Autumn Onions - Worth A Go?

So with all my beds bare on my new plot someone suggested to me I try autumn onions out.

Has anyone else tried growing them? Also is it too late in the season to be planting them?

 

Hiya J/J.
I tried them once. I seem to recall I lost lots of them due to a very cold winter, and the ones that survived bolted. I didn't use heat treated ones though, which 'they' do say are bolt resistant. I would say that if you have some space spare, give 'em a go, but try to seek out heat treated

 

Tried them a few years back, the ones that didn't drown got eaten by slugs

 

I used to grow them every year and get good crops but have given up as unusual weather over winters has now become the norm and they've been bolting every year.

 

Could the same happen with garlic?

 

Hardneck garlic is supposed to bolt (and produce tasty 'scapes'), bolting in softneck garlic is rarer (and I believe isn't related to overwintering conditions) and any (inedible) stems on sotnecks can be simply cut off.

I used to plant my overwintering onion setts (AKA 'Japanese' onions) in September. Red onion setts were always the worst for bolting. Next autumn I might try a few again because I used to start using the few overwintering onions that bolted from May and better sized ones from June.

Now is a good time to plant garlic.

 

I guess I better order some garlic then. Any recommendations on what variety to go for or where to order them from?

I should add that I grew some garlic a few years back and it didn't taste very garlicky. Any ideas why that might be? I think I planted solvent wight (sp?)

 

I think I may give elephant garlic a go this year. Do they store well?

 

Cor' garlic bulbs are more expensive than I remember, or am I looking in the wrong place?

 

My garlic is grown from the shop stuff - been doing it for years with no trouble. In fairness the resulting bulbs tend to be smallish but flavour and keeping quality is fine.

a-a