Allium cepa (aggregatum group) (110 days) F-1 hybrid. This éschalion—also called bottle or banana shallot—has lustrous pinky-bronze skin and elongated 4–5" bulbs that are easy to peel and slice. Tender, sweet and slightly citrusy when raw, and with butter in a skillet they caramelize as perfectly as the golden crust of the fanciest crème brûlée. Easy to grow—a great option for market growers and home gardeners alike. Stores beautifully into April. In 2021 this became the first shallot ever to receive an AAS Winner designation. ④
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The sweetest and mildest member of the onion family, important in Asian, Persian and French cuisines.
Growing Shallots
Most of our sets are long-day varieties, suitable for northern growers. All other factors being equal, alliums grown from seedlings will grow bigger and resist disease better than those grown from sets.
Planting: Shallots are day-length sensitive—to produce large bulbs, plant in spring as soon as soil is workable. Shallow rooted, onions and shallots require rich weed-free soil and consistent water.
Seedlings: Set 4–6" apart in trenches in well-dug beds with generous quantities of organic matter. Avoid transplanting next to grass strips; slugs love to dine on tiny allium seedlings. Irrigate seedlings whenever the topsoil dries out.
Sets: Plant 3" apart in rows 1' apart. Thin to 6" apart as they grow (or plant them 4–6" apart if you don’t want to thin).
Growing: Mulch when they are 1' tall. During the season, pull any plants that begin to bolt and use them as scallions. It’s a good idea to sidedress once or twice a season, especially close to summer solstice.
Harvest and Storage: Clean and grade before storage. Ideal storage conditions are temperatures at 32˚ with humidity of 60–70%. If you can’t do that, work to get a total number of 100. For example, at temperatures from 50–55˚, humidity should be 45–50%.
Alliums
Alliums are heavy feeders and want generous amounts of organic matter, fertilizer and water. Late transplanting and poor fertility can result in small onions or failure to form bulbs. Alliums are notoriously intolerant of weeds. Slugs love to munch them, and in areas above 40° latitude, root maggots may be a problem.
Diseases:
DM Downy Mildew
PR Pink Root
ALERT: Leek Moth is emerging as a serious pest potentially affecting all Alliums in the Northeast. Consult your local Cooperative Extension for more info.
Growing Alliums From Seed
Timing: Start allium seeds indoors in February or March.
Minimum germination soil temperature 45°; optimal range 60-70 °. We discourage using bottom heat because alliums germinate poorly in soil temps above 70°.
Transplant: in spring soon after the ground can be worked
Note: Allium seed is short-lived. We do not hold over hybrid onion seed because of precipitous decreases in germination. Test 1-year-old seed before using. Discard anything older.
Germination Testing
For the latest results of our germination tests, please see the germination page.
Our Seeds are Non-GMO
All of our seeds are non-GMO, and free of neonicotinoids and fungicides. Fedco is one of the original companies to sign the Safe Seed Pledge.
