Temporary Green Onions --- AKA Scallions

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, mjb8743. This user is located in Zone 7, South NJ, Garden State. This was originally posted on May 21, 2013.

Have you ever bought bunches of scallions at the supermarket and had them spoil before you could use them up?

Have you planted onion sets to harvest as scallions? And waited...and waited...

I buy bunches at 3/$1.99... I look for medium size with at least 1/2" roots. When I get home, I stick them in a prepared planter and water them. They keep just fine until I use them up. I do this to curb my impatience waiting for my own green onions to get to harvest size.

Mickie

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Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, PaulB. This user is located in Southeast New Mexico, Zone 7. This was originally posted on May 22, 2013.

I still have some growing from last year, when I planted some that were badly wilted instead of throwing them out.  One of these has divided 9 times and I have dozens of seed heads developing.  These seeds will be collected and planted this fall for a new spring crop.  Onions grew throughout the winter for me, much as garlic does for some folks.

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Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, morganmac. This user is located in NW Georgia, Zone 7b. This was originally posted on May 22, 2013.

Good to know! They always turn slimy on me before I can use them up.

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, Psyche. This user is located in Zone 7a, Maryland. This was originally posted on May 22, 2013.

Has anyone tried to cut off the green (for cooking) then planted the bulb?

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, cc-fl. This user is located in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida - Zone 10. This was originally posted on May 23, 2013.

I've cut off the bottom 1/2 inch and planted them successfully.   

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Full Member, BK.  This user is located in North Houston - Zone 9. This was originally posted on May 26, 2013.

OK guys, get ready for a chuckle.

I always want green onions but am getting terribly annoyed that they're slimy when I want them and the supermarket prices are getting silly. I punched another  hole in my herb only box cover and shoved in a fistful of bottoms (8 or 9 all crammed together) about a month or so ago.  They are growing like crazy.

Now for the stupid (or not)part.

Early spring EB planting season I had a pack of seeds.  No room in my EB's and no regular flower pot handy.

I iz a curious sort, yes I iz  Grin


Hey, their roots aren't very deep, right?

I took a normal plastic shoebox (not the hard plastic kind) and heated a large metal skewer from my kitchen drawer  Melted lots of drainage holes.  Planted the seeds in Jungle Growth and left the box on my back patio.

It is full of green onions. They did not die, they're growing like weeds.
I water frequently and use a little Miracle Grow on them.  Full size now and delicious.  And not a buck a pop for five or six from the grocery..  I chop the tops, they keep growing.

Whatever works.  It might sound silly but I haven't bought  green onions  in quite some time.

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, baileyj. This user is located in Zone 7A --- Annapolis, Maryland. This was originally posted on May 27, 2013.

Great Thread !!

I throw them away all the time, slimy or dried up !

I am going to look for a bit of space this morning, here they are still 2 bunches for $1.00 but I am sure not for long ! 
This sounds like a renewable source of green onions !

Judi

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Full Member, BK.  This user is located in North Houston - Zone 9. This was originally posted on May 27, 2013.

FYI,
The bottoms I planted had the roots cut to almost nothing. Nowhere near 1/4 inch. I left them overnight in a glass with water to cover the roots and stuck them in the EB the next day. They grew fine.

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Active Member, BDumler2. This user is located in Meridian, ID Zone 6. This was originally posted on May 28, 2013.

OK, I'm confused and this may be a stupid question but.....Are you saying that the long green onions are planted and that they divide eventually into more green onions?  How much of the onion are you planting?  Are you planting the white part with part of the green?  How far apart and how long does it usually take?  Pardon my ignorance.  Just when I thought I was getting smarter this comes along

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Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, PaulB. This user is located in Southeast New Mexico, Zone 7. This was originally posted on May 29, 2013.

I simply stuck the whole onion in, as they were wilting badly and unedible.

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, mjb8743. This user is located in Zone 7, South NJ, Garden State. This was originally posted on May 29, 2013.

When I started this thread, I was feeling good that I had this great idea to share... then you folks chimed in and really expanded this to a whole new idea.

I've been inspired to try replanting the root ends of my scallions while I use the tops. But even then, I don't use the entire green parts, so I'm wondering if they can be dried then crushed to a powder that could flavor butter or cream cheese? I'll report back later on that.

Anyway, thank you for the inspiration to keep trying new ideas. It kinda reminds me of the 'brain storming' sessions we used to have at work. Lets do this more often.

Happy gardening,
Mickie

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Jr. Member, thefist. This user is located in Cary, NC, Zone 7b. This was originally posted on May 30, 2013.

Great timing on this thread.  I've got a bunch of scallions in the fridge now, and heading out of town for a few days.  They might need planted when I get back.   

Mickey... when you say in your original post, "prepared planter" do you just mean a pot with EB style potting mix, or do you enhance that at all? 

fist

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Hero Member, mjb8743. This user is located in Zone 7, South NJ, Garden State. This was originally posted on May 30, 2013.

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Jr. Member, thefist. This user is located in Cary, NC, Zone 7b. This was originally posted on May 30, 2013.

Great timing on this thread.  I've got a bunch of scallions in the fridge now, and heading out of town for a few days.  They might need planted when I get back.   

Mickey... when you say in your original post, "prepared planter" do you just mean a pot with EB style potting mix, or do you enhance that at all? 

fist

Why wait until you get back? Stick 'em in some mix now. I just use any empty spot or planter with potting mix that's available... no special enhancements since, until now, it was always just a temporary holding place until I used up the scallions.

Now, I want to try out some of the ideas presented in this thread, so I will need to find a more permanent planter with appropriate lime/fertilizer added. I once had a tote bin with leftover scallions in late Fall. They died off when it froze, but come Spring, new greens sprouted up. So, with protection, I imagine a decent sized planter could keep things going indefinitely.

I started doing this when my supermarket had an 'orphan rack' of over-the-hill produce. I rescued a large package that had about 8 or 10 bunches of scallions. Knowing they would spoil quickly, the idea was born. No fancy prep... just stuck 'em in the dirt.

Mickie

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Full Member, Emnation. This user is located in Zone 7, Springfield, Virginia / DC metro area. This was originally posted on May 30, 2013.

Last year I started saving the bottom inch of scallions by putting them in a shot glass with a little water. Once they started growing new green shoots, I would harvest what I needed and let them keep on growing until the roots became too long or the plant became slimy / smelly (due to not changing the water often enough).  This spring I decided to take it a step further and plant them in a pot on my deck. Oh, and I also bought some seeds to see if I could grow them that way, so I now have a mixed pot with grocery store green onion stubs plus the anticipated seedlings. I love eating scallions in various dishes, so it made sense to finally try to grow them!

[EarthBoxAdmin]

Disclaimer: This post was originally posted by Newbie, fingers. This was originally posted on July 8, 2013.

Nice replies. I have 2 boxes, about 2.5 ft. long x 10" deep x 12" wide. Designer with adjustable hangers to hang on a fence. They look like mini EB's. They were a gift (I'm a EB users) Anyway, I place then on the screen porch, use for scallion production as mentioned in some of ya'll's comments. Being on the porch with no water hose around, it's easy to fill the boxes with a water bucket up to the pee hole every few days instead of drowning them in mud by over watering. Note, as I wrote this I wondered with EB has these boxes...I'm going to the home page to see if there in the store.