Rooted and Shooted Shallots

Posted on 26. Apr, 2011 by Tracey in Veg Plot

In my post ‘You learn something new every day‘ I started off my Shallots the ‘Monty Don’ way on Gardeners World by putting my shallot bulbs into a cell tray filled with multi purpose compost (there’s a video on the link above on how to do this).

This is the first time I have tried this technique and didn’t even have a deep enough cell tray so all the shallot bulbs sat on top of the compost but it still worked. Some sprouted shoots and some didn’t but almost all put down roots into the cell compost, which gives them a headstart when planting them out into my raised beds. This is also the first time I have planted spring sets as opposed to autumn sets which are planted out in October.

Shallot Roots

As you can see from the photos (this is after 4 weeks of being in the cell trays, in a mini greenhouse), the shallots have a healthy root system. It was then literally a case of planting them out by digging a small trench in the raised beds, deep enough to place the shallots in, cover and then have their tips poking out.

If you haven’t had chance to plant shallots in spring, there’s another chance to overwinter them by planting in October to November. Last year I grew Autumn Shallot Variety: Echalote Grise from autumn planting sets.

Click here to find out what you need and how to grow your own Shallots in Autumn.