How to grow onions in water on the windowsill?
Onions – one of the most popular vegetables, which are grown on their dacha plots by many gardeners. However, not everyone has a dacha or a place where you can plant such plants. In this case, you can resort to growing onions at home on the windowsill. In this article, we will find out how it can be done in water.
advantages and disadvantages
Many people who prefer to provide home plantings on balconies and windowsills, are engaged in growing bulbs in water. The main feature of this agrotechnique is that there is no need to use a suitable soil mixture. In this case, the onion can get all the nutrients it needs exclusively from the liquid. Planting the bulbs at intervals of 2-3 weeks allows you to lead the feathers on the windowsill during the winter season without any problems. The main thing is to ensure that the plants have all the necessary conditions.
Many people wonder what the main advantages of growing onions in water rather than in the ground? Let’s find out the answers to this common question.
- One of the main advantages of growing onions in water on the windowsill is the absence of unpleasant odor from moisture.
- Thanks to this method of agrotechnics, a person can significantly save on the purchase of suitable tanks and reservoirs, as well as soil mixes.
- In order to arrange such plantings on the window, you do not need too much free space.
- Properly growing in water at home, a person has the opportunity to get a fresh and useful product all year round.
- The method of planting onions in water is very simple, does not take much time. A person does not need to be an experienced agronomist at all to carry out all the necessary procedures on their own.
- If a person noticed that there are spoiled and sick bulbs in the container, he can very easily take them out of there and replace them.
Growing onions at home in water does not cause much difficulty. Such agro-technologies have no serious disadvantages. However, it is necessarily necessary to provide competent care for the plant, otherwise the desired effect will not be achieved.
In addition, it is important to ensure that the plants do not begin to rot and create very unpleasant aromas in the house.
The necessary conditions for growth
The process of planting onions in water is extremely simple and clear. In order to end up with a good result, you need to follow certain rules. Plants need to provide all the necessary conditions in which they will be as comfortable as possible. Not.
Let’s find out the main points concerning the care of bulbs planted in water.
- First of all, the bulb at home on the window requires an optimal amount of light. The culture under consideration likes to “sunbathe” every 24 hours. You can use not only daylight, but also additional lamps at night.
- It is very important to choose the best place for the plants. Warm window panes are ideal. Here the culture not only gets a sufficient amount of light, but also is in a temperature environment that is comfortable for it.
- If the plants are developing in water, of course, there is no need to flood them additionally. However, you must make sure that the roots of the plants reach the liquid in the selected container.
- It is very important to monitor the temperature in which the culture grows. In the initial phase of planting, before the appearance of the first roots, the optimal temperature is +13 to +15 degrees. It is desirable that the temperature readings do not exceed +18 degrees.
- As soon as the first bulb appears in the water, the ambient temperature can be a little higher – from +18 to +20 degrees.
- Bulbs develop best when the humidity is optimal, reaching 70-80%.
If all these conditions are met, onions planted in water become healthy and of good quality. None of the above points should be neglected.
Education
You should not rush to plant the vegetable in water to get growth on the windowsill. Beforehand, it is necessary to carry out preparatory procedures. It is necessary to prepare not only the container (jar or glass), but also the material of the planting itself for the procedures.
The container
In order to plant the considered culture in water and on the window, you can use almost all types of containers. The main thing is that this part has a neck of sufficient width. This requirement plays an important role, because the convenience of placing the bulb in the container depends on it.
Some people prefer to use glasses or glasses for planting, but this is not the best solution.
Of course, it is quite possible to breed onions in a glass, but there are more practical options, especially if you plan to grow more than one bulb. It is better to use stable plastic containers. In them it will be possible to breed several bulbs at the same time.
It is desirable that the depth of the container does not exceed 2.5-3 the diameter of the bulb. Before this, the container should be thoroughly washed with running water. At the same time, it is desirable to use laundry soap. Based on the peculiarities of the material, you can prick the container with boiling water, a solution of manganese or baking powder.
When using plastic containers, it is worth preparing lids in advance. Instead of them, you can use sheets of heavy cardboard with slits. The diameter of the latter should correspond to the size of the vegetables.
Planting material
For the germination of onions in water to be successful, it is important to prepare the planting material. You can plant almost all varieties. Rostovsky, Pozharsky, Danilovsky and others are very popular. The buyer can choose almost any seedling at his discretion.
On the window you can also quickly germinate and that onion, which was bought in the store. Such a unit must meet the main condition – it must be multi-dimensioned. This can be easily determined by the cross section. If 3-4 nests are already prepared for germination, it leads to excellent results of the bunting.
