spring onions

Every year I try a new variety and sow several times but they either don't germinate or show up as spindly shoots smaller than chives after many weeks.  They stay like that until put out of their misery by autumn frosts. All other veg thrive in my patch so what am I doing wrong?

Well, we have been trying to grow Spring onions for over 40 years and so far.......................................none.

I usually find they get overtaken by weeds and are very difficult to weed. Window box sounds a good idea.

Glad to hear it's not just me then!  Don't have a window box and have to grow everything in my rabbit proof veg patch otherwise the blighters take everything - have learned that the hard way about chives.

i tried the red spring onions last year along with the white found they germinated faster and if left grew on to a nice onion with a mild taste

I grow mine in pots and never have any problems. I start them off in 3" pots and when big enough plant them up into 12" pots spaced out about 1" apart. I get good sized onions this way. You can have them growing all year by spacing out the sowing times.

Great, but we cannot get Red onions seed to germinate either. Very odd as I also grow a lot of different ornamental onions and usually get 100% germination, 'tis only the edible ones which will not grow. And, yes I have tried every suggestion ever made in every Veg growing handbook and on the Interweb thingy. Cannot even get them to germinate in petrie dishes in agar jelly.

Rabbits eat chives and any other herbs they can get to so unfortunately I have to grow them at the bottom of the garden within the rabbit proof veg patch so not very handy for the odd sprig.  Am going to try them in pots sitting on something high that they can't reach.

Save your legs, Chives freeze very easily. Snip them into bits and put them on a tray and into the freezer. Then when ready crumble in to a bag and that way you can use them in whatever quantity you need. We had a handful sprinkled on the Soup today.

allonions need good drainage ,add a little sand when you sow them ,and don`t cover the seed to much,they will germinate better in cool conditions say 12 to 15 degrees ,add a little bone meal in your soil a week before sowing this will help growth after germination,,and don`t water too much in dry weather as onions don`t like there feet getting wet lol