seedlings.
2. Reasonable fertilization: During the peak leaf growth stage and bulb expansion stage, onion should be fertilized and watered in a timely manner. Apply 15 kg of diammonium phosphate, 20 kg of diammonium phosphate, and 3-5 kg of potassium sulfate per mu respectively as topdressing, but avoid excessive nitrogen fertilizer.
3. Cultivation and loosening of soil: During the onion seedling stage, cultivate and loosen the soil 3-4 times, carried out after each watering; during the stem and leaf growth period, carry out 2-3 times. After the plants close the rows, stop cultivation. The cultivation depth should preferably be about 3 cm, shallow near the transplanted plants and deeper away from the plants.
4. Removing flower stalks: Before the flower head forms, onion stalks should be cut off from the lower part of the flower bud to prevent flowering from consuming nutrients, promote the growth of lateral buds, and form fuller bulbs. At the same time, spraying Diguo Zhuangtiling at the appropriate time helps increase yield.
5. Harvest time: Onion harvesting is generally from the end of May to early June. When the leaves gradually turn yellow from bottom to top, the false stem softens and begins to fall over, the bulb stops expanding, the outer skin becomes leathery, and the plant enters the dormant stage, this indicates that the bulb is mature and should be harvested in time.
6. Drying after harvest: After harvesting, onions should be dried in time. Arrange the plants diagonally so that the stems and leaves of the back row just cover the bulbs of the front row, so as to avoid direct sunlight exposure to the bulbs. Turn them once every 2-3 days and dry until the leaves turn yellow.