The More You Grow: Onions

It doesn't take much to make me tear up, especially when I'm cutting onions! (Do you know why that is? Here's an article explaining the reason behind it if you're interested!)

Most people have a love/hate relationship with onions, but you'd be surprised at the benefits they can bring! It can stop congestion in its tracks thanks to the sulfur compound they contain that helps break up mucus. Have a cold? Slice up an onion! I tried this recently when I had a summer cold and IT WORKED. I could breathe almost instantly out of my nose again. My husband always jokes that he can tell when he hasn't had onions in awhile. It's like his body craves them - and for good reason!

Onions are nutrient-dense powerhouses. They not only stop inflammation in your body, but deliver a host of vitamins and minerals benefiting your heart, lungs, bladder, brain, and bones! Studies have shown that they even have anti-cancer and anti-bacterial properties. Your gut will also benefit from regular consumption, as they are a rich source of prebiotics and fiber! Source They are also known to ramp up and boost your immune system! Remember the onion we talked about earlier for congestion? While you're at it, add that chopped onion in a recipe to help fight off the viral infection in your body from the inside out! Soup, anyone?

We usually buy our onion bulbs from a local farm store and choose a variety of red, white, and yellow onions. When planting potatoes and other cold crop vegetables, we plant onions in a long furrow and keep them fairly close together, about 1 inch apart. Then, cover them with soil with the sprout side pointed up, and pat the soil down. Within two weeks, you'll begin to see sprouts pop up!

When maintaining onions, you want to keep an eye on how close together they are. If you planted them farther apart, they'll have no problem growing bigger in size. However, the closer they are, the less in diameter they will be. If you're like us, we plant them closer together so we can strategically select green onions to enjoy earlier on in the season when the onions reach about 8 inches tall. If you notice something blooming at the top of the greens, be sure to pull those off if you want your onions to continue to grow. Sometimes they try to go to seed, and pulling the bloom off will halt that process.

You know your onions are ready to harvest when the majority of the tops of the onions have fallen over. Some people even stomp the greens down a week or so before they harvest. Pull all of your onions at this point and allow them to dry and cure for a few weeks. Onions are done curing when the outer skins turn paper-thin and the foliage is brown. They should be stored in cool, dark places and should last up to 4 months.

Check out how to hang your onions here!