A degree of life should be chosen for the plants, with a diameter of 3 to 4 cm. Immediately before the main procedures, the top layer of the shell is peeled from the vegetables, and all the tips are cut off. The larger the turnip, the larger the cut should be.
Then the onions are placed in a heated solution (35-40 degrees enough) of potassium permanganate for about half an hour. Finally, the sprouts are rinsed with cold water.
How to “plant”?
Let’s find out step by step how to properly plant onions in water without using soil.
- Pre-boiled onions should be carefully planted in a container filled with pre-concentrated water. The latter should be at room temperature. Planting should be carried out so that the bulbs were immersed in the liquid by no more than 1/3.
- Before the formation of the first green feathers, containers should be placed in a cool place, where the temperature is maintained from 17 to 20 degrees.
- In the autumn and spring period, not only a window sill, but also a place on a balcony or veranda will do.
- In winter, a window sill on the north side of the house is best for planting. In this case, heaters and radiators should be located away from these places. At this time, it is recommended to change the water several times a day.
As you can see, planting bulbs in water is very simple and fast. Any person can easily cope with such manipulations.
To grow quality and healthy onions in water on the windowsill, you need proper and regular care. Let’s consider what care measures are most important during the growth phase of the culture.
- It is important to take care of good lighting of the plants. Onions grow best on windows facing south or east. As mentioned above, a northern location is also allowed, but only in certain places.
- If there is not enough light, it will reflect very poorly on the vegetables in the water. Because of this, elongated and thinning feathers with a pale green hue may form. In winter, plants can be supplemented with phytolamps.
- Prolonged exposure to direct sunlight is of little benefit to the plants in water. Because of this, the tips of the feathers can begin to dry, the green color will soon fade.
- It is necessary to change the water in the aquariums. As a substitute, settled liquid at room temperature will do.
- During the growth of the roots the volume of water in the containers should be gradually reduced. Once the roots reach the bottom of the tanks, you can spread the substance with a porous structure at the bottom. In the future it will be enough just to moisten this fabric. This will keep the roots from rotting.
- Plants should be regularly inspected at all stages of their growth and development. Beets that have begun to deteriorate should be replaced with new and healthy ones as soon as possible. If onions suddenly become too soft and covered with dark spots on the surface, this indicates the presence of a certain disease.
- It is recommended that the domestic onion be ventilated regularly. To do this, the culture should be very carefully removed from the container, and then spread out on a flat and dry surface. Vegetables should lie down for a while and dry out. At this time, you can thoroughly rinse the containers, change the water and once again carefully inspect the bulbs.
- Onions that grow at home and on a windowsill can not get the right amount of nutrients as onions that grow in beds. Of course, the plant can be fed, adding complex types of fertilizer. However, the growing season of the culture in question is very modest, so it is better not to experiment with fertilizers.
- Optimal is the daily use of tincture of wood ash. It can be prepared from 1 teaspoon. Fertilizer and 1 cup of water. The resulting mixture is sent to the container in which the vegetables grow.
chopped vegetables
A bulb that grows in water and on a windowsill can be carefully cut 15-20 days after the formation of starter names. It is strongly advised not to overlook this crop, as it is no longer growing. At the same time, the feathers will begin to stack, tangle and bunch up, making it difficult to harvest the resulting crop. And only those onions that are 10-15 cm in height have good taste qualities.
All onion surplus can be frozen. Before this, these components can be chopped. For making a variety of salads or decorating dishes frozen onions are unlikely to be suitable, but they are a very good addition to the preparation of tasty and second dishes.
tips
Let’s look at some useful recommendations for growing onions in water at home.
How to grow delicious onions on the windowsill: secrets and subtleties
On TV, they show amazing plots about how other people grow exotic plants. They talk a lot about agrotechnics: how to choose the right country and fertilizers, what planting tools are available. Internet publications even recommend videos on how to properly cultivate the garden. And what to hide, I have many books on gardening at home.
How to take delicious onions on a windowsill
All true, but you have to start somewhere, right?
Onions are one of the oldest vegetable plants
A very famous vegetable crop that immediately comes to mind is the onion. One is now contorted and said: “Fi, onions …”. No, friends, we will grow sweet and delicious onions with tender greens that crunch on our teeth. And we will do everything ourselves.
Onions are one of the oldest vegetable plants
Growing onions is not easy, but very easy. They are one of the most studied agricultural plants and have been cultivated for more than 5,000 years.
