Thank me later😀

By Agho p Blessing

HOW TO CULTIVATE ONIONS

Onion (Allium cepa) is a vegetable crop which belongs to the family Alliaceous. Onion is one of the most
commonly consumed vegetable crops in the world, mostly cultivated in Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa, Sokoto,
Plateau, Bauchi and Kebbi States but does exceedingly better in Edo State because of the nature of our
arable lands with good climatic weather condition(are you Surprise?lol). This is because the onion bulb
and stem mature within one year while it takes the onion plant two years to fully grow and mature. For
this reason, the onions that we commonly eat are harvested during the first year, and the plant is killed
rather than being allowed to go to its second year...thus, irrigation is absolutely needed to sustain the
plant in the north unlike the south where we have heavy rainfall.

Hope y'all know why Isoko/ Delta is my PRIDE?🌱🍇🌾🌴🌿🥀🌻💐

Below is how you can cultivate onions

1. Site selection: the site selected should be flat and free from stumps.

2. Land Preparation: Ploughing and harrowing the land to prepare a good and flat seedbed is necessary.
If adding manure or composted organic matter then add a few weeks before sowing / planting.

3. Nursery practices: The seed is usually sown in a nursery under a mulch cover. In the nursery prepare
raised beds maximum 1 m wide and incorporate plenty of well-decomposed compost and fowl
droppings. Hand weeding and watering should continue until the seedlings are 6-8 weeks old when they
should be ready for transplanting.

4. Transplanting: The land for transplanting should be well prepared and leveled. Seedlings should be
transplanted to the field six-eight weeks after sowing in the nursery.

5. Fertilization Application: You know what to do right?

6. Weeding: weeding can be done mechanically or chemically by spraying Dacthal herbicide over the
beds after planting.

7. Harvesting: Onions are ready to harvest a week after their tops have started to fall over and are
yellowed. It can be harvested by hand pulling or using a fork to lift the onions out of the ground.
8. Curing: Before onion bulbs are placed in storage or marketed, the tops are usually removed and
frequently also the roots.

9. Storage: The harvested onions are preserved in silos. The storage structures consists mostly of
bamboo or wood stacks stuffed with grass. Ambient air is allowed to enter the storage structures. The
onions could store for up to 6 months in these conditions. It is sad that most Nigerian onion producing
communities lack modern processing and preservation plants. These are the areas the Ministry of
Agriculture needs to look into.

It is also an opportunity for private business people to explore too.

Advice from me: Start very small to learn the process.