Looking for the best companies that offers onion starts. Last year I grew Cabernet and WallaWalla. This year I’d like to grow a large red sweet onion and maybe something else for cooking. Any suggestions for onions starts and places to grab a few would be appreciated.
I’d like to get some garlic in but it’s a little bit late for that here. Still like to know a solid company that sells garlic too.
I’ve ordered from Dixon (via a local vendor) and Jung. Sometimes I start them myself from seed, since it’s pretty easy… that’s my plan for this year.
As for garlic, there are 2 local supply stores that I order bulk from. I’m actually not sure where they order from, so someone else will have to help you out on that one. 
Soft neck can be planted in the spring.
See my first post for an additional comment on Garlic.
I once grew a row of sets and a row that I started from seed and a row of live plants from dixondale farms. i did six rows both yellow and white. I treated them all the same they were no more than 3 foot apart in rows.
Sets gave us green onions. no bulbs bigger than a half dollar. Both the rows I started from seeds and live plants form dixondale farms did great 
My conclusion… stick with live plants.
Your milage may vary.
When you do, about how long before your first frost do you start them?
Thanks good to know! Live starts is all I’ve ever done and it works really good for me. Normally buy them grown bunched together here in small pack and lightly tear each little onion start apart what’s funny is that I don’t recall ever losing an onion doing that. At that stage I guess they’re very resilient.
I have grown dutch type shallots from seeds. Depending on your region (I am in PNW where long day onions are suitable) you can start seeds a month ahead indoors under lights synced with number of hours of day light and ensure they are close to a pencil thick with min 3 leaves before putting them outside. Its too much work so now a days I just sow bulbs in the fall and harvest in summer.
Dixondale farms 
is a good source but much cheaper to buy seeds. And sow them inside to set out 10 to 12 weeks or so before your last frost date. They can be set out in the garden before then and can take a light frost but not a heavy frost. Also spray them because thips and maggots will find them. They need copious amount of nitrogen and ample water to grow lush blue green leaves. Dixondale has a grow guides that are spot on. Stop fertlizing when they start to fall over. All that energy goes to bulb development. Remember every leaf represents a ring in the bulb.
Happy growing…
Thanks I never worried about thrips on onions before. I did get black aphids on a pot of green bunching onions before but they were several seasons old and flowering.
Do you ever manure in to start the onions or is that too risky?
My last onions I use bone and blood meal and later on some organic 5-5-5 and gypsum they turned out very nice. If you don’t mind what’s your go to food or fertilizer?
There are many form of nitrogen for garden use. Here is the dixondale farms fertilizing requirements for onions. Their guides are pretty much spot on.
Not sure what’s up with the extra character after the link. But the link works.
Perfect. Been pretty much guessing the last few years but I see why it worked out so well for me after reading that. Especially the bottom 2 sentences. 
Yes that last two are the important ones.
I bought garlic from Keene 6-7 years ago. Really expensive, but I’ve been planting my own seed ever since. I planted 180 Music garlic (hardneck) in October (Oct 15th every year for me in zone 5b) and bury them under a thick pile of leaves. I’d be happy to send some out for free or trade next Aug/Sept/Oct if anyone wants.
For garlic I’ve used Mad River Garlic in Ohio. Buy garlic seeds, garlic bulbs directly from the garlic farm
Both in the past and got a new variety from them this Fall. Good success but garlic seed is expensive. Once you get a variety that you like save some and regrow.
This year we 25 rows of 8 (200 total plants) in the ground with this varieties;
Klamath
Meteci
Russian Red
Bogatyr (new for us)
Music
Carpathian
Killarney
We’ve also grown Purple Glazer and Siberian in previous years, but they didn’t yield as well as the others above and our area.
Dixondale sales nice onion plants. However, I don’t buy many now because I always miss a few bulbs at harvest. Then during the fall, those lost bulbs send up a bunch of sprouts. I grab a hand full of the young sprouts and pop them out of the ground with a small shovel. Just seperate and replant. They are the same size plants as Dixondale and much fresher; usually about 20 plants per bunch.
I’ve also been very happy with Dixondale for onions. They reduce the price per bunch if you order more, so it’s totally worth combining orders with a friend if you can.
I’m on my 3rd consecutive year growing Purple Glazer and Persian Star that I got from garlic gods. I can’t tell them apart but I keep them separated when planting. One does better than the other. I planted I think 120 cloves this year from buying 1/4lb of each 2 years ago. I end up eating my own garlic about 70-80% when I cook which is most of my meals.
How the heck are you guys finding cheap onion starts/sets (if you are)? I’m seeing prices of 15$ per 50 on some of the sites linked.
I grew onions for the first time this year. Bought a 100 pack of bulbs from Walmart on clearance for 1$. Planted between my watermelon/melon vines and I ended up with about 60 onions the size of a baseball or so. I question how worth it growing onions are when they are available year round and relatively cheap. I would put in 3-400 starts/bulbs if I could get them for cheap though, just think storage and growing real estate can is a pain to figure out for them unless the price is right. I will definitely look for the box store bargain bin rejects again though
Yes I agree they do seem very expensive. I have to grow onions for some reason I don’t care for store bought onions after growing my own. They’re so good! Today I stopped by a nursery and they had bunches of starts for $7.50 for 50 starts. I grabbed the Red Candy Apple Onion to try out.