Slime onions are also called drooping onions. The culture is perennial. Onions are called mucus due to the mucous juice released on the fracture of the leaves, as well as the mucous substances in the composition that have healing properties.
Onion-slime has juicy greens with garlic taste
Slizun bulbs unsuitable for food
Slime Onion
Specifications
In nature, slime onions prefer steppes, meadow and rocky slopes. It grows in Siberia, in the southeast of European Russia and in Central Asia.
The plant has the following characteristics:
- stem height - up to 70 cm;
- before flowering, the stem is drooping, and with its beginning it straightens;
- 6-8 leaves are formed up to 30 cm long and 4 cm wide;
- greens are fragile and juicy, the taste is usually slightly spicy with garlic notes;
- early vegetation - begins after snow melts, the culture provides the earliest greens in the garden for the table;
- flowering in the 2nd or 3rd year of life;
- the formation of beautiful spherical inflorescences - whitish-pink, lilac, purple;
- frost resistance;
- moisture lovingness;
- the formation of bulbs up to 1.5-2 cm in size - are false, unsuitable for food;
- reproduction in different ways - by seeds, dividing the bush;
- cultivation in one place for 3-6 years.
The food is consumed mainly by young leaves of onion-slug. They are used as greens mainly for salads, as well as spices for other dishes.
Popular varieties
There are different varieties of onion-slizuna, but the following are most popular:
When choosing a variety, the climatic features of your region should be taken into account. This mainly relates to the maturity of the crop.
Optimal conditions for growing
Slime onions can be grown in open ground, greenhouses or hotbeds or in various containers - boxes, pots. In any case, you need to remember the need for sufficient space, since the culture is growing rapidly.
For successful cultivation, other conditions must be observed:
- Following crop rotation rules. It is good to plant slime onions after cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes and other nightshade. Effective landing after siderates. Bad predecessors are any representatives of the Onion family.
- Sunny plot. The culture is frost-resistant and shade-hardy, but also loves warmth with light.
- Exclusion of moisture stagnation. It is better to choose an elevated area without close occurrence of groundwater. Excess moisture adversely affects the root system of the culture and can trigger the death of the entire plant.
It is not recommended that the onion is a slime onion with its onion counterpart. This may affect the taste of the culture.
Slime onions are unpretentious to the features of the soil. The culture prefers loamy soils. The level of acidity is important. It may not be reflected in the growth and development of culture, but it affects the taste of greenery, giving it undesirable bitterness. If the soil is acidic, then dolomite flour, chalk or lime should be added to it.
Onion-slime is a frost-resistant plant, so it is not necessary to dig it out for the winter. They resort to this measure if you want to get fresh herbs in the winter. In this case, you need to dig up the rhizomes and drop them into containers or boxes.
Special shelter for the winter for onion-slug in the open ground is not required. You can cover it with grass or leaves if the winters are quite harsh.
Landing
There are many ways to plant slime onions. If such a culture is already on the site and is in good condition, then you can propagate it by dividing the bush. For the first planting you need seeds.
Seeds
The crop can be planted with seeds in open ground. Work does not begin until the end of April. You can plant a crop until mid-summer.
It is necessary to act according to the following algorithm:
- Prepare planting material. For disinfection, it is necessary to lower it in a solution of potassium permanganate for a quarter of an hour. The use of a growth stimulator is also recommended - you need to act according to the instructions.
- Sprout seeds. To do this, they need to be placed in a damp cloth, periodically moistening it so that it does not dry out.
- Prepare a site for landing. Land should be dug up with compost or rotted manure since autumn. In spring, you need to loosen the soil and level it. Make grooves 1.5-2 cm deep, leaving between rows 20-30 cm, and water them.
- Sow the seeds. If the seeds were sown in April, it is recommended to arrange shelter. It is enough to cover the beds with a film or other covering material. The culture is frost-resistant, but has not yet had time to take root, so frost is dangerous for it.
As the culture grows, thinning shoots is required. As a result, at least 15 cm should remain between neighboring plants.
Seedlings
Onion seedlings can be grown in plastic containers, boxes, pots, cups. Sowing seeds should be in late February or early March.
You need to act according to the following algorithm:
- Prepare planting material. So that the seeds germinate faster, it is recommended to soak them for a day in warm water. After this, it is necessary to dry the raw materials.
- Prepare containers for landing. It is necessary to fill them with earth and make grooves. Deepen a maximum of 1 cm. Directly before planting the grooves.
- Sow the seeds. They do not need to be deepened, just sprinkle with a layer of soil.