In the ground or in water.
Growing tasty onions at home doesn’t take much: just the onions themselves and a little patience. There are different ways to grow them: the traditional way (in the ground) and the hydro method. Let you not be confused by the word hydroponics – this is also known to everyone since childhood as a way to grow onions in a glass.
Onions in a cup
For those who have little space in the window, I offer this design of mini-particles:
Mini-plot on the onion from a 5-liter plastic bottle.
The bulbs are planted in the plants in nests, when the soil is poured into the container. You can modify this design into a hydropon by replacing the soil with a substrate, such as mineral wool. If you use mineral wool, wear rubber gloves to avoid skin irritation.
The key to success is the right onions
To get a good harvest, you need to choose the right onion. It should be round and close to the touch, without gaps. The root calyx should be a good shape and large enough. It is best to choose healthy, sprouted onions for planting in the window. You will be able to get a green crop at an accelerated rate. The scales of the bulb should be shiny.
The key to success is choosing the right onion.
If there are no sprouts, you can carefully cut the onion bulb parallel to the roots. This speeds up the yield of the green abbey. You used to have to soak onions before planting when you planted them in the ground, but if you’re in an aquatic environment, you don’t need to soak them.
The optimum temperature is.
Onions are a cold-resistant crop: the optimal temperature for their cultivation is +18. +20 °С. So if you have the idea to grow onions in the window, make sure that they are not overheated either by the sun or by the heat of steam heating batteries. However, if you want to easily speed up the process of baking green feathers, you can increase the temperature to +24 ° C. But remember: at a temperature of +30 ° C, the growth of greens stops.
Floor parameter
If you grow onions in the ground, a neutral soil (with a neutral acidity of pH 6-7) will do. This article will help you determine the acid and other parameters, how to find out the type of soil and why you need it. The soil should be loose enough, with good drainage. I recommend adding humus to a neutral filler like Vermiculite (this is an intermediate technique that is at the intersection of hydroculture and conventional agriculture).
Keep an eye on the onions with a hydropop so the onions don’t float in the solution or they will rot. Use a cardboard outline or “skirts” in the structure for this purpose.
Onions are not very demanding to humidity, but if you want the greens to be juicy, you can lightly spray the feathers. In doing so, it is advisable not to wet the onion itself.
Extra light and other wonders
Usually onions after planting are put out to the window, and this is not quite right. For 10 days it should be placed in a cool, shaded place, so that the root system is intensively formed. Put it in Russian: Remove the window and put it away from the radiator.
The onion needs to be placed in a cool, shaded place so that the root system forms intensely.
Then the onion needs a lot of light. He should get it as much as possible. If you live in a region where the nights are long, you should use a hood. Provide it with daylight bulbs or special bulbs for growing plants or LED panels.
If you have a loggia, it is best to use onions there. Unlike people, it can be lit 24 hours a day and a combination of natural and artificial light – the longer the light, the faster you get the intended result.
Exemplary watering beyond the Arctic Circle
Much depends on the temperature in the room where onions are grown. At low temperatures, the feather grows slowly, so you need to maintain the temperature within +25. +27 °С. In such conditions, the feather reaches a length of 30 to 35 cm in only 17 days. To maintain the right temperature you can use almost any heating devices.
To keep the container with onions from overheating in the sun, it can be wrapped in foil.
Fertiliser and chemistry
What kind of fertilizer to use? There is no better, of course, but you can use complex with the NPK 10-10-10 according to the instructions, which do not exceed the dosage. It is better to dilute them in a large volume, and then choose a syringe with the necessary amount to feed the system.
If you use a solution container for your hydroponic system without ventilation (air saturation), the solution and the system’s roots may bend. To prevent this, you can regularly add a 4% hydrogen peroxide solution. Or a weak pink solution of parganoic acid potassium.
When you are developing a beaker.
If you plan to grow more than 10 bulbs at a time, run an aquarium compressor.
hydroponic plant for growing onions. Photo from landscape-project.com Special devices for germinating onions and other plants can be chosen from our marketplace. This is an illustrated catalog of products from major online retailers. See Germa’s selection.” width=”100%” />
Hydroponic device for growing onions. Photo from LandscapeProject.com Special devices for sprouting onions and other plants can be chosen from our marketplace. This is an illustrated catalog of products from major online retailers. See Germa’s selection.
Of course, these are not all possible tips, but hopefully they will help you grow tasty and healthy onions.