- Close containers with glass or foil.. Shelter is required for the culture only before emergence. At this time, you need to keep it in a warm place.
- When sprouts appear, place containers with seedlings in a place with good lighting. Use additional light sources if necessary.
- Pick. It should be carried out as necessary, if the landing is too dense. It is better to dive in several stages, leaving only the strongest and most healthy specimens.
- Watering. Watering seedlings should be moderate. Orient the frequency of watering to the condition of the soil.
- Hardening. This stage should begin 1-1.5 weeks before planting in open ground. The first time the seedlings need to be taken out to fresh air and left for a quarter of an hour. This time should be gradually increased.
When planting in open ground, it is recommended to leave at least 15 cm between adjacent plants, and 20-30 cm between rows.
Dividing the bush
This method of propagation is suitable for plants that are at least 3 years old. You can only share a strong and healthy bush. This can be done in the fall or spring. If all the work is done in the fall, then in early spring the planted bushes will already give the first green.
It is necessary to act according to the following algorithm:
- Gently dig a bush. In this case, you should try to avoid damage to the root system.
- Divide the bush into several parts. It is necessary to focus on the number of bulbs. On each part of them should remain at least 3.
- Shorten the roots. You need to trim them very little.
- Plant parts of the bush in pre-prepared wells, sprinkle with earth.
The attractiveness of this method of propagation of onion-slug is to rejuvenate the culture. The plant begins to degenerate as it naturally ages, which affects the abundance of greenery and its taste.
Outdoor Care
The cultivation of onion-sludge implies the need for comprehensive care.
Watering
Culture needs regular, but moderate watering. With a lack of moisture, the quality of greenery suffers - it becomes coarse and less juicy. The frequency of watering should be oriented to the condition of the soil. When the soil dries by 2-3 cm, it is time to water the beds.
Watering should be stopped in August-September after the last cut of greens.
Top dressing
For good growth and development of onion-mucus, several dressings are required:
- in the fall it is necessary to introduce organic fertilizers - compost, rotted manure;
- in spring after the snow melts, they resort to complex fertilizers suitable for this culture - you need to dissolve 20 g of the product in a bucket of water;
- in summer time it is useful to use urea for feeding.
Weeding and cultivation
Do not allow stagnation of moisture at the roots of the plant, so you need to regularly loosen the soil. It is better to do it after watering, and each time. Loosen the soil also after rain. Loosening provides not only better penetration of moisture into the soil, but also oxygen access to the root system.
An important step in the cultivation of onion-slug is the regular elimination of weeds. Without timely weeding, weeds will draw out the nutrients that the crop itself needs, so its growth and development will slow down. The plant will begin to wither and may die.
Additionally resort to mulching. This technique allows you to save moisture. Mowed grass can be used as mulch, which will then become an excellent fertilizer.
Pest and Disease Control
Slime onions are resistant to many diseases and pests, therefore, following the rules of crop rotation and cultivation, problems usually do not arise.
One common problem is the onion fly. Damage the plant larvae that devour it from the inside. Prevention is dusting with tobacco dust, treatment with wood ash. It is also useful to use a solution of laundry soap for irrigation - it protects against other pests.
When affection of fungal diseases should resort to fungicides. To prevent bacterial and viral diseases, it is useful to use a weak solution of potassium permanganate. They should water the land, as well as process the cuts after harvesting. When processing, it is necessary to act carefully so as not to moisten heavily cut sections.
You should regularly check the state of landings. When signs of disease and pests appear, appropriate measures must be taken immediately. In most cases, affected specimens must be removed and burned.
Harvesting and storage
Specific harvest dates depend on the variety of onion-slime. During the season spend several cuts.
The first cut is performed when the leaves reach 25-30 cm in length. The next crop can be harvested after 4-6 weeks. The last cut is in September. After this, the plant does not need to be touched so that it accumulates strength for wintering.
In total for the season spend 3-5 cuts. They not only provide tasty and tender greens to the table, but also stimulate the growth of foliage and the growth of the bush.
With the spring planting of onion-slug, you can harvest the next year. The same terms for winter sowing.
Cutting is recommended in wet weather. Cut greens are not stored for a long time even in the refrigerator. She can lie down to 2 weeks. The pen should be placed in plastic bags.
For longer storage of the crop, you do not need to cut the feather, but dig it along with the bulbs. In this form, it is better to put it in boxes. They should be stored in a cellar or basement.
Onion-slime provides the earliest greens, the healing properties of which make it useful in various diseases. With proper care, the culture will successfully grow for several years in one place and give several crops a year.